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Miners at a uranium mine in Namibia won a 2006 salary agreement from R&ouml;ssing Uranium after interrupting work for four hours on 10 January to deliver a petition to company management.
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Some 450 miners of the R&ouml;ssing Branch of ICEM affiliate Mineworkers&rsquo; Union of Namibia won an 8% pay hike from the mining concern that is 68.6% owned by Rio Tinto, plus a one-off bonus of N$1,000 and substantial housing allowances. When senior managers at the mine where unavailable to accept the petition at the mine&rsquo;s main entrance, miners boarded buses to Swakopmund, some 70 kilometers away, to present the petition to senior management.
Rio Tinto announced in December that it was investing US$112 million in R&ouml;ssing Uranium, a move that would extend the life of the mine from 2009 to 2016.

Rio Tinto Miners in Namibia Win Pay Gains

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Five subcontractors at a Taiyo Oil Co. refinery in Imabari, Japan were burned to death 17 January inside a 100,000 kiloliter oil storage tank. An explosion and fire occurred when two contractors were preparing the tank for cleaning.
Investigators are looking at safety management practices of the two contractors, Taiyo Techno Service and Fukasaki-Gumi, and suspicion of negligence on their part.
The Taiyo Oil Workers&rsquo; Union, affiliated with JEC Rengo, is monitoring in the investigation. The union represents refinery workers at the 120,000 barrel-per-day Taiyo refinery, but not contract workers. Two other contract workers were injured in the blast and subsequent fire.

Contract Workers Killed at Japanese Oil Refinery

French affiliate FCE-CFDT has condemned Swiss chemicals and pharmaceutical company Novartis for installing a special telephone line in plants so workers can whistle-blow on one another.
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The union said such a practice abuses the company&rsquo;s own code of conduct, and creates a sour climate for employee morale. The central committee of workers for Novartis&rsquo;s French enterprises, along with the FCE-CFDT and CGT-FO, have taken legal action in the city of Nanterre.
In spite of laws and regulations preventing such practices, certain multinationals, including Novartis, do no hesitate to transgress these laws and regulations in order to arrive at methods that are perceived to be accountability measures, stated the FCE-CFDT.

French Affiliate Protests Novartis’ Whistle-Blowing Tactics

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CEP members at a Stora Enso paper mill in Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia, will vote tomorrow and Wednesday, 24 and 25 January, on a company contract proposal. Rejection likely will mean 660 members of CEP Local 972 will face a lockout effective 26 January. 
Following eight days of non-stop bargaining that ended late on 18 January, Local 972 members met with union leaders on 21 January to review proposed terms, which includes job losses, contracting out provisions and changes in seniority procedures.
Stora Enso issued the mandatory 48-hour lockout notice on 30 December, and has had its only Canadian pulp and paper mill closed since 23 December, with nearly all workers on layoff status

Canadian Stora Enso Workers to Vote on Contract

The Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) of Canada on 16 January conducted 14 separate demonstrations across the North American country to protest the jobs crisis in the forest industries sector. Last week&rsquo;s actions came seven days before Canadians go to the polls in national elections today.
The protests were aimed at demanding government aid for stricken communities, as well as government subsidies tied to maintaining and creating jobs in forest products sectors.
&nbsp;<img height="131" alt="" src="" width="92" /> 
 
CEP President Brian Payne
&ldquo;These jobs and communities are worth fighting for, and it&rsquo;s about time the politicians joined our fight,&rdquo; stated CEP President Brian Payne. Some 7,600 jobs have been lost due to shutdowns and cutbacks in the past year in Canada, and 40,000 over the past five years.

Canadian CEP Union Calls for National Action Over Forest Sector Jobs

Paperiliitto President Jouko Ahonen of Finland, ICEM&rsquo;s Paper Sector Chairman, has questioned whether the current paper employers&rsquo; frenzy to contract out jobs is in the best interests of the companies&rsquo; own future financial health.
Because of the agreement that ended last year&rsquo;s bitter lockout in the Finnish paper sector, mill-level negotiations on outsourcing are underway at some 30 enterprises, work capably done now by Paperiliitto members. Ahonen told the Finnish press that employers would be wise to consider that such practices might backfire on them in the future.
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Paperiliitto President Jouko Ahonen
If mill-level talks on sub-contracting do not reach mutual accord, the matter goes before a national arbitration panel that includes Paperiliitto, the employers&rsquo; federation, and an impartial chairman. All final decisions by such a panel must be unanimous.

Paperiliitto President Predicts Finnish Outsourcing Will Backfire

ICEM Serbia-Montenegro affiliate, EPS Trade Union, began the second phase of strike actions at three enterprises of the state-run electric power generation and distribution services on 20 January.
Distribution workers are now striking two hours daily, while thermal plant production has been decreased by 10%. In addition, maintenance workers at hydro plants and transmission network workers have reduced services. The strike actions, which began 10 January, are over back wages owed to power workers and miners for 2004 and 2005 and for a fair wage increase in 2006. 

