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ICEM affiliate National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) of South Africa last week declared wage disputes with three mining houses, DeBeers, Exxaro Resources, and Kumba Resources&rsquo; Sishen Iron Ore mine. The wage dispute filings come just days after NUM announced that it would take industrial action at Gold Fields&rsquo; four mines in August. 
 
The world&rsquo;s fourth largest gold producer, Gold Fields, has let safety lapse in South Africa, accounting for 23 of the country&rsquo;s 87 mining deaths between January and June, 2008. 
 
In late June, NUM and diamond miner DeBeers agreed on salary adjustments for 2008 of 12%. But the company pulled the offer and &ldquo;put forward a different draft that spoke a different language,&rdquo; said the NUM. DeBeers offered 11% over a two-year period, an obvious slight to miners, with run-away inflation in South Africa with due to rising food and fuel prices.
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The two sides will meet on 21 July before the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA) in an effort to resolve the dispute. If agreement is not reached, some 6,000 miners at six DeBeers operations will then take industrial action. 
 
The dispute at Exxaro&rsquo;s three coal mines is over wage disparities between the collieries that are both inside and out of the Chamber of Mines. NUM is also seeking to establish minimum wage levels. Exxaro is majority owned by private equity company Main Street, with AngloAmerican Plc. holding 9.84%. 
 
At the Sishen Iron ore mine, where 4,000 miners are employed, the dispute is over wages promises that have not been met. 
 
But the continuing story in the South African mining industry revolves around safety. The NUM held a Safety Imdaba from 3-4 July in Boksburg. There, NUM Health and Safety Chairman Peter Bailey stated bluntly, &ldquo;We need to have the same passion about safety as we did in defeating apartheid.&rdquo;
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&nbsp;NUM's Peter Bailey 
 

The summit caused South African Minerals and Energy Minister Buyelwa Sonjica to call on the nation&rsquo;s Justice Ministry to join it in investigating and then prosecuting companies negligent over safety. Despite 1,500 workers dying in the mines in the past five years, the Justice Ministry has not taken up a single prosecution case. A new Mine Health and Safety bill is under consideration in South Africa&rsquo;s Parliament. It is intended to mandate stricter enforcement measures, and impose harsher fines on those responsible for safety lapses. 
 
At Gold Fields, the company experienced 15 mining deaths between late April to early May at its South Deep and Driefontein mines. And then on 29 June at its 15,000-worker Kloof mine near Westonaria in West Rand, just hours after the company boasted that it had achieved one million fatality-free shifts, two miners were crushed and died 3,000 metres underground due to a ground shift.
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The company&rsquo;s most egregious accident occurred on 1 May. Nine miners, including two from the same family, plunged 2,880 metres to their deaths at South Deep when a lift cable snapped on a cage that was carrying them. Sonjica said then that the deaths could have been avoided if the infrastructure had been properly checked and maintained. &quot;When you don't service equipment, it will collapse,&rdquo; she told a South African newspaper. 
 
Six other miners employed by Gold Fields, including five at Driefonteion, had died because of rock falls or earth tremors in the week before.

NUM Files Strike Notice on 3 South Africa Mining Houses; Safety Strike Looms at Gold Fields

ICEM Agreement on HIV/AIDS Cooperation in India with German Pharmaceutical Company Boehringer Ingelheim 
The ICEM entered an agreement with Boehringer Ingelheim for the company to financially sponsor an HIV/AIDS project in India. Based on the initiation work by ICEM and its affiliates in India, and following an analysis of the prevailing problems and needs during a workshop in November 2006, negotiations for this partnership were facilitated by the German ICEM affiliate, IGBCE. The project runs from July 2008 to December 2009. 
 
The project&rsquo;s main objectives include closing the gap of qualified peer educators/lay counsellors in the industrial sectors covered by ICEM affiliates in India, and the up-scaling of awareness campaigns, education, and advocacy for VCT and ART. 
 
With the training of peer educators/lay counsellors and the orientation of medical and para-medical staff in company health facilities, as well as teachers and staff at company schools, it is expected that greater awareness will lead to behaviour change and that Know-your-Status-Campaigns will increase the uptake of VCT.
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Master Trainers Programme Implemented in Kolkata
As the initial step for the implementation of the project in India, a training programme for master trainers was held in Kolkata, from 25-27 August 2008. Twenty-eight participants attended the course. 
 
