Union settles tough wage negotiations in the garment sector in South Africa18 December, 2020After four months of negotiations, IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (SACTWU), settled a wage agreement in the garment industry on 8 December.
SPECIAL REPORT: Changing the balance of power in the textile and garment industry8 December, 2020In the factories where textiles, garments, shoes, leather and accessories are produced, millions of people toil in insecure, low wage jobs, in unsafe conditions. Workers are exposed to chemicals used for bleaching and dyeing. Disasters like the Rana Plaza collapse and the Ali Enterprises fire kill thousands. Union campaigns on workers’ rights have shone a light on union busting, imprisonment, assault and occasionally murder.
Union win in Tunisia3 December, 202024 out of the 56 workers dismissed in February at Tunisian garment factory Gartex have been reinstated, following IndustriALL’s intervention which led to dialogue between the employer and the union Fédération Générale du Textile, de l'Habillement, Chaussure et Cuir - FGTHCC-UGTT.
Make Amazon Pay27 November, 2020The pandemic has exposed how Amazon places profits ahead of workers, society, and our planet. Amazon takes too much and gives back too little; it is time to Make Amazon Pay. On Black Friday, 27 November, the biggest retail sales day in the United States, as well as in other parts of the world, workers, unions, global unions and activists are taking action. Let’s make this a Bad Friday for Amazon’s bosses.
Action needed on Uyghur slave labour18 November, 2020The Chinese government continues to hold members of the Uyghur minority group in forced labour camps. Goods produced by these enslaved workers – particularly cotton – are entering global supply chains.
Tunisia experiments with a gradual transition to more sustainable jobs and businesses 16 November, 2020Until 2016, dozens of workers at the factory, located in Mahdia, central-eastern Tunisia, worked night and day on the large precision machines that now sit motionless and desperately silent. While waiting for activities to resume, Ali has been sleeping here, upstairs on a simple sofa, to make sure there aren’t burglaries. He keeps a watchful eye and a loving gaze on the company that now belongs to him and 40 or so other former employees who decided to buy their factory.
Tchibo and IndustriALL commit to support suppliers12 November, 2020In order to minimize the impacts of the pandemic, IndustriALL and German brand Tchibo have signed a joint declaration, reinforcing their longstanding cooperation in order to support the economic and social recovery of the global garment industry through the Covid-19 crisis.
First meeting of COATS global trade union network3 November, 2020On 28 October, unions from COATS factories met online to discuss the effect of the pandemic on the workplace. For the first time, IndustriALL and union leaders formed a COATS global trade union network.
IndustriALL renews GFA with Mizuno2 November, 2020On 1 October, IndustriALL Global Union and Japanese sports equipment and sportswear company Mizuno, renewed the global framework agreement which had first been signed in 2011. Japanese unions UA Zensen and Mizuno Workers’ Union, Japan, are also signatories.
Union wins right to organize in Myanmar through ACT guidelines20 October, 2020Since the global outbreak of Covid-19, ACT brands and IndustriALL have observed an increased level of union busting in the global garment and footwear supply chain. To protect and promote Freedom of Association in Myanmar, an ongoing collaboration between IndustriALL, Myanmar-based union IWFM and ACT brands plays a critical role in protecting workers’ rights.
