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-------------------------------------------------------------------------Text and photo / Alex IvanouIn 1991, on only his second day at work, Irvin Jim&#039;s fellow workers at Firestone Tyres nominated him as their union representative. Irvin laughs as he recounts the shock of company management when a general meeting was called to elect the young rubber worker. Aged only 23, Irvin turned down the nomination that day but within three months had taken on the role of shop steward, and was well on the path to becoming one of South Africa&#039;s most senior trade unionists. In October 2008, Irvin was elected General Secretary at the Congress of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA). Despite his smiling manner, Irvin immediately conveys the impression of a person who has his own views and convictions and is ready to defend them. Irvin&#039;s rapid ascension within the union was assisted by the skills he gained as a student activist in South Africa&#039;s youth movement in the late 1980&#039;s. Following the fall of the apartheid regime in 1994, Irvin became the NUMSA regional chairperson for the Eastern Cape region. He was at that time the youngest member of the NUMSA Central Committee and remained Regional Secretary until his election to the leadership role last year.The fight against the apartheid regime has been a central theme for both Irvin and the union he now heads. NUMSA was formed in 1987 as a result of a merger between four unions to unite different sectors into a single metalworkers&#039; union. The IMF played a key role in the creation of the union and continues to work closely with NUMSA, which represents southern Africa at IMF Executive committee meetings. &quot;Politically and economically we&#039;ve been a very fortunate country, a country that succeeded to win solidarity with the people of the globe,&quot; says Irvin. &quot;The biggest challenge now is to ensure that the very same globe appreciates that the legacy of apartheid has not been dealt with.&quot;<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1" align="center"><tbody><tr><td align="center" valign="middle"><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19224&amp;mwId=19189">forward &gt;&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

The new leader of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa brings a long history of activism to combat old and new challenges.

Profile of Irvin Jim Download pdf file with illustrations >>

Confronting the legacy of apartheid remains vital for South African workers

Organizing women and bringing them into leadership positions is central to the IMF Action Program. In 2005, the Congress voted to expand the Executive to 25 seats; six are reserved for women and are to be equally distributed among the regions. The plan also set a 20 percent target for women's participation in the Central Committee and Congress, and called for holding a Women's Conference in conjunction with the Congress. Regional structures such as the Latin American Gender Council, East Asian Women's Committee and the Macedonian Women's Section have been set up. In Brazil and the Dominican Republic, the increasing role of women is changing union cultures. The ILO recently recognized the Canadian Auto Workers' (CAW) historic struggle for gender equality. In some cases, progress is directly linked to the crucial task of organizing more women. Women are the predominant workers in EPZs the world over, and in Indonesia, the IMF affiliates' success in EPZ organizing are largely due to strong advances in bringing women into leadership positions.Global labor at a turning pointRight now, the world is mired in the most serious economic downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s. As the IMF repeatedly underlined, neo-liberalism was a disaster waiting to happen. Deregulation, privatization, weakening of social safety nets, neglect of public investment, and hostility to worker and human rights by many national governments, the Bretton Woods institutions, and the World Trade Organization (WTO), led to the stagnation of living standards for the popular classes and enormous riches for a few. The basic elements of the crisis were growing indebtedness and unregulated financial speculation in a now global financial market. The current crisis is a disaster for the world's poor and working people. Declining production, even when mergers and bankruptcies can be avoided, will bring unemployment and loss of incomes to billions of workers. Union membership is bound to decline in the short run and will have to be rebuilt.Nevertheless, there is a bright side to the debacle. For decades, unions swam against the stream, but now the failure of neo-liberalism is obvious to all but those who will not learn. Leaders of banks and industries - the former cheer-leaders for neo-liberal &quot;reforms&quot; - now beg for government hand-outs. Deficit spending is advocated even by conservative experts and public ownership is on the rise. This is a great opportunity for the IMF, international labor, and its progressive allies. Although the current crisis is economic, its roots are political. Discredited policies can be reversed by a new push for respect of core labor standards not only nationally but in world trade, by demanding the rebuilding of social safety nets, stricter environmental safeguards (including a switch to clean energies), re-regulation of finance and industries, and effective economic intervention by government that will counteract depression even as it improves infrastructures and promotes sustainable industries and services. The future IMF must seize this opportunity and meet these challenges.<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1" align="center"><tbody><tr><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19220&amp;mwId=19189">&lt;&lt; back</a></td><td> </td><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19215&amp;mwId=19189">beginning</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