<img height="133" alt="" src="" width="100" /> 
 
EPS Trade Union President 
Miroslav Veličković
The Serbian Mining and Energy Ministry reneged on an offer that had ended one-hour, daily strikes. Originally, the two sides agreed that workers would be paid 70% of accrued back-wages now, and the remainder later. Last week, the government amended that offer to pay workers only 9% on a monthly basis, and structure that as a loan.

Serbian Affiliate Commences Phase Two of Utility Strike Actions

ICEM affiliate IGBCE has proposed mediation conducted by well-respected German politicians now that talks broke off between the union and Continental Tyre. Negotiations failed on 11 January in efforts to prevent 320 job cuts by year end at the St&ouml;cken plant in Hannover, as announced by the company in November. 
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IGBCE was outraged by press remarks made by Continental CEO Manfred Wennemer at the outset of those talks in which he predicted German workers in the future will work 42.5 hours a week, and have two weeks less of vacation. Wennemer also remarked that the world could not care less about Conti&rsquo;s broken agreement made with IGBCE last spring in which the company gained flexible work rules and a 40-hour week in exchange for a pledge of no job cuts.
IGBCE board member Werner Bischoff, vice president of Conti&rsquo;s Supervisory Board, said Wennemer &ldquo;poured oil on to the fire&rdquo; with his comments, and called on the CEO to apologise. On 13 January, the company&rsquo;s European Works Council members pledged to interpret with scrupulous accuracy the council&rsquo;s constitution and legal rules, intending to make Conti&rsquo;s normal business practices impossible. The central works council in Germany also took action by refusing to allow overtime work and opening health and safety inspections to civil authorities. 
A mass demonstration protesting the company&rsquo;s broken promise takes place today, 23 January, in Hannover, with workers&rsquo; meetings also occurring today at all Continental plants to discuss Wennemer&rsquo;s remarks and the St&ouml;cken situation

Continental Tyre: Wennemer’s Remarks Outrage IGBCE

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Further strike action against state-owned Petrotrin of Trinidad and Tobago occurred last week by ICEM affiliate Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU). Workers struck the company&rsquo;s Point-a-Pierre refinery on 5-6 June in protest to stalled wage talks, health and safety issues, and the suspension of two employees.
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On 11 May, onshore and offshore OWTU members, with the exception of staff at the 160,000 barrels-per-day refinery, downed tools due to stalled negotiations dating to last year. Workers at the refinery did strike twice in March 2006 in order to hasten a three-year renewal agreement. 
 
Last week&rsquo;s strike action was halted by the union after management pledged earnest talks to reach a new contract, but OWTU warned industrial actions would continue unless major progress did occur. The OWTU has been seeking meaningful dialogue with the company in order to put into effect a new labour agreement covering the period 2005 to 2008.

Trinidad, Tobago Oil Workers Strike Over Stalled Wage Talks

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Mission to Ghana &ndash; Breakthrough in ICEM Pilot Project 
 
Key elements of the ICEM Global HIV/AIDS Project are the pilot projects. In identifying areas where we can make a real contribution, the ICEM has developed the concept of such projects in cooperation with major mining companies. 
These projects target health clinics operated by the companies, which provide functioning medical services to their workers and immediate dependents. The clinics can be used to expand their services to the broader community in the area and provide voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) as well as antiretroviral treatment (ART). 
 
The ICEM concept has now received recognition at the AngloGold Ashanti mine in Obuasi, Ghana. Building on discussions between the ICEM and management in Johannesburg, AngloGold Ashanti is now involved in a public-private partnership with the Ministry of Health. The project is intended to provide HIV clinic services, including voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) and antiretroviral treatment (ART) to employees, their dependents and the community of Obuasi. 
In a good example of a co-investment project, the company makes the infrastructure of the hospital and the medical staff available. It provides VCT and ART to its employees and their dependents at its own cost and gets reimbursed for such services provided to the community. 
 
During a joint mission with representatives of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM), the ICEM Global HIV/AIDS Coordinator visited the Obuasi mine. Members of the delegation were briefed at the company&rsquo;s Edwin Cade Memorial Hospital on the HIV/AIDS programme. Weekly health briefings at the Obuasi office of the Ghana Mine Workers&rsquo; Union will involve the union in the programme. 
The delegation also visited the Malaria Control Centre which was opened by the President of Ghana on 28 April. The malaria control programme covers the spraying of all houses in Obuasi. 
 
