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The USW in the US supports the decision by the federal Labor Department to refer the consequences of BP&rsquo;s fatal 23 March 2005 explosion at an oil refinery in Texas City, Texas, to the US Justice Department for possible criminal indictments.
Fifteen workers&mdash;all contract employees&mdash;were killed and another 170 were workers injured when the blast occurred during start-up of an isomerisation unit at the former Amoco refinery. BP issued its final report on the US&rsquo;s worst industrial disaster in two decades last week by identifying root causes, including &ldquo;Processs safety &hellip; had not been set and consistently reinforced by management.&rdquo;
In September, the US Labor Department&rsquo;s Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the firm with over 300 &ldquo;egregious and willful&rdquo; violations and fined the British firm US$21.4 million.

BP’s Texas Oil Refinery Blast May See Criminal Indictments

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The United Steelworkers (USW) in Canada has endorsed the mega-mining merger of Inco Ltd. and Falconbridge Inc., two Canadian mining houses that combined would comprise the world&rsquo;s largest nickel producer.
The C$13 billion friendly takeover was given approval at a USW press conference in Sudbury, Ontario, on 7 December with the announced formation of a Steelworker Inco/Falconbridge Council made up of 8,500 workers at 15 USW bargaining units.
USW said the merged company will be &ldquo;good for Canada, good for communities and good for building bargaining power across the continent.&rdquo;
The merger is threatened by a possible hostile bid by Swiss-based Xstrata Plc., the Glencore International-controlled mining giant which purchased a 20% stake in Falconbridge in August. Inco has extended to 27 January its offer to Falconbridge shareholders, who must sell at least two-thirds of the company&rsquo;s outstanding shares to Inco before the deal becomes final.

USW in Canada Endorses Inco, Falconbridge Mining Merger

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&nbsp;Electricit&eacute; de France (EDF) announced last week that it would eliminate 6,500 jobs through the end of 2007 in an apparent attempt to boost the share price of the newly privatised company.
The French government placed shares totalling 15% of the company on the Paris bourse 21 November in hopes of raising capitalisation of &euro;7 billion. It offered EDF shares at &euro;32 to small investors and &euro;33-per-share to institutional investors.
On 7 December, prior to the job cuts announcement, EDF stock was selling at &euro;31.66. EDF said the jobs would be lost by not replacing roughly 70% of the 9,000 workers expected to retire by the end of 2007.

EDF Announces Job Cuts to Boost Share Price

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German affiliate IGBCE focuses its attention even harder on Continental&rsquo;s broken promises. On 6 December, 30,000 workers of the tyre maker held stop-work meetings at 26 locations throughout Germany to protest the announced closure of the St&ouml;cken plant in Hannover and the resulting loss of 320 jobs by year-end 2006.
IGBCE agreed with Continental on more flexible working rights, including work weeks of 40 hours without additional pay, in exchange for a pledge of no job cuts. Continental Chief Executive Manfred Wennemer broke that pledge last month with the announcement on the fate of the St&ouml;cken plant.
IGBCE will now terminate ten programmes inside Continental that were established jointly with the company to save some &euro;42 million annually.

IGBCE Rescinds Cooperation Efforts with Continental Tyre

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US affiliate United Electrical, Radio &amp; Machine Workers (UE) used International Human Rights Day to remind us all that the United States has not ratified ILO Conventions 87 and 98 on freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining.
The union sent a delegation to the North Carolina state governor with a complaint on a state statute that supports the US position of non-ratification. The statute grants state employees with the right to unionise, but denies collective bargaining. The union is also taking the matter before the ILO&rsquo;s Public Sector Workers&rsquo; conference committee. The US has also not ratified ILO Convention 151, granting public employees the right to organise and setting conditions of employment in the public sector.
UE Local 150 counts as members many public employees across North Carolina. UE members from six US states and supporters from three countries delivered the complaint to North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley on 9 December.

US Affiliate Seeks Bargaining Rights for North Carolina’s Public Workers

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A branch of Canadian affiliate Communications, Energy and Paperworkers (CEP) Union issued a strike notice against Swedish-Finnish paper company Stora Enso a week ago at a mill in Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia. 
The notice was served after 98% of 660 members of CEP Local 972 voted to strike. The company has refused to comply with the non-monetary portion of the pattern agreement for the paper industry in eastern Canada. Other unresolved issues include local ones such as Stora Enso&rsquo;s drive to contract out bargaining unit work, including outsourcing of clerical jobs.
A provincial mediator has called the two sides back to the table for three days of talks from 16-18 December, and another session if necessary on 19 December, the earliest day that a strike could begin. CEP workers at the magazine papers and newsprint mill have been without a current collective agreement for 16 months.

