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Four French unions, led by the CGT and the CFDT, carried out four-hour strikes at Lafarge cement plants today, 6 June, in protest to the company&rsquo;s intended plans to shut its Frangey cement facility near L&eacute;zinnes, L&rsquo;Yonne province, some 170 kilometres southeast of Paris. Workers began blocking trucks this morning at the Frangey plant and work stoppages were occurring at other French Lafarge sites in support of the 74 workers who could lose their jobs. 
 
Besides CGT and CFDT, FO and CFTC endorsed the industrial actions at some 11 Lafarge plants in France. The CGT and CFDT are the unions with membership at the Frangey plant. 
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Lafarge announced on 25 May at an extraordinary Works Council meeting that it would close the plant in three stages between now and the end of 2012. However, the initial redundancies &ndash; expected in August &ndash; will likely reduce employment to only 20. The company used over capacity and the small market that the plant serves as reasons for closure. 
 
Lafarge also said environmental factors were part of the decision, although the facility has received environmental certification. The Frangey plant produces 300,000 tons of cement annually and a system of cogeneration covers 50% of the plant&rsquo;s energy needs. 
 
The company said workers would be offered a chance to transfer to other Lafarge facilities. CGT delegate Jean-Claude Rives said the decision is unjustified because the plant provides a major benefit both in wages and in cement production to the L&rsquo;Yonne department. 
 
Twenty contractors also work at Frangey and they likely will lose their jobs. The French unions left open the possibility that further job actions would occur to protest the announced closure.

French Unions Conduct 4-Hour Strike at Lafarge Today

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Mansour Osanloo, the leader and co-founder of Vahed Syndicate, a union of bus drivers in and around Tehran, Iran, was released from an Iranian jail on 2 June after four years imprisonment. But his freedom came conditionally. He needed to post payment of a bond and release was granted on grounds that he maintain &ldquo;good behaviour.&rdquo; 
 
His only offence against the state was to form a free and democratic union of bus drivers in 2005. 
 
In a statement by the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF), which has been fighting for his freedom and full recognition of his union, General Secretary David Cockroft said, &ldquo;He is free because trade unions worldwide demanded justice. 
<img alt="" src="" width="80" height="80" />
&ldquo;That bail has been set falls short of the full pardon we all wanted, and which the Iranian government promised, but for now we can just take a moment to savour his richly deserved return to his family.&rdquo; (See the full <a href="http://www.itfglobal.org/news-online/index.cfm/newsdetail/6047">ITF statement</a> here.)&nbsp; 
 
The ITF reminded that two of Osanloo&rsquo;s colleagues of the Vahed Syndicate, Reza Shahabi and Ebrahim Madadi, are innocent victims still locked inside Iran&rsquo;s prisons. 
 
Vahed Syndicate and Osanloo, 51, had been under heavy state repression since the founding of the union six years ago. Osanloo had been jailed twice between 2005-2006 and was beaten and had his tongue slit while in prison. Then in early summer 2007, just a month after he had been at a meeting of the ITF in London and another with trade union leaders of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) in Brussels, he was jailed again and sentenced to five years for &ldquo;acting against national security&rdquo; and &ldquo;propaganda against the state.&rdquo; Last year, another year was added to his sentence. 
 
Osanloo is suffering from poor health from the harsh treatment inflicted on him in Iran&rsquo;s prisons. A previous <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/2439--�Dirty-Tricks-Imposed-by-Iranian-Government-over-Imprisonment-of-Mansour-Osanloo ">ICEM report</a> on his treatment can be found here, while <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/2327-Iran-Again-Arrests-Mansour-Osanloo-Following-His-European-Labour-Visits ">another ICEM report</a> of his 2007 arrest following his European trade union visit can be found here.

After Four Years, Mansour Osanloo Released from Iran Jail

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Some 10,000 workers employed at El Teniente by sub-contractors of Codelco, Chile&rsquo;s state-run copper and molybdenum miner, have been on strike now for 13 days. Even though the walkout falls outside Chile&rsquo;s labour law, the strike is legitimate: contract employees demand that Codelco engage their unions in direct dialogue. 
 