The joint ICEM/GFATM mission was a first for the global union movement. Representatives of the Ministry of Health/Ghana Health Service, as principal recipient of the grants, and members of the Country Coordinating Mechanism were briefed on the advantages of public/private sector co-investment projects for the implementation of Global Fund grants. 
In all meetings the point was made that the private sector includes business and unions. The ICEM can take credit that this concept has been recognised by the Global Fund when exploring further co-investment projects in other countries. 
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United Nations High Level Meeting on AIDS 
 
Heads of state and government, ministers and more than a thousand representatives of civil society and the private sector gathered in New York for the follow-up to the 2001 UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) and a comprehensive review of the progress made in achieving the targets agreed by member states five years ago when the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS was adopted. 
 
Trade unions attending the event have urged government representatives and HIV/AIDS activists to focus on workplace strategies to address stigma and discrimination attached to HIV/AIDS. 90% of the 40 million people who are HIV infected are found in the working age population. Many of them live in daily fear of losing their jobs. 
The workplace is particularly well-positioned to combat discrimination in society and it holds tremendous potential for awareness-raising, prevention, treatment and counselling. More attention must be directed to the ILO Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work, which speaks directly to the need for partnership and social dialogue in the workplace. 
 
Trade union representatives have also approached government delegations to seek support for the creation of a high-level G8 Working Group on HIV/AIDS. This ongoing campaign had already targeted health ministers attending the World Health Assembly of the WHO in Geneva in May. It will continue at the International Labour Conference of the ILO in June. 
 
As reported in the May issue of this e-bulletin, the UN produced two reports prior to the meeting, which can be accessed on the UNAIDS website <a href="http://www.unaids.org">www.unaids.org</a>. On the eve of the High Level Meeting, UNAIDS launched the 2006 Report on the global AIDS epidemic. This special edition, marking the 10th anniversary of UNAIDS, contains the most in-depth date from countries to date, based on progress reports from 126 countries. 
(The outcome of the Conference and the UNAIDS 2006 Report will be given more detailed attention in the July issue of this e-bulletin). 
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Global Fund Calls for Round 6 Proposals 
 
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has issued its Sixth Call for Proposals. The application form and support documentation are available in six languages at <a href="http://www.theglobalfund.org/en/apply/call6">www.theglobalfund.org/en/apply/call6</a>. Proposals have to reach the Global Fund by 3 August. 
 
The Global Fund does not have offices in any country. The application process is devolved to the national level. All proposals have to go through the Country Coordinating Mechanisms (CCM). The composition of the CCMs is supposed to be representative of all stakeholders in the fight against HIV/AIDS, including civil society, the private sector and organisations of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). 
Very few CCMs include trade unionists. This should not prevent trade unions to work through members of the CCM who are sympathetic to their cause and to find cooperating partners who can develop workplace-related project ideas into proposals for the CCM. 
 
The role of the workplace in the fight against HIV/AIDS is recognised. No workplace activities can be efficiently implemented without unions. The role of national unions and their international bodies, the Global Unions Federations, is acknowledged by international organisations such as the ILO, the WHO and UNAIDS. 
 
The Global Fund is keen to build public/private partnerships and to implement co-investment projects. Without the involvement of the private sector, universal access to voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) and to anti-retroviral treatment (ART) is not possible or will be further delayed. The private sector is business and trade unions as the workers&rsquo; representatives. 
The ICEM has worked with the Global Fund to establish this principle in public/private co-investment projects. 
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FNV Report Acknowledges Contribution of ICEM Projects 
 
In a report entitled &ldquo;Trade union support in the struggle against HIV/AIDS&rdquo;, FNV Mondiaal, the international trade union development organisation of the Dutch national centre FNV, stresses the importance of HIV/AIDS as a trade union issue. 
FNV Mondiaal is currently supporting 12 HIV/AIDS-related projects in cooperation with Global Union Federations and national unions. Fighting the pandemic is one of the priorities of its business plan 2005-2008. 
 
The report cites the ICEM project, which also enjoys the support of the Swedish LO/TCO, as a good example of integrating HIV/AIDS issues in collective bargaining and global framework agreements. 
The report gives credit to the ICEM&rsquo;s efforts to build partnerships, especially in Ghana, to decrease the incidence of HIV/AIDS in mining companies and to upscale VCT and ART. It further acknowledges ICEM&rsquo;s role in working with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and national Country Coordinating Mechanisms to involve unions and generate additional funds. 
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Australia and AIDS 
 
Two initiatives have been launched in Australia to try to stop the spread of HIV infections in Asia, from where 40% of the disease&rsquo;s growth is forecast to come over the next few years. 
The first is a partnership between the Australian government and the Bill Clinton Foundation. Australia will provide USD 18 million to work with the Foundation in China, Vietnam and Papua New Guinea to provide test kits and antiretroviral drugs. The government-Clinton coalition will work with a second cooperative effort involving Australian companies that have operations in Asia. 
(Source: The Economist, 1 April 2006) 
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South Africa: May Day Focus on HIV/AIDS 
 
