Deplorable working conditions at textile and garment factories in South Africa 25 January, 2024In December last year labour inspectors from the department of employment and labour visited textile and garment factories in Mandeni in KwaZulu Natal Province, about 80 km from Durban, and were shocked by the deplorable working conditions that they witnessed.
Belarus: Union leader released from jail4 February, 2024Political prisoner Zinaida Mikhniuk, activist and former chairperson of IndustriALL affiliate Radio and Electronics Industry Workers Union REP, has been released from jail after serving a two-years sentence for "insulting Lukashenka”.
Kazakhstan must respect workers’ right to strike 29 January, 2024Around 500 workers in Kazakhstan’s oil industry have been on strike since December last year. They now face dismissals, interrogation and intimidation.
Unionist nine-month jail ordeal expose workers’ rights violations in Madagascar 6 June, 2023After a presidential pardon, jailed unionist Sento Chang has been released after nine months in Madagascar’s Antanimora prison, one of the worst prisons in the world according to Human Rights Watch. Sento was jailed for posting the outcome of union negotiations on social media. Unions from Madagascar participating at the International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva, Switzerland, are challenging the sentencing and jailing, and calling upon the island nation’s government to stop repeatedly violating workers’ rights.
Mercedes workers stand up! 2 May, 2024On 13-17 May, workers at the Mercedes plant in Alabama, USA - the only Mercedes plant in the world without union representation - will for the first time vote for a union. According to US legislation, it takes a majority of the workforce to vote in favour of an election for it to take place. In a blatant show of disrespect for democracy and fundamental workers’ rights, the employer is engaging in heavy, scare-mongering union busting to influence the upcoming vote.
Minera Panama is violating workers’ rights10 May, 2023Minera Panama, a subsidiary of First Quantum Minerals, is pursuing a policy that violates the fundamental right to organize and bargain collectively. IndustriALL is urging Canadian mining company First Quantum Minerals to ensure respect for the right to freedom of association at its copper mine in Panama.
The targeting of Gaza’s essential workers and civilian infrastructure is an attack on us all 12 March, 2024As the war in Gaza continues, Global Union Federations are shining a light on the crisis workers face across all economic sectors. Through a series of shared essays and articles on our websites, we aim to expose the conflict's devastating impact on livelihoods, safety and well-being for working people while emphasizing the urgent need for a ceasefire.
Rieter India workers on strike for a third time27 May, 2024Members of Rieter India Employees’ Federation (RIEF) have been on strike for nearly sixty days. For over a year, the union has repeatedly raised concerns about the company’s unfair labour practices, like employing a large number of contract workers without proper training for permanent jobs, undermining the safety of all the workers.
Bangladesh is one of the world’s worst countries for workers 5 July, 2023The recently published ITUC Global Rights Index 2023, which ranks countries based on the status of workers’ rights, reveals a grim picture of the situation for workers in South Asian countries. While Nepal and Sri Lanka witness regular and systematic violations of workers’ rights respectively, Bangladesh has been ranked as one of the worst countries in the world for workers.
Global unions meet representatives of Myanmar National Unity Government 16 June, 2023On 14 June, IndustriALL Global Union, ITUC and BWI met with Myo Min, union minister for the Ministry of Human Rights for the National Unity Government (NUG) of Myanmar and vowed to continue to support the fight for a return of democracy in the country. The NUG is the democratically elected government that was overthrown in the military coup of February 2021.