The strike started 25 May against over 20 contracting firms and Codelco. It is happening at El Teniente, one of five Codelco divisions, which is the world&rsquo;s largest underground copper mine located 90 kilometres south of Santiago. Contract workers at cleaning, catering, supply and other firms want a primary employer to come to the table to address failed bonus schemes, unpaid hours, no job security and other grievances. They also demand that there be no recriminations over strike actions, a clear sign of the fear, precariousness, and trade union discrimination at El Teniente. 
Codelco is standing by the &ldquo;acuerdo marco,&rdquo; or framework agreement of 2007 in maintaining it has no obligation to address grievances of contract workers. Codelco CEO Diego Hern&aacute;ndez said the company&rsquo;s legal responsibility ends at health and safety compliance, and social security compliance of the sub-contracting firms. Unions representing contract workers want a re-write of the marco agreement. 
<img alt="" src="" width="240" height="159" />
Contract Workers Strike at El Teniente
The job actions have gained the support of civic officials and political leaders in the region and the ICEM commends contract workers at El Teniente for taking direct action in an effort to get a primary company to address its concerns. 
 
The three branches of the Federaci&oacute;n de Trabajadores del Cobre (FTC) at El Teniente, representing 2,300 direct Codelco workers, issued a statement on 30 May, in part, stating that the Cobres federation &ldquo;has always maintained a stance of solidarity with the legitimate aspirations of the employees of sub-contractors. The FTC has been a key player to open talks between unions representing workers, contractors themselves, and the client company Codelco, in order to see positive agreements. 
 
&ldquo;The FTC expresses its solidarity with the contract workers and their representative trade union organizations, and we clearly do not support the manipulation and exploitation of a legitimate movement to promote interests other than that of workers.&rdquo; 
 
The dispute was peaceful during the first nine days of the strike, but turned unruly on Friday, 3 June, when contract workers blocked roads leading to the mine complex. The blockade caused buses carrying regular workers to be turned away. 
 
Codelco, the world&rsquo;s largest copper producer, saw its first quarter pre-tax profit balloon to US$2.31 billion due to high copper and molybdenum prices. That is an 87% increase over the same period in 2010 and is partially due to the state company&rsquo;s sell-off of its 40% share of electrical producer Edelnor. 
 
Separately, the Federaci&oacute;n de Sindicatos de Supervisores y Profesionales Rol A Codelco (FESUC), the supervisory and professional union federation at Codelco, charged that senior managers are transforming the company solely for the purpose of privatisation. This comes at a time when supervisors at some divisions are being furloughed without the option to transfer. 
 
FESUC President Ricardo Calder&oacute;n said layoffs, precarious employment, and outsourcing are the precursor for privatization, while another FESUC leader called on CEO Hern&aacute;ndez to publicly state the company would not be sold off to private investors.

Contract Workers Strike Codelco at El Teniente Mine in Chile

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On 24 February, Juan Linares was released after spending two years in jail. His release came just days after worldwide mobilization of unions in the 14-19 February global days of action demanding trade union rights in Mexico. Linares has been a member of SNTMMSRM (or Los Mineros) since 1972 as a mine worker at the ArcelorMittal Sicartsa steel mill. 
 
Why were you imprisoned and what was the impact of this on your union? 
 
I was imprisoned under false charges of fraud, on which no evidence was ever presented. This is clearly an anti-union measure taken by the government of Felipe Calder&oacute;n to undermine and attack the Miners' Union. There was an investigation and an audit was carried out which shows that there has been no embezzlement of funds at all. The anti-union attacks from the government have been constant, firstly starting with the accusations against the General Secretary Napole&oacute;n G&oacute;mez Urrutia; secondly, the freezing of the bank account and thirdly, imprisoning me. This just serves the government&rsquo;s intention to finish off our union. 
 
How did you manage to secure your release after two years in jail? 
 
International support, particularly from the IMF, ICEM, AFL-CIO, and the United Steelworkers, that mobilized international opinion about my case and in particular the global days of action held in February had considerable impact on my release. I was imprisoned for two years, two months and 20 days. 
 
Is the government persecution of Los Mineros continuing? 
 
Yes, the government continues daily to persecute Los Mineros and this is because it is a right wing government. This already started in the time of Vicente Fox and is now continuing with Felipe Calder&oacute;n. Persecution is particularly harsh from the Minister of Labour. 
 
What is the situation for Los Mineros and the independent trade union movement in Mexico today? 
 
I think that things are slowly improving. The questions that we are discussing today on the merger at the global level will be particularly beneficial for Mexico. For example, another union under attack - SME - will soon be together with us and I think that we could achieve a really strong and independent labour movement in Mexico. 
 
How can international solidarity support Los Mineros and other independent unions in your struggle? 
 
One thing in which we need the support from the international organizations is to be able to continue organizing and recruiting new members in our union and that is what we would ask the international organizations to which we are affiliated. I also would like to share with you my great joy because we just heard on 25 May that our leader Napole&oacute;n G&oacute;mez has now been cleared of all accusations against him and we are looking forward to having him back with us in Mexico and to continue our struggle. We believe that the union movement in Mexico is really advancing.