CEP Branch in Canada Braced to Strike Stora Enso

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French utilities, construction and telecommunications company Bouygues is taking revenge on ICEM Cote d&rsquo;Ivoire affiliate SYNASEG, the country&rsquo;s electric and gas trade union. 
Prior to a 15-year Bouygues contract for management of water and electric supplies that expired earlier this year, the government announced plans to repatriate the utilities as national entities. SYNASEG publicly supported such a move. But then the government reversed itself and granted Bouygues another 15-year contract.
The company has now retaliated against SYNASEG by refusing to honour check off procedures over union dues. In September, Bouygues neglected to deduct dues from workers&rsquo; pay checks and, in October and November, it did make the deductions but refused to forward the funds to SYNASEG.

French-based Bouygues Creating Union Problems in Cote d’Ivoire

As the world commemorates International Human Rights Day tomorrow on the 57th Anniversary of signing the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 20-million-member ICEM, the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions, cautions that the vision and promise of the Declaration is clouded in today's world of violence and social inequality. 
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&quot;We must stop to reflect on the language and the meaning of the 1948 Declaration,&quot; said ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. &quot;We must strive to rid the world of sinister forces intent on domination and hear the voices of those not free from want, and of those facing insecurity brought by global strife.&quot; 
 
Higgs reminds ICEM affiliated trade unions, as well as the global community, that the UN proclaimed a World Program for Human Rights Education last year. &quot;Education, together with meaningful employment opportunities, is the key to remove poverty and intolerance that exists in many parts of the world today,&quot; said Higgs. 
 
On the 10 December observance of International Human Rights Day, the ICEM points to both rich and poor nations, many of which have repressive governmental regimes, for holding back the fulfilment of standards enshrined in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 
 
Upholding human rights applies as well to trade union rights, which are violated by a large number of countries. The UN Universal Declaration includes, in Article 23, that &quot;everyone has the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of his interests&quot;. 
 
The ICEM points to continued restrictions on political liberties and democratic rights in Nepal as one example. Early this year, King Gyanendra placed the Himalayan country in a state of emergency and suspended free speech and assembly in efforts to stamp our political dissent. 
 
The Global Union Federation also directs attention on the military leaders of Burma and to the multinational companies doing business with the country, where slave labour continues to be used at a large scale. Specifically, ICEM questions the recent and sudden shift by the military junta of administrative governmental services from Rangoon to a remote area in which thousands of civil servants were forced to relocate without adequate living and other conditions. 
 
The ICEM also calls for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine. &quot;A solution must be found, giving the Palestinians a viable state and economic justice&quot; stated Higgs. 
 
&quot;The ICEM will continue to defend human rights across the world wherever we find abuses and injustices,&quot; added Higgs. 
 
On 10 December 1948, Member States of the UN proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights &quot;a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations.&quot; The UN's charter itself set &quot;universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.&quot; Fifty-seven years later, we must ask ourselves how far we have come on that legacy.

ICEM Calls for a Real Focus on Human Rights

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Negotiations in Norway&rsquo;s industrial sectors between ICEM affiliate Fellesforbundet and Norsk Industri broke off last week and are now headed for mediation with a state conciliator. The union and industry began the 2006 talks on 6 March over four separate collective agreements&mdash;paperboard, building materials, metal/engineering, and textiles. 
 
Fellesforbundet is seeking continuation of early retirement provisions, contract language to diminish part-time and casual labour, and life-long learning options for workers. Norwegian law stipulates industrial conflict cannot be declared until 14 days after the start of state mediation, which now would be on 3 April.

Industrial Bargaining in Norway Goes to Conciliation

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A potentially deadly offshore oil disaster was averted last week in the North Sea by quick action from platform firefighting teams. The incident occurred at Shell Exploration &amp; Production&rsquo;s 180-worker Tern Alpha platform, 105 miles northeast of Shetland Islands, and caused the evacuation of 128 workers. 
 
The fire started in the early hours of 16 March when a high voltage electrical motor in the gas compression module overheated. Onboard emergency teams fought the fire for four hours, during which time coast guard helicopters from the UK and Norway, as well as a BP rescue team, ferried the 128 to other platform installations. 
 
The fire, in an area of compressed gas, could have triggered a major disaster had it not been for the trained emergency teams. Shell Exploration operates Tern Alpha for Shell and Esso in the Hudson fields of the North Sea. The platform began production in 1989.

Emergency Response Teams Prevent North Sea Catastrophe

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