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Pilkington glass workers in New Zealand, represented by Engineering, Paper and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) will decide tomorrow night, 14 August, whether or not to escalate industrial actions. During the first days of August, EPMU members at the Hamilton glass plant began a seven-day overtime ban because of a pay dispute. 
 
That was extended last week and union members at another Pilkington plant in Auckland met and agreed to support the Hamilton workers&rsquo; job actions. The Auckland workforce, represented by EPMU, was forced to take nine days of job actions last year in a pay dispute. In 2006, UK-based Pilkington was bought by Nippon Sheet Glass for &euro;3.2 billion, in a move to strengthen the Japanese company&rsquo;s presence in Asia, particularly China.
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&ldquo;The company&rsquo;s arguing over a quarter of a percent (in Hamilton), and frankly the members are getting sick of this kind of penny-pinching &hellip; the members are simply asking for their fair share,&rdquo; said an EPMU representative, as quoted on the union&rsquo;s website.

Pilkington Workers in Glass Dispute in New Zealand

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Calling the work-lives of temporary and agency workers in the UK the &ldquo;dark underbelly&rdquo; of British society, Trades Union Congress (TUC) General Secretary Brendan Barber gave the issue of contract and agency labour prominence on the opening day of the TUC Congress, 9 September, in Brighton. 
 
Setting out specific instances of temporary or contract worker abuse in the UK, Barber called for new labour rights to be given to such workers in Britain. And in his keynote address to Congress, just prior to Prime Minister Gordon Brown speaking, Barber called on his government to quit the stalling, and endorse the EU Directive on Temporary and Agency Workers. 
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TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber
&ldquo;Since we launched the commission on vulnerable employment,&rdquo; Barber said, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve met so many victims of unfair, systematic exploitation. 
 
&ldquo;There are so many issues to tackle in this dark underbelly of British life,&rdquo; stated Barber. &ldquo;I urge the government to deliver the promised European directive to give agency workers justice and dignity,&rdquo; he said. 
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In 2004, the Warwick agreement was made in the UK, which was aimed at providing equal employment rights for temporary and agency workers, and to support the EU Directive. Even though the Blair government pledged to do so, it never did. The TUC has now called on the Brown government to not only support the directive, but also to pass UK laws giving temporary and agency workers full employment rights.

UK’s TUC Congress Calls on Government to Adopt EU Directive

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One year ago, New Zealand&rsquo;s labour unions, led by its national centre, the Council of Trade Union (NZCTU), successfully prevented a regressive bill from becoming law. The so-called Probationary Employment Amendment Bill would have made it easy for employers to hire and then sack temporary workers during their first 90 days of employment. 
 
The unions did it with mass demonstrations and outreach to many groupings that effectively generated mass support among New Zealanders. 
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Now labour unions and the CTU are pushing for passage of legislation that would aid contract workers. The Minimum Wage and Remuneration Amendment Bill is now before the Parliament, and the measure has a good change of passing. The proposed law would assure that people doing work under individual contracts are at least paid New Zealand&rsquo;s minimum wage. 
 
Currently, many of the people that are economically dependent on the sale of their labour are not defined by the law as employees, thus not afforded protections under the country&rsquo;s minimum wage law. 
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&ldquo;Most contractors in New Zealand are remunerated well above the minimum wage,&rdquo; stated CTU Secretary Carol Beaumont. &ldquo;But this bill would help certain groups of workers who are being unfairly disadvantaged by contracting relationships, and are being paid below the minimum wage.&rdquo; 
 
Added Beaumont, &ldquo;The minimum wage marks a minimum standard in New Zealand that is considered acceptable for anyone being paid for their efforts. That standard deserves to be extended to everyone.&rdquo; 
 
The bill was introduced in July and received its first reading late in August. It could pass NZ&rsquo;s Parliament next month.

New Zealand Labour Pushing Law to Protect Contract Workers

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A Youth Action Day by German affiliate IGBCE, on 19 September, produced a commitment by the federal state of North-Rhine Westphalia to create 205 training positions, funded at &euro;10,000 each, to offset lost employment opportunities from the recent agreement in the coal industry. 
 
The commitment came after youth leaders of the IGBCE met with North-Rhine/Westphalia Employment Minister Karl Josef Laumann. 
 