Interview: Juan Linares, National Mexican Mine and Metal Workers Union (SNTMMSRM)

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What are the main challenges facing women members of the CFMEU? 
In the mining, energy, and petrochemicals sectors there are a very low percentage of women in the workforce especially in New South Wales. In a male-dominated work environment, it is a challenge to encourage women to take jobs in these sectors and then into union positions. 
We have gone through over 11 years of a very right-wing, conservative government that stripped a lot of conditions out of our agreements. For the last two years, we have had a Labour government and we are trying to claw back the things that were lost over that period. 
Aside from ongoing gender issues, one major challenge now facing women is allowances for those coming off maternity leave at Shell. The employer is discriminating against mothers by inflexibility on shift scheduling. Operators work 12-hour shifts, rotating nights and days. Shell&rsquo;s inflexibility means women do not have the right to become mothers and also stay on their job. 
Can you tell us about the Women&rsquo;s structure inside the CFMEU? 
Our newly-formed Women&rsquo;s Committee elected me as Secretary. It consists of three executives, and three rank-and-file members from the mining, forestry, and construction industries. An early priority is to run education and training programmes for women, to encourage women to work in our industries. I was also recently appointed to the Central Council of the central leadership body of CFMEU through a new policy on affirmative action and women&rsquo;s involvement. 
 
What about unity among women of other trade union organisations?
This has been greatly facilitated by the strong support of CFMEU&rsquo;s central leadership. I actively serve on the Asia-Pacific Regional Committee of the ICEM Women&rsquo;s Committee, uniting women workers from India, Pakistan, Australia, and many other nations. 
My long-term involvement in Australia&rsquo;s Women In Male-Dominated Organisations and Industries has seen a building of cross-sector coordination of industrial women. We are seeking grants for training and education, through the Skills Councils, and looking to run programmes in schools for girls looking at careers in industry. 
 
What is the action way forward&nbsp;for the Women&rsquo;s Section of an integrated global industrial federation? 
I would like to see a lot more programmes established, firstly on a regional level and especially on issues such as domestic violence. All the problems that we face across the spectrum would be much easier to combat if women were in a position of strength and able to support themselves. The most important priority is training and education for women. Training and education that lead to better jobs, better organisations, increased diversity and seniority inside unions, and increased possibilities for women to escape bad situations at work and at home. Our long-term goal is simply be to have more women being more active.

Interview: New South Wales Energy District Secretary Lorraine Usher, CFMEU

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Domestic workers are among the most vulnerable in the world. The 100th session of the International Labour Conference, on 16 June, achieved the adoption of the Decent Work for Domestic Workers Convention No. 189, and its accompanying recommendation. 
 
The convention sets out a set of basic protections for domestic workers under law, in countries that ratify. Governments around the world must now be pressured to ratify and implement the provisions. Attention will be on the countries in the Gulf, where an underclass of migrant domestic workers exists. But also countries such as the United States have labour law protections which exclude domestic workers of the &ldquo;informal economy&rdquo;. This must now change. 
 
Domestic work is one of the main locations for slavery and child labour, as well until now very low levels of inspection and regulation, non payment and low payment of wages, and violence, with the work often carried out by migrants, and women. This convention symbolically recognises domestic workers as regular workers, entitled to all the rights enjoyed in other sectors. Domestic workers should be emboldened by this global recognition, into organising collectively across the sector.

ILO Convention on Decent Work for Domestic Workers

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In a letter to Ukraine&rsquo;s President, Viktor Yanukovych, ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda called for the recent escalation of government intimidation and interference into trade union activities to end. 
 
The national centre, Federation of Trade Unions of Ukraine (FPU) has born the brunt of a brutal attack by the Office of the General Prosecutor of Ukraine, headed by Viktor Pshonka who is said to have &ldquo;declared war&rdquo; on the unions. New teams have been established inside various government ministries charged with combating the FPU, and establishing yellow unions to oppose the FPU. 
<img src="" width="238" height="159" alt="" />
FPU Picket Office of the General Prosecutor
The illegal attack on the FPU has included brazen attempts at manipulating internal union activity. On 23 May the FPU received instructions from the General Prosecutor&rsquo;s office, banning items on the agenda of the union&rsquo;s Presidium meeting the following day. Demands for detailed information of internal union workings are continuing, with FPU leadership being summoned for interrogation to the General Prosecutor&rsquo;s office, including FPU President Vasyl Khara on 3 June. 
 
Also ongoing is a disinformation campaign run through the country&rsquo;s mass media, attempting to discredit the FPU. The lie being disseminated is that the FPU leadership unlawfully sold union assets. Whereas it is a clear fact that no FPU facilities have been sold since November 2008. 
 