Along with a number of trade unions throughout Africa, the Congress of South African Trade Unions focussed its 1 May activities on HIV/AIDS under the theme &ldquo;AIDS &ndash; The New Struggle&rdquo;. It emphasised breaking the silence and building solidarity with the slogan &ldquo;Each one teach one! Test, Treat and Fight for Life&rdquo;. 
Sectoral summits with employers and other stakeholders are planned during 2006 and mining companies will be asked to create a fund to assist with the scaling up of access to care and treatment in Lesotho and Mozambique, where the pandemic has been fuelled by migrant labour to the mines. 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
Fighting HIV/AIDS &ndash; Lessons from Brazil 
 
In the history of the response to the HIV pandemic, Brazil is best known for its pioneering decision in 1996 to offer free combination antiretroviral treatment to all citizens. 
The government-funded treatment programme has improved the health and extended the survival of countless Brazilians, has saved the country billions in hospital cost and has inspired similar efforts elsewhere &ndash; including the US President&rsquo;s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and the WHO&rsquo;s 3x5 Initiative. 
Between 1996 and 2005, the government spent a total of USD 3.5 billion in response to HIV and AIDS, including USD 2 billion for antiretroviral drugs. All the money for drug treatment has come from internal funds; about 11% of total expenditure has come from World Bank loans, spent chiefly for prevention programmes and to establish a national laboratory network for the clinical monitoring of patients. 
 
Brazil&rsquo;s persistent and aggressive efforts to prevent new HIV infections have probably played an equal if not greater role than treatment in slowing down the spread of the virus and containing the country&rsquo;s epidemic. At the beginning of the 1990s, the epidemics in Brazil and South Africa were at a similar stage, with a prevalence rate of about 1.5% among adults of reproductive age. 
 
However, by 1995, the year before Brazil&rsquo;s treatment programme was established, the epidemic in South Africa began to explode with a prevalence already greater than 10%, whereas the infection rate in Brazil had declined by half. The early success of prevention efforts allowed its national treatment programme to be feasible logistically and financially by limiting the number of people infected. 
In turn, access to free treatment has made Brazilians more willing to be tested and has made it easier to address the types of behaviour associated with transmission. 
 
In Brazil, during the week before Carnival, citizens who ventured to catch a bus, buy a beer or mail a letter were likely to be reminded by their government to use condoms. Postal costumers received condom brochures along with their stamps. Public health officials, contracted with Coca-Cola distributors, delivered condom posters to bars along with the soft drinks. Prevention efforts targeting high-risk parts of the population have achieved impressive success, particularly among injection-drug users and commercial sex workers. 
 
An important factor in making the programme affordable was the expertise of the domestic pharmaceutical industry, which allowed the country to produce generic versions of antiretroviral drugs with patents that had been registered before 1996, predating Brazil&rsquo;s signing of the TRIPS agreement. 
For newly developed drugs, Brazil may still decide to issue compulsory licenses in the future on the basis of the WTO Doha declaration that the TRIPS agreement should be interpreted and implemented by member countries &ldquo;in a manner supportive of WTO members&rsquo; rights to protect public health, and in particular, to promote access to medicines for all&rdquo;. 
 
(Source: The New England Journal of Medicine, No. 19, 11 May 2006) 
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News from ILOAIDS 
 
A new brochure &ldquo;The workplace: gateway to universal access&rdquo;, published in April, gives a succinct overview of the role of the ILO in reducing discrimination and increasing access to HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. 
 
Published in May, &ldquo;Saving lives, protecting jobs&rdquo; is an interim report of the International HIV/AIDS Workplace Education Programme, also known as Strategic HIV/AIDS Responses by Enterprises (SHARE) and financed by the US Department of Labor. Under the programme, almost 2,800 government officials and key members of workers&rsquo; and employers&rsquo; organisations have received in-depth training on developing policies and implementing programmes on HIV/AIDS. Over 2,000 workers have been trained as peer educators. 
 
Both publications can be accessed at <a href="http://www.ilo.org/aids">www.ilo.org/aids</a>. 
<img height="28" alt="" src="" width="20" />
REMINDER TO ICEM AFFILIATES 
 
This is your newsletter &ndash; contribute to it! 
 
ICEM affiliates are already engaged in a wide range of activities; some have formal agreements with companies; others run education and awareness programmes at the workplace. 
 
To spread the information on new agreements and campaigns and to build on best practices, affiliates and project coordinators are invited to send news and information to hiv.aids@icem.org. Any feedback on the format and contents of the e-bulletin is also welcome.&nbsp;&nbsp;

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 9

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