Some 2,000 students and young workers of IGBCE&rsquo;s Youth Network protested in D&uuml;sseldorf on that day. They came from youth committees from several German companies, including BASF and Evonik Industries. Evonik is the new publicly-traded company created from state coal company RAG. It comprises RAG&rsquo;s power stations, chemicals, and real estate businesses, and was formed in discussions on the future of Germany&rsquo;s coal industry. 
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IGBCE's Michael Vassiliadis
&ldquo;The actions of the young workers of our union have made this a success,&rdquo; said Michael Vassiliadis, head of IGBCE&rsquo;s Youth Activities. &ldquo;Now we will undertake all efforts so that the 205 young persons will be afforded the opportunity to start their work lives with the necessary training.&rdquo; 
 
The IGBCE stressed that the &euro;10,000-per-job commitment from the state will fund only part of the training. Funds have been set aside for this purpose from the hard-coal agreement, and the union said social partners from the employer side must step forward to provide additional training funds.

IGBCE Youth Action Network Wins Training Positions

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ICEM affiliate Chemical, Non-Metallic, and Rubber Workers&rsquo; Union (KNG) of Slovenia and the Sava management of Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. at Kranj came to wage terms at a tyre factory this summer, but the new contract still needs attention. At issue is how management is &ndash; or rather, is not &ndash; implementing language recently inserted into the collective agreement. 
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In addition to winning a &euro;90-per-month increase, the 900 workers also agreed to a plan to reduce sick leave in exchange for a sizeable bonus scheme. Management has failed to adequately implement this plan, as well neglecting other aspects of the new agreement. Shop-floor leaders at the Kranj tyre and engineered products plants, Goodyear&rsquo;s prize operations in Eastern and Central Europe, together with and KNG&rsquo;s Andrej Zorko, are eager for managers to put the new collective agreement into effect. 
Goodyear produces auto, truck, and bus tyres in Kranj. It makes Sava tyre brands there, as well as its trademarked Avant A3 steer-axle tyre and the Orjak 03 drive-axle tyre. In 2006, Goodyear exceeded all business targets at the Kranj plants. It also made its one millionth tyre there. Goodyear is one of Slovenia&rsquo;s largest exporters. 
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The company entered into a majority-stake joint venture with the Sava Group in 1998, which gave it 60% of the tyre-making plant and 75% of the engineered products operation. Goodyear paid US$120 million for those stakes. Previously, Continental AG of Germany held a 28% share of Sava.In 2002, Goodyear bought another 20% stake in of operations for US$38.5 million, and, two years later, the company bought up the remaining shares to give it full ownership. 
 
Besides being affiliated to the ICEM, KNG Trade Union is a proud affiliate of the Association of Free Trade Unions (ZSSS) of Slovenia, which is currently leading an effort in the country to offset inflation with increases in salaries for all workers.

Contract Settled, But Problems Persist at Goodyear’s Slovenia Tyre Plant

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A Network of Brazilian trade unions that organises nine workplaces of the Belgian-based Solvay Group came together on 12-14 September in S&atilde;o Paolo to create enhanced communication and union solidarity. 
This initiative is a part of the Brazilian confederation CUT&rsquo;s multinational project, and has support and involvement from the ICEM and the National Confederation of Chemical Workers of Brazil, CNQ-CUT. 
 
The meeting&rsquo;s agenda contained reports on ILO global standards, an open exchange on experiences of building and construction trade unions regarding formation of national networks, and boundaries to social dialogue as a tool in negotiations. 
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The eight plants of Group Solvay in Brazil are: Dacarto Benvic/Osasco, Dacarto Benvic/Bahia, Solvay Farma/S&atilde;o Paolo, Solvay Indupa, Solvay Solexis (Santo Andre), Energy Automotive Systems, Peroxides, and Chemicals Solvay/Paran&aacute;. 
 
The meetings reached consensus to call the organisation would be called the &ldquo;Network of Workers in Solvay Group in Brazil.&rdquo; The next meeting will occur in March 2008. The Network will publish a bulletin that will be distributed to workers in all plants. The Network also will adopt a document of principles, in which roles for the ICEM and CUT will be spelled out. 
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The initial meeting also explored problems in labour relations between the unions and Solvay. A company reorganization has seen the dismissal of workers, and acquisitions, mergers, and business moves that have created a rash of subcontracting. Shop-floor leaders at Solvay in Brazil also discussed environmental effects, safety and heath concerns, and they exchanged information on collective agreements and plant-by-plant negotiations. 
 