The intense interference is in breach of national law, international law, and the constitution of Ukraine. 
 
On 8 June, the FPU conducted a large picket in front of the office of the General Prosecutor of Ukraine, demanding an end to the oppression of trade union rights. 
 
See the full text of <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/62.ICEM.Ukraine%20President.FPU.20June.pdf">Warda&rsquo;s letter</a> to President Yanukovych here.&nbsp;

ICEM Protests Crackdown on Ukrainian Trade Unions

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From&nbsp;International Metalworkers' Federation 
Indonesian unions yesterday criticized their government for not ensuring comprehensive social security for all Indonesian people as mandated in the Global Jobs Pact that was adopted by the International Labour Organization in 2009 and supported by the Indonesian government. 
 
The unions' criticism was in response to an address given by the President of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, to a special session of the 100th International Labour Conference (ILC) on June 14, 2011 on the effects of the global economic crisis. 
 
In a statement submitted to the ILC by Indonesian trade unions and supported by the International Metalworkers' Federation (IMF), the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM) and the International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers' Federation (ITGLWF), the unions demanded that the Indonesian government comply with the Global Jobs Pact by providing comprehensive social security for all Indonesian people. 
<img alt="" src="" width="220" height="147" />
9 May Indonesian Worker Demonstration
The statement points out that, &quot;the people of Indonesia continue to face problems of low wages which are not comparable with the needs of a decent standard of living, unsafe working conditions with the expansion of contract work and outsourcing and the absence of comprehensive social security for all people.&quot; 
 
&quot;In the context of social welfare, Indonesia is the most backward country in Southeast Asia in terms of delivering comprehensive social security for their people, in contradiction to the second portfolio of the Global Jobs Pact itself to &quot;build a social protection system&quot;,&quot; continues the statement. 
 
The unions argue that the existing Constitution of Indonesia and supporting legislation provides the basis for providing five social insurance programs covering health and accident insurance, pensions, retirement security and life insurance, but require the government to re-orientate the responsible state agencies to function on a not for profit basis. 
 
The statement, signed by nine Indonesian trade union organizations including IMF affiliated Indonesia Federation of Metal Workers' Unions (FSPMI), are members of the Action Committee for Social Security ( KAJS ) which is actively campaigning in Indonesia for improved social security, particularly health insurance for life and a mandatory pension fund for all. 
 
Adequate provision for social security particularly for the ever expanding number of workers in precarious forms of employment is one of the issues that will be discussed at the IMF Central Committee taking place in Jakarta, Indonesia in December 2011.

Indonesian Workers Demand Social Security for all

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From the International Textile, Garment &amp; Leather Workers' Federation
A historic agreement has been signed, 7 June,&nbsp;regarding trade union rights in factories in Indonesia. The pact was signed by Indonesian textile, clothing and footwear unions, major supplier factories and the major sportswear brands, including Adidas, Nike and Puma. A keynote speech was delivered by Mr. Muji Handoyo, General Director of Labour Inspection, who expressed his appreciation of the efforts of the parties to ensure that freedom of association is respected. 
 
Workers in Indonesia and in other countries producing sportswear are frequently prevented from organizing at sportswear supplier factories and from carrying out union activities. Recent research covering 18 factories in Indonesia found that all had taken anti-union measures. 
 
&ldquo;This protocol is important because our law does not cover technical implementation of freedom of association. It also ensures brands take responsibility to ensure respect for union rights&rdquo; states Lilis Mahmudah, Head of Program for SPN. &ldquo;Our members have been waiting for this agreement to be concluded. It will help us in our bargaining efforts&rdquo; adds Emelia Yanti, General Secretary of GSBI. 
 
The agreement has been made possible by the Play Fair campaign, which since 2004 has been campaigning for global sportswear brands to take concrete steps to improve conditions in their supply chains. The campaign was represented at the signing by Oxfam Australia, the International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers&rsquo; Federation and the Clean Clothes Campaign. 
 
&ldquo;The signing of this freedom of association protocol is an important first step in improving the situation for the hundreds of thousands of sportswear workers facing low wages and poor conditions&rdquo; says Jeroen Merk of the CCC. &ldquo;The real test, however, will be in its implementation&rdquo; adds Ashling Seely of the ITGLWF. 
 
In the run up to the London 2012 Olympics the Play Fair Campaign will be encouraging other sportswear and garment brands to sign up to the <a href="http://www.play-fair.org/media/wp-content/uploads/FOA-Protocol_English-translation_May-20112.pdf">protocol</a>.