Download the pdf file of the special report with illustrations >>

IMF - The last twenty years

GENEVA: The International Labour Organisation Bureau for Workers&#039; Activities ACTRAV encourages trade unionists to apply for a new masters program on labour and globalisation launched by Global Labour University in 2009. The trade unionists from all over the globe are invited to participate in four courses, which will take place in Brazil, Germany, India and South Africa.  The deadline for applications for courses organised in Germany and India is April 1, 2009. Unionists who want to enroll to the courses in Brazil and South Africa should submit applications before September 1, 2009.The courses are given in English. Detailed information about the programs and the application forms are  available at <a href="http://www.global-labour-university.org/">http://www.global-labour-university.org/</a>. The Bureau for Workers&#039; Activities and its project partners will award a limited number of scholarships to applicants from developing and transition economies. Applicants need to have the endorsement of a trade union to apply for a scholarship.  Applications for scholarship should be sent to the Global Labour University. Contact details are available at the GLU <a href="http://www.global-labour-university.org/">site</a>.

Global Labour University invites trade unionists of the world to participate in a special masters program on labour and globalisation.

GLU launches new international programs on labour and globalisation

EUROPE: Trade unions, works councils, the European Metalworkers' Federation (EMF) have called for a Day of Action on 26 February demanding a sustainable and viable future for their companies in Europe, which means one:<ul><li>without site/plant closures,</li><li>without forced redundancies,</li><li>with environmentally-friendly, dynamic and innovative vehicles, and</li><li>with the full participation of European governments, trade unions, dealers and employees.</li></ul>The Day of Actions therefore calls for:<ul><li>European government loan guarantees / stakes,</li><li>A search for new partners, investors and shareholders,</li><li>The introduction of a new corporate organization and management structure, and</li><li>Strong European co-ordination by all stakeholders.</li></ul>For more information, contact Tony Murphy, EMF Company Policy Director.

Workers need a sustainable and viable future for Opel/Vauxhall and Saab.

Opel/Vauxhall and Saab European Action Day on 26 February

INDONESIA: Workers at a Batam EPZ  company have succeeded in regaining the majority of their unpaid wages by auctioning all of the factory's moveable assets. Minutes after announcing the abrupt closure of the electronics components company, all of PT Livatec's managing directors absconded by ferry to nearby Singapore. They left owing around US$2.5 million in unpaid wages and severance pay to the 1600 mostly women workers.But with the assistance of IMF Affiliate FSPMI, the workers defied bank claims by occupying the factory and auctioning everything they could, including three Mercedes Benz cars left by the managing directors. While the bank retained ownership of the land and other fixed assets, the workers succeeded in regaining around $1.5 million or 60% of what they were owed."The workers were successful because they stayed united in the face of adversity," said FSPMI President Iqbal Said.IMF South East Asia Representative Arunasalam said the case should serve as a warning for other companies trying to evade paying workers their rightful entitlements.

Workers in Indonesia take things into their own hands after management abscond, leaving US$2.5 million in unpaid entitlements.

Indonesian workers auction factory assets, regain unpaid wages

AUSTRALIA: Building on the recently adopted steel climate change policy (Tokyo 2008) the International Metalworkers' Federation's steel department held its second climate change meeting on March 24-25 in the lead up to Copenhagen 2009. The most widely known global agreement trying to cut global emissions, Kyoto is approaching the end of its life and in Copenhagen, Denmark, governments will try to make a new deal on emission cuts between 2012 and 2020. An international approach to tackling climate change is essential and steel unions have called for an international response that avoids unfair trade conditions and guarantees a level playing field. The argument that the world faces a serious threat from environmental degradation is no longer open to serious challenge. At the IMF meeting in Australia, steel unions from 5 regions held discussions with business leaders, governmental ministers, trade union partners, think tanks and environmental NGO's in order to build partnerships and further develop the IMF's approach on this vitally important issue. Representatives from the Chinese All Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) were also invited to attend but unfortunately were unable to participate. The outcomes of the meeting were as follows:<ul><li>IMF will promote a metalworkers' position in the International arena including Copenhagen 2009.</li><li>IMF will produce some practical materials for distribution amongst affiliates.</li><li>The IMF Steel section will present a resolution on this issue to the IMF Congress in May 2009.</li><li>IMF will continue to build relationships with other interested parties.</li><li>IMF will develop strategies to engage with national and international agencies such as UNFCCC, OECD, ILO, etc.</li></ul>

Metal unions meet in Australia to craft strategy for enhanced engagement in the climate change debate in preparation for Copenhagen 2009.