Technical assistance was provided by the ILO New Delhi Office and its HIV/AIDS programme coordinator, SM Afsar, and programme officer, Divya Verma. General Secretary BK Das of ICEM affiliate Indian National Mineworkers&rsquo; Federation coordinated the programme. Participants also benefited from the technical support of the West Bengal State AIDS Prevention and Control Society and Coal India Ltd. 
 
During the course, the master trainers acquired key training skills on the basics of HIV/AIDS, the role of trade unions and HIV/AIDS in the world of work, behaviour change communication, and integrated counselling and testing. 
 
Master trainers will train some 700 peer educators in the coal mining, cement, chemical, and diamond sectors. 
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International AIDS Conference in Mexico City 
Labour&rsquo;s voice was heard loud and clear in the Global Village as well as in many of the sessions of the main Conference programme, according to the Chair of the Global Union AIDS Programme (GUAP), Alan Leather. 
 
A delegation of over 40 trade unionists from 25 countries organised a two-day Labour Forum prior to the International AIDS Conference and participated in events of the conference, which was held in Mexico City from 3 to 8 August. 
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Thousands of AIDS organisations and representatives attending the conference received succinct trade union messages. Written and visual materials were distributed, along with thousands of free condoms at a highly successful trade union display booth, which became the centre for the GUAP coordination of activists. This centre served as an invaluable tool in explaining why workers and trade unions have a unique role in tackling HIV/AIDS in the workplace. 
 
The conference provided many opportunities for presentations and dialogue on the major challenges facing the global response to AIDS. Formal sessions, satellite meetings, exhibitions, events at the Global Village, and a well-developed Cultural Programme served to focus on efforts to expand the delivery of HIV prevention and treatment to communities world-wide through knowledge transfer and sharing of best practice. 
 
At the conference, the ILO organized its own well-attended satellite meeting to discuss the development of a new international labour standard on HIV/AIDS. It was moderated by Mexico&rsquo;s Minister of Labour and representatives from trade unions, employers, governments, the ILO, and other agencies actively participated. 
 
(Source: GUAP Press Release, 10 August) 
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Assessment Missions to Zambia and Uganda 
In the last year of the project cycle, the ICEM conducts an internal assessment of the programme at national level. In July, the programme in Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone was critically reviewed (see e-bulletin: August/September 2008). 
 
In August, Project Management Assistant Paule Ndessomin went to Zambia and Uganda to meet with leadership of ICEM affiliates, peer educators trained by the programme, and national HIV/AIDS organisations, as well as health authorities. Visits of factory sites completed the mission. 
 
Overall, the programme has had a very positive impact in both countries. Awareness has increased considerably. Peer educators were trained, but some companies are still reluctant to give them time off to discuss HIV/AIDS issues at the workplace. In Zambia, Konkola Copper Mines, with more than 11,000 permanent workers and 4,000 contractors, has a comprehensive programme, including VCT campaigns and the provision of ARVs. Other companies in Zambia and Uganda have made efforts but too many still lag behind in their interventions. 
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ICEM Affiliates in Colombia Organise HIV/AIDS Seminar 
On 12 August, the ICEM Colombia coordinator, Carlos Bustos, organised a seminar on HIV/AIDS in the workplace. Thirty-five participants attended the seminar, which reviewed the progress made since the first HIV/AIDS activities in 2006. 
 
Regrettably, only at Carbones de Cerrej&oacute;n, the large coal-mining operation owned by three MNCs in the north of the country, does an adequate HIV/AIDS policy and intervention programme exist. Participants resolved to form an HIV/AIDS team and to negotiate clauses in collective agreements and HIV/AIDS policies with companies in the framework of the ICEM&rsquo;s Social Dialogue Project. Basis for the dialogue with companies will be the ILO Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work. 
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Global Fund: Dramatic Increase in Round 8 Proposals 
Proposals that were submitted to the Global Fund in Round 8 are more than twice as large, in average dollar value, as in any previous round. Highlights regarding the Round 8 proposals include: 102 countries submitted 185 proposals in Round 8, which is 35 proposals more than were submitted in Round 7, but about the same as the average over Rounds 1-7. 
 