The initial meeting also resolved to send a letter to human resource managers at each plant, informing them of the Network, and offering meaningful social dialogue with the company. The Network also resolved to expand the March 2008 meeting to Solvay unions in the whole of Latin America.

Brazilian Workers of Belgian Chemicals Company Solvay Unite

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An important new law was enacted in the US state of Illinois on 6 August 2007, when the state&rsquo;s governor, Rod Blagojevich, signed into force a bar on construction companies falsely classifying workers as &ldquo;independent contractors.&rdquo; The new law in the midwestern state is seen as a harbinger for what could occur across the US nationally, considering the coming political ballots, and George Bush&rsquo;s mandatory departure. 
 
&ldquo;Misclassification of employees as independent contractors is one of the devices that greedy employers use to cheat workers out of their benefits,&rdquo; said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, who joined Blagojevich and other proponents of the regulation at the 6 August signing ceremony. 
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AFL-CIO President John Sweeney
The measure, passed by the Illinois Senate and House of Representatives early in the year, had broad support, including labour and scores of legitimate construction companies. These firms, relying on skilled, generally unionised workers, have been left at a competitive disadvantage by unscrupulous employers, who deliberately mis-classify workers as contractors in order to reduce their operating costs. In Illinois, estimates say that such nefarious enterprises save an average of 24% in submitting bids on projects. 
The law in Illinois, introduced as the Employee Classification Act, presumes all workers are regular employees unless certain conditions exist, such as being a partner or sole proprietor, a specific business or profession, or providing a service outside of the usual course of business. The law, the fifth such statute among the US&rsquo;s 50 state laws, includes US$2,500 penalties on companies that deliberately misclassify construction workers. Repeat offenders can face felony charges. 
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A university study found Illinois losing an average of US$125.7 million annually in tax revenue over a five-year period in the early 2000s. Cut-rate employers avoid paying Social Security, workers&rsquo; compensation benefits, jobless relief, state and federal taxes, and other social costs. Sweeney stated that such tax revenue losses deprive governments of immediate funds that could address &ldquo;so many vital programs.&rdquo; 
 
The US Congress, in the House of Representatives, took up the independent contractor issue in hearings last March, but has yet to act on legislation that could update US labour code on this crucial workplace issue.

US Building Workers Win Ban on Contract Labour in Illinois State

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ICEM affiliate Unite and the Offshore Industry Liaison Committee (OILC) have jointly called on the UK&rsquo;s Health &amp; Safety Executive (HSE) to investigate Royal Dutch Shell&rsquo;s safety practices at five North Sea energy platforms. The installations are currently up for sale, and Unite and OILC say low morale, coupled with departures of key staff that are familiar with safety procedures, creates very risky conditions. 
 
The five platforms include Cormorant Alpha, Dunlin Alpha (CADA), Tern, Eider, and North Cormorant (TENC). Some 400 Shell workers are affected. 
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In early August, Shell experienced a blackout at its Brent Bravo rig in the North Sea, stranding 61 workers for 48 hours. Shell said it did not want to risk a rescue at night, but the company faced questions on its slow response time in rescue. In 2003, a gas leak on the same rig killed two workers. Now, with key personnel leaving five other Shell rigs, safety again is a major issue. 
 
&ldquo;Many platform areas are now not covered by trained and competent people and certain HSE safety critical roles are not fully supported,&rdquo; Unite said in a joint statement. &ldquo;The gaps in these safety-critical positions could be so severe that, in the event of an emergency, staff may be unable to cope.&rdquo; 
 
Unite said such conditions are leading to a breakdown in communications between Shell and its workers, and it is affecting morale. 
 
Upstream publication reported last week that claims reveal safety deficiencies in control room operations, shift supervisors, and technical capacities regarding instrumentation and electrical. &ldquo;It is reported that on some platforms there is now a lack of suitable trained fire team leaders,&rdquo; reported the oil and gas trade weekly. 
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Meanwhile, separately, the head of the HSE&rsquo;s Offshore Division, Ian Whewell, delivered a stark address to industry leaders at an Offshore Europe forum in Aberdeen. He called it unfortunate that offshore companies consider it a regulatory nuisance to comply with safety standards. 
He also fully endorsed worker involvement in safety, and his comment on participation counters the reality now occurring at Shell: &ldquo;The commitment of many in the offshore workforce is undoubted, but HSE believes that unless the workforce is encouraged to actively participate, the industry is missing a key opportunity.&rdquo; 
 
ExxonMobil&rsquo;s Esso division also announced in June 2007 that it would divest in North Sea production facilities.