Climate Change- Taking the power back

In Latin America, unions began to see the fruits of their decades-long struggle against dictatorships. Together with political and civil society allies, unions ultimately succeeded in electing progressive governments in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Uruguay, and Venezuela. At its 1989 Congress, the IMF had 19 regional affiliates, but none in the economically powerful Brazil and only three medium-sized organizations in Mexico. By 2005, the IMF counted 35 metalworking unions, including the two largest in Brazil, and seven significant unions in Mexico including the powerful mine workers (SNTMMSRM). This positive turn in Mexico was largely due to an increase in IMF activities after 2000. Nevertheless, much work remains to be done there - a conservative government and a majority corporatist union movement still inhibit the formation of independent unions.The Asia-Pacific Region saw strong economic development during the last twenty years. For unions, particularly metalworkers, there were some important successes. There were affiliations in Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Nepal, but most notably, the large metalworkers' organization in Korea (KMWF, now KMWU) and important unions in Indonesia (FSPMI and Lomenik-SBSI) joined the IMF. In 2000 the IMF expelled the Thai union and assisted in the formation of a new independent union called TEAM. Through workshops organised annually since 2003 for the then Vietnam National Union of Industrial Workers (VNUIW) the IMF has consolidated its relationships with the successor organisation, the Vietnam National Union of Workers in Industry and Trade (VUIT), which has recently applied for affiliation to the IMF.The IMF's engagement with China began with a 1994 fact-finding mission which was followed by a high-level mission to China in 2000 and 2006. After a long process of discussions, a small meeting with the Chinese Machinery, Metallurgical and Building Materials Workers' Union (CMMBMWU) was organised at the beginning of January 2009 and a joint workshop on collective bargaining has been planned for April 2009. Nevertheless, these gains cannot obscure the enormous obstacles that independent unionism faces in Asia, including China. However, the IMF is committed for the long term, and persevering efforts are necessary to make further progress in the future. In India, independent unionism is relatively weak in the private sector, and a number of important unions linked to Communist parties are not yet prepared to follow their counterparts in Europe and the former Soviet Block and join, or at least work with, the IMF. In cooperation with its affiliates, the IMF has launched a number of projects, which include union-building among shipbreaking workers and targeted educational activities. The IMF is also working with Indian unions to advance organising in fast growing sectors such as steel and automotive industries. Nevertheless, strengthening and uniting metalworker unions in this rapidly developing part of the world remains one of the key challenges confronting the IMF.<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1" align="center"><tbody><tr><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19216&amp;mwId=19189">&lt;&lt; back</a></td><td> </td><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19215&amp;mwId=19189">beginning</a></td><td> </td><td align="center" valign="middle"><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19218&amp;mwId=19189">forward &gt;&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

IMF - the last twenty years

Post Cold War Union BuildingUnder new leadership, the IMF immediately addressed these challenges. By December 1990, a &quot;Plan of Action&quot; identified Czechoslovakia, Poland and Hungary as key transition countries and focused on preparing them for the role independent unions play in democratic market-based societies. In 1991, seminars were held in the target countries as well as Romania and Bulgaria, and in December the first IMF conference in Eastern Europe took place in Brno, Czekoslovakia on the issue of migration. Starting that year, millions of metalworkers in Central Europe began to join the IMF, and by the time of the centenary congress in 1993, metalworking unions from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland and Romania were IMF members. The Slovenian metalworkers became members that same year. By 1997, IMF affiliates in this region by-and-large took over responsibilities for their own programs. The first IMF office opened in Central and Eastern Europe in Budapest in 1997 and efforts turned to South-eastern Europe, where the rebuilding of cooperative relations after years of war and ethnic conflicts was a priority. Affiliations, mostly in the countries of the former Yugoslavia, soon followed. IMF attention then turned to the former Soviet Republics and the Baltic states. Plans for a Project Office in Moscow were developed and implemented over several years. A new milestone was passed with the affiliation of unions in Belarus, Russia and the Ukraine in 1999. In 2001, the IMF Executive was enlarged to include a representative from Central and Eastern Europe. By 2004, the 12 regional affiliates the IMF counted in 2001 had grown to 19, including a first affiliation from Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan). Since 1989, strong metalworking unions have been built throughout the former Soviet Bloc, but many challenges remain. Entrenched regimes still regard independent unions with hostility, particularly in Belarus, where the Lukashenko dictatorship tries to crush them. Economic difficulties persist in many countries, and even where there has been some progress, metalworkers' gains are sure to be threatened by the deepening economic crisis that began in 2008.Eastern and Central Europe was not the only world region where the IMF and the movements it had assisted, progressed. In South Africa, combined international and domestic pressures forced the apartheid state to release Nelson Mandela, who was elected to lead the country in 1994. South African metalworkers were already well represented in the IMF in 1989, particularly by the huge NUMSA, but in the rest of Africa, there were only 13 affiliates and none in Mozambique, Angola or Nigeria. That number grew by 2005. Excluding South Africa, there were 24 affiliates in Africa, including important unions in Mozambique and Angola as well as countries on the Mediterranean. Unfortunately, despite this membership growth and a few bright spots, there was no significant economic development in post-colonial Africa.<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1" align="center"><tbody><tr><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19215&amp;mwId=19189">&lt;&lt; back</a></td><td> </td><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19215&amp;mwId=19189">beginning</a></td><td> </td><td align="center" valign="middle"><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19217&amp;mwId=19189">forward &gt;&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