The average two-year cost of the proposals submitted in Round was US$35 million, dramatically up from $16 million in Round 7 and US$12 million on average over Rounds 1-7. The total cost of the proposals submitted in Round 8 was US$6.4 billion, up from US$2.4 billion in Round 7 and US$2.3 billion on average over Rounds 1-7. 
 
The number of HIV proposals submitted in Round 8 was up by 30% from Round 7. The cost split between the HIV/malaria/TB proposals submitted in Round 8 was 50% for HIV, 33% for malaria, and17% for TB proposals. 
 
Only 40% (75 of 185) of the Round 8 proposals opted to follow the Fund&rsquo;s recommendation (but not requirement) that the proposal be &ldquo;dual-track&rdquo;, i.e. have one Principal Recipient from the government sector and one from another sector. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer, Issue 93, 18 August 2008. GFO is a free service of Aidspan <a href="http://www.aidspan.org">www.aidspan.org</a>,&nbsp;a Kenya-based NGO that serves as an independent watchdog of the Global Fund. To receive GFO send an email to <a href="mailto:receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org">receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org</a>) 
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Technical Review Panel Recommends Approval of US$3 Billion 
After conducting its detailed review of Round 8 proposals, the Global Fund&rsquo;s Technical Review Panel (TRP) has recommended that the Global Fund Board approve grants that will cost in excess of US$3 billion. This is roughly half of the proposal amount (see article above), and makes Round 8 nearly three times the size, in dollar terms, of any previous round of Global Fund grants. 
 
Malaria proposals were particularly successful and represent more than half of the recommended amount. The recommendations of the TRP for individual grants are not known until the Global Fund Board gives its final approval in November. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer, Issue 95, 26 September 2008) 
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Australia Mining Boom Linked to HIV Spike 
Australia&rsquo;s mining boom may be fuelling an alarming rise in HIV infections among cash-rich outback miners and businessmen who holiday in Asia. 
 
Rates of HIV infections in Australia have increased by almost 50% in the past eight years, according to a new national HIV/AIDS report by the National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research. Homosexual men still account for most new infections, but a large number of new infections are among heterosexual men in the country&rsquo;s mining states of Western Australia and Queensland. 
 
Many miners work fly-in, fly-out shifts consisting of several weeks straight of employment, followed by a few weeks off. Researchers say some are visiting Southeast Asian countries during their holidays and having unprotected sex. 
 
(Source: Reuters, 17 September) 
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ICMM Publishes Guide on HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria 
The International Council on Mining and Metal (ICMM) published its new guide, &ldquo;Good Practice Guidance on HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria,&rdquo; at the end of August. 
 
The guide provides a systematic framework and practical advice on disease management that will enable mining and metal operations worldwide to address key challenges, both among workers and neighbouring communities. 
 
The guide can be accessed at the ICMM website <a href="http://www.icmm.com">www.icmm.com</a>. 
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News from the Global Union Programme and Global Unions 
In its most recent HIV/AIDS Updates, the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF) (<a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>) reports, among other noteworthy items, on the increased risk for HIV of Mexican migrant workers when they arrive in the US. The newsletter also covers changes in sexual behaviour; the high likelihood of married of Indian women, who experience physical and sexual abuse by husbands, are to contract HIV; and the introduction of a text messaging programme in Uganda to increase awareness of and knowledge about HIV/AIDS, including advocacy for HIV testing.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin

On the Global Labour Movement&rsquo;s Day of Action for Decent work, 7 October 2008, ICEM is intensifying its campaign aimed at improving the working conditions of temporary, short-term contract workers, and staff employed through labour agencies. 
 
Two new major tools to assist unions around the world in their efforts to fight precarious work are launched: a new website and an in-depth guide on contract and agency labour (CAL) world-wide. Both are in support of the ICEM&rsquo;s call to its affiliates to concentrate on organising CAL workers. 
Action on these &ldquo;new forms of employment&rdquo; is increasingly needed, since research reveals that the phenomenon of contract and agency workers - employed through subcontracting companies, or as individual subcontractors themselves, or working on temporary contracts, often through agencies - is growing around the world. 
<img height="126" alt="" src="" width="294" />
A <a href="http://cal.icem.org">new site</a> (<a href="http://cal.icem.org">http://cal.icem.org</a>) on contract and agency labour, which will soon also become multi-lingual, is launched by the ICEM today. Aiming to become a first port of call for all ICEM affiliated trade unions, and their members, as well as other trade unionists searching for practical and useful information, the site will continuously provide campaign materials, brochures and guidelines, best practice examples, case studies, and more. 
 