Indonesia:  Historic Pact Strengthens Sportswear Workers&#039; Union Rights

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ICEM affiliates in the chemicals industry in South-East Europe met in a sectoral regional conference from 9-10 June in Belgrade, Serbia. The meeting came within the framework of the joint ICEM, European Mine, Chemical, Energy Federation (EMCEF), International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF), European Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (EMF), International Union of Food and Agriculture Association (IUF), and the European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions (EFFAT) project, which is supported by the German Friedrich-Ebert Foundation (FES). 
 
The attending unions saw representation from some 30 unionists from KNG of Slovenia, EKN of Croatia, SSHNFBIH of Bosnia/Herzegovina, and SSHNS and GS HNER Nezavisnost of Serbia. 
<img src="" width="170" height="128" alt="" />
Mato Lalic
Chaired by Mato Lalic, coordinator of the joint project, the conference welcomed a representative from Serbia&rsquo;s Ministry of Economy and Regional Development, who spoke on problems arising from company restructurings in the chemicals industry, resulting in job losses and bankruptcies. Comment from participants included the issue of unpaid wages as a result of company liquidations. 
 
ICEM&rsquo;s Director of Industry and Corporate Affairs, Kemal &Ouml;zkan, gave an overview on global trends in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. He spoke on trends in employment, wages, and overall working conditions. 
 
At plenary sessions, particular country reports were delivered by Danijel &Scaron;pičak and Ivan Tomac from Croatia, Tomaž Kumer from Slovenia, Kata Iveljić from Bosnia/Herzegovina, and Zoran Pantelić from Serbia. All reports indicate that recovery is occurring after the global economic crisis, except that employment levels are still low. 
 
The conference also addressed the issue of rising precarious employment through a presentation by Jacim Milunovic, one of the coordinators of the joint project, who guided participants on ways to defend standard forms of employment, and to resist Contract and Agency Labour (CAL). 
 
The participants were given ICEM&rsquo;s CAL Guide amd IUF&rsquo;s manual on outsourcing. One point that was emphasized is that legislative environments in South-East Europe are not favorable for workers, which gives important responsibilities to trade unions. The conference concluded with a a joint committment to keep solidarity alive among the unions of the region in the chemicals and non-metal sectors. 
 
The ICEM&rsquo;s &Ouml;zkan also travelled to Bosnia/Herzergovina at the invitation of Independent Trade Union of Chemistry and Non Metal Workers&rsquo; Union (SSHNFBIH), led by Kata Iveljić. He visited the Canton of Tuzla, since the region is a large industrial zone. SSHNFBIH has large membership in workplaces in the cities of Tuzla and Lukavac, but some industrial relations challenges exist related to social dialogue. 
 
With a purpose to show global support to SSHNFBIH, the ICEM met with Prime Minister Sead Causevic and Minister of Industry, Energy and Mining Zeljko Knezicek, both of the Canton of Tuzla. The group later was welcomed by Dzevad Mujkic, mayor of the Lukavac community. &Ouml;zkan was interviewed by several local and cantonal televisions about purpose and results of the visit. 
 
The ICEM delegation also visited Sisecam Soda, subsidiary of a Turkish multinational company located at Lukavac, and met with General Director Umut Baris S&ouml;nmez together with local union officials. Turkey&rsquo;s Sisecam Group purchased 80% of shares of Soda Factory Lukavac Bosna i Hercegovina following a privatisation bid in 2006. 
<img src="" width="212" height="159" alt="" />
Since then, Sisecam Soda and SSHNFBIH developed a constructive social dialogue and industrial relations&rsquo; system on restructuring the workplace. Since there had been no sector-wide agreement covering workers, an individual company agreement had been signed but due to economic challenges, yearly wage agreements were not signed for 2009 and 2010. ICEM and SSHNFBIH stressed clear expectations that the company re-start dialogue with immediate effect. SSHNFBIH and Sisecam Soda are expected to settle pending issues very soon.

Unions in Chemicals Continue Struggle in South-East Europe

Archive

French Unions Conduct 4-Hour Strike at Lafarge Today

After Four Years, Mansour Osanloo Released from Iran Jail

Contract Workers Strike Codelco at El Teniente Mine in Chile

Interview: Juan Linares, National Mexican Mine and Metal Workers Union (SNTMMSRM)

Interview: New South Wales Energy District Secretary Lorraine Usher, CFMEU

ILO Convention on Decent Work for Domestic Workers

ICEM Protests Crackdown on Ukrainian Trade Unions

Indonesian Workers Demand Social Security for all

Indonesia: Historic Pact Strengthens Sportswear Workers' Union Rights

Unions in Chemicals Continue Struggle in South-East Europe

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