Shell’s Redundancies Causing Safety Deficiencies on North Sea Platforms

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Belgium&rsquo;s FGTB Union has raised awareness to the number of workplace fatalities occurring in Saint-Gobain operations, particularly in China. The ICEM affiliate is voicing concern because of the French multinational&rsquo;s own admittance that it counts 21 fatalities so far in 2007. 
 
Three of those fatalities have come in Chinese operations of the Paris-based company since June. The FGTB is calling for a trade union analysis of the company&rsquo;s safety procedures, and a greater emphasis on preventative measures. 
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The union also stresses that support and solidarity to Saint-Gobain must occur when accidents and fatalies do happen, including stop-work actions to attend funerals and communiqu&eacute;s and distribution of information when accidents occur. 
 
The company has cited a worker at a Beijing, who was crushed to death by a falling machine part on 22 June; another worker killed in a Hanglas plant in Wehai City on 27 June by an &ldquo;unexplained fall of a heavy metallic piece;&rdquo; and a woman killed at another Hunglas plant in Kunshan on 12 July by a loaded fork-lift. In addition, a sub-contractor was killed in Gunsan, South Korea, on 20 June during a gas leak in a confined space, and a French delivery driver was buried when a wall collapsed in Cagnes sur Mer on 18 July. 
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Saint-Gobain also reported heart attacks occurring on the job in Brazil, South Korea, and the US, and workers dying due to road accidents in France and Brazil. Early in 2007, the company was fined &pound;10,000 by UK&rsquo;s Health &amp; Safety Executive due to a four-tonne runaway truck seriously injuring a worker at a facility in Ilkeston, UK.
And last year, the French company lost a US$3.06 million judgement after a gas blast severely burned sub-contractors sued for damages. They had been hired at a Grandview, state of Missouri, glass plant of Saint-Gobain Calmar to remove a heating unit line, and were told by the company that all gas had been removed from the line. 
 
Last year, the company said the average rate of daily injuries occurring in its global operations had been reduced to six.

Questions Raised on Number of 2007 Workplace Tragedies by Saint-Gobain

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French unions have vowed to mobilise in the coming weeks over the news that European energy companies Gaz de France and Belgian-Franco Suez Group are finally on cue to merge. French trade unions CGT, CFDT, FO, CGF-CGC, and CFTC pledged last week that they will again escalate resistance to further consolidation of Europe&rsquo;s energy markets. 
 
The French unions have banded together many times in the past to place roadblocks and barriers in the form of lawsuits and social dissent against the long planned merger. French President Nicholas Sarkozy has now become the catalyst to push the deal through. 
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The merger that would create the world&rsquo;s third largest utility contradicts a European Commission priority to place more competition in gas and electric markets. It angers the French unions, and French citizens alike, who remember Sarkozy as the Finance Minister that promised Gaz de France would never fall below 70% of a state-controlled public asset. 
 
The &euro;90 billion merger would reduce France&rsquo;s stake in the combined company to roughly 35% from 80.2%. The Sarkozy government now heralds a 35% stake as &ldquo;controlling&rdquo; and says the state will be a &ldquo;rational shareholder.&rdquo; 
 
The French unions, however, must now wrestle with the effects of a potential deal with sell-offs, redundancies, and likely cost cutting by equity stakes that sweep in on mandated divestitures. Such businesses that will be separated include waste disposal and water, with a new GDF Suez to become Europe&rsquo;s largest supplier of natural gas and the world&rsquo;s largest storage terminal operator for LNG. 
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The five unions will build resistance through consumer groups and political pressure, as well as mass mobilisations across France. They announced they will also conduct a national petition. 
 
The CGT predicted that consumers will be harmed by rising prices, and said the French stake at 35% will offer little in protection of workers or consumers. The CFDT said European partners ought to take Sarkozy&rsquo;s new claim, &ldquo;at the very least, as arrogant&rdquo; and the Commission itself must consider the social consequences that mandated divestitures will bring to public utilities. CFDT said the current merger plan essentially dismantles the Suez Group, while effectively privatising Gaz de France.

Broken Sarkozy Promise on Gaz de France and Suez Means French Unions Will Mobilise

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