Prominently featured on the site is the new &ldquo;<a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/icem%20manual%2029092008.pdf">ICEM Guide on Contract and Agency Labour</a>&rdquo;. Describing numerous CAL situations from around the world &ndash; both in developing and developed countries &ndash; the guide contains both good and bad stories, the latter outlining some of the horrendous working conditions that workers in precarious employment find themselves in. 
 
The guide also provides an overview of some of the recent changes on this issue in national and international labour laws and standards. It further deals with combating this phenomenon at company level. Useful and often encouraging examples from different parts of the world are provided throughout the guide, as well as various strategy options. 
 
Also on the new ICEM CAL site is the &ldquo;<a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/shortguide%20A4%20english.pdf">Short Guide for Negotiators on How to Deal with Contracting Out, Outsourcing and/or Agency Labour</a>,&rdquo; an instrument to assist trade unionists at the plant level. It provides practical suggestions on what to do when (or before) the issue comes up. This short guide is also available in <a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/shortguide%20A4%20french.pdf">French</a>, <a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/shortguide%20A4%20spanish.pdf">Spanish</a>, <a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/shortguide%20A4%20russian.pdf">Russian</a> and <a href="http://cal.icem.org/images/documents/shortguide%20A4%20japanese.pdf">Japanese</a>. 
 
&ldquo;We join with other Global Union Federations and the International Trade Union Confederation in making this Global Day of Action a turning point for workers victimised by the forces of globalisation,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. &ldquo;And for the ICEM, that means more emphasis on bringing workplace rights and protections to contract and agency workers.&rdquo;

ICEM intensifies Campaign on Contract and Agency Labour with New Site and New Publications

ICEM Women&#039;s Bulletin: September 2008 (No. 31)

<img height="39" alt="" src="" width="100" />
The recorded death toll for 2008 in South Africa&rsquo;s mines is now 125, following three deaths at two locations on Friday, 19 September. The death rate in the country&rsquo;s mines is now approaching 2007&rsquo;s death toll, which was 10% higher than in 2006. 
 
At DRDGold Ltd.&rsquo;s East Rand Proprietary Mine (ERPM) near Boksburg, two miners died inside an elevator cage some 600 metres underground. The two were not in a gold-producing shaft, but were checking water levels for pumping purposes. The company claims they were overcome by gas. Inspectors for the Minerals and Energy Department issued an order prohibiting entry into all ERPM shafts until ventilation equipment was checked.
<img height="120" alt="" src="" width="120" />
On the same day, 19 September, a winch driver at AngloGold Ashanti&rsquo;s Savuka mine near Carletonville was killed in a shaft. 
 
ICEM affiliate National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has taken a firm stand on observing the rash of mine deaths. With each mining fatality, workers will engage in a day-long Mourning Period in which no work will be performed. 
 
The fatalities late last week were not the only mine deaths to occur in the past fortnight. On 17 September, a miner inside a shaft at Impala Platinum&rsquo;s Rustenburg mine was killed by a battery-operated cargo hauler. And a day later, a miner died in a hospital from burns he suffered in a blast occurring on 26 August at AngloPlatinum&rsquo;s Amandelbult mine. Another miner was killed then. 
 
And also at Amandelbult, on 15 September, an AngloPlatinum miner was killed inside the No. 1 shaft. That brings six miners dead this year at the AngloPlatinum facility, compared to three in 2007 and five in 2006.
<img height="175" alt="" src="" width="240" />
At yet another AngloPlats mine, this time at the Lebowa mine near Limpopo, a miner was killed in a winch accident on 10 September. Also on that date, a member of the NUM was killed at Exxaro Coal&rsquo;s Grootegeluk mine near Ellisras. On 5 September, a contract employee for Redpath Mining at Aquarius Platinum&rsquo;s Kroondal mine was killed above ground when he was struck by a load-and-dump vehicle. 
 
Following mining deaths that occurred in August, NUM members have laid down tools on several occasions to observe Days of Mourning. On 11 September, 6,000 miners mourned a tragedy that occurred at Harmony Gold&rsquo;s Elandsrand mine on 30 August. Two miners were killed when a shaft collapsed. And on 7 September, 5,000 workers stopped work and mourned when a miner died during another shift of ground at DRDGold&rsquo;s Blyvoor mine. That incident occurred 4 September. 
 