The details of the national collective contract are key to recruitment. With shrinking membership figures, it will be more difficult to maintain the collective contract, Inga-Lill points out adding, &quot;for that reason we must explain what a collective contract is. Many young people think that pay and overtime compensation and other working conditions are determined by law and not through negotiations between the unions and employers' organizations. &quot;The more workplaces lack members, the more difficult it is to defend conditions. For that reason there is a clear connection between membership and the ability to defend working conditions.&quot; Back to Snap-On in Bollnäs where Stefan Halvarsson, chairman of the IF Metall branch, is not satisfied that almost all metalworkers at the plant are in the union. He also participates in the union's organizing and recruiting project. &quot;We travel around to workplaces, and many people think it's fun when we come. They are happy to see us. Often it's a matter of showing yourself. And listening. We also get an opportunity to explain why we're here. We can inform people about the value of being in the union,&quot; Stefan says. The Swedish trade union movement is confronted with new challenges. For Stefan it is self-evident that the fate of the Swedish trade union movement is part of the global movement. He is chairman of the Snap-On company's European Works Council and through it he has close contacts with other European unions. Stefan is also participating in the start-up of a union project with the metalworkers' union in Namibia. &quot;International cooperation has been becoming even more important. Bollnäs and our plant are a part of the world - that has become ever more obvious in recent years, says Stefan. &quot;It is important to organize more people, both here in Sweden and around the world.&quot;<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1" align="center"><tbody><tr><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19213&amp;mwId=19189">&lt;&lt; back</a></td><td> </td><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19197&amp;mwId=19189">beginning</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

Feature: Download pdf file with illustrations >>

Swedish Unions revive recruitment efforts

Members not only have access to the local database, but also to a national database for Sveriges Ingenjörer throughout the country. &quot;The database is highly valued by our members and strongly contributes to our attractiveness as a union. Quite simply, they get a lot for their membership,&quot; she adds. The database also contains information on current union activities at ABB Corporate Research. The board of directors regularly publishes information on its activity, and all meeting minutes are also available. Hence, all members receive an electronic newsletter from the engineers' corporate department in all units throughout Sweden. All totalled, Sveriges Ingenjörer has some 2,000 engineers at ABB in various locations around the country. &quot;We know that the newsletter is very popular. It is a way of providing important information to members on, for example, equality and pay issues. It is also a way of getting members from various parts of the country to feel involved and to feel united,&quot; Shiva says. ABB is a global, knowledge-intensive group in the power and automation technology sector and employs people all over the world. Many engineers come to Sweden and to Västerås from elsewhere. The international character of the ABB Corporate Research Center, where some 30 countries are represented among the 180 engineers, is very much evidence. &quot;That doesn't mean that everyone with a foreign background comes directly from another country. Many were raised in Sweden,&quot; says Shiva. &quot;But more and more of them do come directly from another country. Just last year some ten foreign engineers were newly recruited at the ABB Corporate Research Center.&quot; These foreign engineers often choose to join Sveriges Ingenjörer at ABB.&quot;The response has been very positive. We have gained a lot of new members,&quot; Shiva adds. The level of organization among engineers at ABB is significantly higher than the national average. In Sweden as a whole, it is estimated that just over half - 54 per cent - of graduate engineers are members of Sveriges Ingenjörer. The total number of members is 120,000, which represents an increase of 3 per cent during the last year. <table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1" align="center"><tbody><tr><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19208&amp;mwId=19189">&lt;&lt; back</a></td><td> </td><td><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19197&amp;mwId=19189">beginning</a></td><td> </td><td align="center" valign="middle"><a href="../main/index.cfm?n=103&amp;l=2&amp;c=19212&amp;mwId=19189">forward &gt;&gt;</a></td></tr></tbody></table>

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