Asia Pacific: BASF Regional Trade Union Network continues to grow4 September, 2018At its meeting in Singapore on 30-31 August 2018, union representatives from BASF operations in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea and Vietnam took decisions to strengthen their regional network, adopt a new work programme and form a new coordination structure. The meeting also received reports from BASF operations in Japan and Singapore.
South Africa: CEPPWAWU congress agrees on roadmap for union revival4 September, 2018For seven years, IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Chemicals, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood and Allied Workers Union (CEPPWAWU) has been in a crisis. However, the convening of its 5th national congress is seen as an opportunity to mend the union.
IndustriALL appeals for Indonesian union leader to be reinstated5 September, 2018IndustriALL Global Union is demanding that the president of its Indonesian affiliate, the Federation of Pharmaceutical and Health Workers Union (FARKES), is reinstated after being sacked from his job as a hospital assistant manager on 29 August.
IndustriALL creates a ‘macro sector’ for manufacturing industries21 August, 2018Fifty trade union leaders from the ‘macro sector’ of manufacturing industries across Latin American and the Caribbean met for the first time from 13 to 15 August in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Their aim was to discuss the future world of work and come up with joint initiatives.
Lesotho: workers celebrate minimum wage victory17 August, 2018After a petition to the Prime Minister, marches and demonstrations by thousands of workers to the ministry of labour and to parliament, the Government of Lesotho finally agreed to a minimum wage of LSL2,000 (US$138) for factory workers.
Interview: Napoleón Gómez Urrutia’s return to Mexico a triumph for freedom of association11 September, 2018After 12 years of self-imposed exile in Canada, the leader of the Los Mineros union, Napoleón Gómez Urrutia, has finally returned to Mexico, where he will take on a new role as senator for the National Regeneration Movement (Morena) party led by President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
Free Lula!27 April, 2018Global unions and union leaders from more than 50 countries came together in Geneva today to stand in solidarity with former Brazilian President Lula, calling for his immediate release from jail and that he be allowed to run in the upcoming elections.
South Africa: Zara accused of design theft29 April, 2018The Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (SACTWU), an affiliate of the IndustriALL Global Union, has condemned Zara’s fashion piracy after it emerged that the Spanish-based global brand produced designs with a strong similarity to a local designer’s collection.
INTERVIEW: Marie Nilsson25 April, 2018Elected in May last year, Marie Nilsson is president of Swedish industrial workers’ union IF Metall, a union with a predominately male membership. In October 2017, the #MeToo movement, highlighting sexual harassment against women, started to gain momentum, and the response in Sweden was huge, with some analysts comparing the movement to when women acheived the right to vote.
PROFILE: Organizing is a well-defined priority in Kyrgyzstan24 April, 2018Over last five years IndustriALL Global Union affiliate Mining and Metallurgy Trade Union of Kyrgyzstan (MMTUK) has grown from 15,000 to 27,250members. The union leadership explains the outstanding results by strong union policies aimed at becoming more attractive to workers.