The NUM is seeking stricter penalties against employers for mining accidents under the proposed Mine Health and Safety Amendment Bill. The ICEM supports the NUM in lobbying efforts to make this needed legislation realty. The ICEM, as well, extends its deepest condolences to the families of South African miners who have died in these most recent tragedies.

More Deaths Inside and Outside of South Africa’s Mines

In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin, we report on the sub-regional workshop in Lagos and the West African assessment mission. Information is also included on the renewal of PEPFAR, the results of the G8 Summit and on latest developments at the Global Fund.
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Sub-regional HIV/AIDS Review Workshop in Lagos 
Fourteen unionists, half of them women, from Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone came together in Lagos, 21&ndash;23 July, for a sub-regional workshop to review progress in their HIV/AIDS work. Working groups dealt with constraints in their HIV/AIDS work and possible solutions; considered new proposals; discussed the role of women and young workers and argued in favour of mainstreaming HIV/AIDS in all union activities; and explored the idea of making HIV/AIDS an organising tool for unions. 
 
Above all, participants discussed future sustainability in view of the expiry of the ICEM HIV/AIDS project. While funding from employers and national and international organisations, and cooperation with NGOs and faith-based organisations are all important, commitment by union leadership is crucial in the fight against the pandemic. Unions should also develop technical competence in proposal writing and project management. 
 
Presentations on HIV/AIDS workplace policies, the ILO Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work, and peer education were made by SMARTWork, a US-funded organisation which supports workplace programmes in Nigeria and other countries, in cooperation with employers and unions. (SMARTWork stands for Strategically Managing AIDS Responses Together in the Workplace). 
 
A representative of the Nigeria Business Coalition against AIDS (NIBUCAA) presented good practices by employers in case studies from Nigeria. 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
West African Assessment Mission 
Prior to the late July workshop in Lagos, the ICEM Global HIV/AIDS Coordinator visited Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria to assess the HIV/AIDS work by ICEM affiliates during the past three years. 
 
A full programme in Freetown included meetings with the National HIV/AIDS Secretariat, mine companies, and the Network of HIV Positives in Sierra Leone. These meetings demonstrated the extended contacts the United Mineworkers&rsquo; Union uses for its very successful HIV/AIDS programme and the commitment of leadership. 
 
The national HIV/AIDS coordinator in Nigeria has run innovative activities for NUPENG and PENGASSAN, with the help of SMARWork, and received technical assistance from GHAIN, the Global HIV/AIDS Initiative Nigeria. A new project sponsored by the Humanity Fund of the Canadian ICEM affiliate Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) will take off soon. 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
News from Affiliates 
In the last issue of this e-bulletin, we reported on the national activities supported by the ICEM HIV/AIDS project in Nigeria, Zambia, C&ocirc;te d&rsquo;Ivoire, and Sierra Leone. 
 
ICEM affiliates continue their HIV/AIDS work and reports were received from a number of countries. The Uganda Mines and Allied Workers&rsquo; Union conducted two training courses for HIV/AIDS counsellors in May and June for a total of 50 participants with the objective to developing skills to conduct counselling at the workplace. Unionists as representatives of workers have a special position of trust to overcome stigma and the low uptake of VCT. 
 
The Mine Workers&rsquo; Union of Namibia (MUN), in cooperation with the Occupational Health, Education, and Awareness Programme (OHEAP) of the Chamber of Mines, organised a group education workshop in Walvis Bay in May. Twnety-six participants from R&ouml;ssing Uranium Mine, from salt and chemical manufacturers, and from the surrounding communities attended the workshop. 
 
ICEM and MUN are also sponsoring an evaluation of the OHEAP Programme to be terminated by December. Over the past two years, cooperation between MUN and the Chamber of Mines has increased, recognising a greater role of the union in HIV/AIDS interventions. 
 
In Mauritius, the Chemical, Manufacturing and Connected Trade Employees&rsquo; Union organised an awareness campaign. A total of 192 participants, including migrant workers, attended the main event. With the support of the ICEM HIV/AIDS Project, 7,000 leaflets were printed. The target of the campaign includes female foreign workers who, because of their meagre salaries, often become part-time commercial sex workers in their spare time. 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
G8 Creates Monitoring Mechanism for AIDS 
A three-year lobbying by trade unions and civil society yielded a renewed G8 commitment to universal access to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care, health system strengthening, and the creation of a follow up mechanism to monitor G8 progress on HIV/AIDS. 
 
Such greater accountability was achieved in a three-year campaign lobbying G8 embassies and ministers at UN, OECD, and other inter-governmental meetings. In the short period of seven working days, over 250 organisations, mostly trade unions, signed up in support of the declaration circulated by the World AIDS campaign (see e-bulletin 32, May 2008). 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
US Triples Funding for AIDS, TB, and Malaria 
The US House of Representatives, on 24 July, voted 303 to115 and the US Senate followed with a 60-13 vote to approve a bill that reauthorizes the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. The bill allocates US$48 billion for PEPFAR over the next five years. It was signed by President Bush on 30 July. 
 
The bill approved includes a provision that more than half of the program's aid go toward HIV/AIDS treatment and care. It allocates US$2 billion for the Global Fund in fiscal year 2009. The legislation contains an existing requirement that organisations receiving PEPFAR aid have a policy that opposes commercial sex work. The measure also includes a provision that would ease U.S. HIV/AIDS travel restrictions. 
 
(Various sources, as reported in <a href="http://www.kaisernetwork.org">www.kaisernetwork.org</a>) 
<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />

UNAIDS Publishes New Report on Global AIDS Epidemic 
Significant gains in preventing new HIV infections are being seen in a number of countries most affected by the AIDS epidemic. This is according to the 2008 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic. The Report, published every two years, highlights specific examples of countries which are seeing changes in sexual behaviour followed by declines in the number of new HIV infections. 
 
However, the Report also shows that despite the declines in new HIV infections, the AIDS epidemic is far from over, and that rates of new infections are rising in many countries. 
 
The 2008 Report is the most comprehensive report on the response to AIDS. It includes data from 147 countries and enables readers to assess progress made since 2001. 
 
(Source: UNAIDS Press Release, 29 July. The report is available on the website <a href="http://www.unaids.org">www.unaids.org</a>). 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Record Gains in South-East Asia 
According to the above report, Cambodia and Laos are among the best reformers in the region when it comes to ARV coverage. By 2007, there were 26,000 Cambodians on ARV treatment of the 29,000 people living with HIV/AIDS who needed it. Similarly, Laos is in the small group of developing countries where the coverage is more than 75%. 
 
With much higher absolute numbers, Thailand&rsquo;s achievements are also impressive. They are largely due to cheaper generic drugs. In November 2006, Thailand applied the compulsory licensing option, which allows developing countries to break patents of expensive drugs for public health emergencies under WTO rules. 
 
Papua New Guinea has made significant progress in scaling up VCT services, as well as expanding ARV access during the past few years. In Indonesia, however, the epidemic is among the fastest growing in Asia. The epidemic, which initially centred largely on injecting drug users in Bali and Jakarta, has now spread to 32 provinces. 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Global Fund Board Confirms Round 9 
The Board of the Global Fund has confirmed that the Round 9 Call for Proposals will be on 1 October 2008, nearly six months earlier than had originally been anticipated. Round 10 is then expected to begin in April 2009. 
 
In the run-up to the decision on R8 proposals, for which the deadline was 1 July, the Technical Review Panel will give more complete information on rejected proposals, including suggested changes that need to be made to submit a proposal for re-submission. In Round 9, CCMs will be permitted to re-submit a proposal that had been assigned to Category 3 in Round 8 and to submit a separate new proposal. As anticipated, there will be a number of changes from the procedures followed in earlier rounds. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer, issue 90 of 26 June 2008. GFO is a free service of Aidspan <a href="http://www.aidspan.org">www.aidspan.org</a>, a Kenya-based NGO that serves as an independent watchdog of the Global Fund. To receive GFO send an email to <a href="mailto:receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org">receive-gfo-newsletter@aidspan.org</a>) 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Do Global Fund Grants Work for Women? 
An Aidspan report entitled, &quot;Do Global Fund Grants Work for Women? An Assessment of the Gender Responsiveness of Global Fund-Financed Programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa,&rdquo; has just been published. It is available at no charge, in English only, at <a href="http://www.aidspan.org/aidspanpublications">www.aidspan.org/aidspanpublications</a>. 
 
The report, by Angela Kageni and David Garmaise, provides findings from an analysis by Aidspan of all 211 approved proposals to the Global Fund that were submitted by countries in sub-Saharan Africa in Rounds 1-7. The study examines the extent to which these proposals, including services and activities, were &ldquo;gender responsive.&rdquo; Programmes are said to be gender-responsive when they provide services specifically for women or promote equal access for women to services provided to both men and women. 
 
For five focus countries &ndash; Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia &ndash; Aidspan analysed not just the proposals, but also the grants as implemented, to determine what results have been achieved for gender-related services and activities. 
 
(Source: Global Fund Observer, issue 92 of 31 July 2008) 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
Kenya in Landmark HIV Ruling 
Kenya&rsquo;s High Court has ruled for the first time that it is unlawful to fire someone on the grounds of their HIV status. It awarded a woman compensation of 2.2 million Kenyan shillings (US$35,000) for unfair dismissal. Homepark Caterers terminated the waitress&rsquo;s contract five years ago after she tested HIV-positive. 
 
The landmark ruling could have positive consequences for many of the 2.5 million Kenyans living with HIV, many of whom hide their status for fear of discrimination. 
 
(Source: SAPA, 11 July) 
&nbsp;<img height="35" alt="" src="" width="25" />
New AIDS Threat Emerging in India&rsquo;s Call Centres 
A new AIDS threat is rising in India's numerous call centres, where young staff is increasingly having unprotected sex with multiple partners in affairs developed during night shifts, a top AIDS expert has warned. 
 
While India has made great strides in bringing down its HIV infection rate, the promiscuity among &quot;call centre Romeos&quot; is a great concern, Dr. Suniti Solomon, who detected the first HIV case in India in 1986, told an international medical conference. 
 
According to her, India has reached a plateau of the infections. Her concern now is the call centres, where many of the young staff works at night to correspond with the daytime working hours of their American and European clients. 
 
It is estimated that India&rsquo;s call centres employ some 1.3 million people, mostly youths fresh out of school and colleges, earning a starting salary of 25,000 rupees (US$600) a month, more than a government doctor's pay check. There are no figures for how many call centre workers are infected with HIV. 
 
(Source: Associated Press Worldstream, 22 June) 
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News from the Global Union Programme and Global Unions 
In its latest Newsletter on EFA and HIV/AIDS Prevention at Schools of 1 August, Education International reports on the controversy in South Africa in making condoms available in schools; and on HIV/AIDS workshops in Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, and Mali. Articles also deal with preparations for the International AIDS Conference in Mexico and consultations on drafting the ILO Recommendation on HIV/AIDS in the world of work. 
 
The Global Union AIDS Programme is organising a two-day Labour AIDS Forum to facilitate trade union cooperation ahead of the biennial International AIDS Conference in Mexico City from 3-8 August.

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Elbranschernas Fackforbund BF, the ICEM&rsquo;s Electrical Workers&rsquo; Union affiliate in Finland, has mounted a health and safety campaign against the use of creosote-treated wooden utility poles, reports Trade Union News of Finland. The union has targeted the Swedish firm Vattenfall, which has recently expanded the use of creosote on and inside of electrical poles in Finland. 

Direct evidence leaves little doubt that contact with creosote causes rashes and irritation, and could possibly lead to harmful damage to respiratory organs, reports the newsletter. Creosote is used as a preservative on and inside of wooden utility poles. 

The Electrical Workers&rsquo; Union claims it is impossible for utility workers not to have contact with creosote-stained poles in their daily work. Union Bargaining Secretary Sauli Vantti said the only alternative is for stakeholders of all utilities to implement an immediate cessation of wood treated with the resin fibre. 

In 2001, the European Council adopted a Directive that limits the use of creosote. But the Directive did not forbid its injection into electrical poles, or application on poles. 

The union is asking utility companies to find less harmful means to preserve wooden utility poles.

Finland’s Electrical Workers’ Union Wants Utility Pole Creosote Use to End

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An estimated 80% of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) 1.8 million members participated in a national strike on 6 August, protesting rampant inflation. The day-long strike marked the culmination in a series of four work stoppages calling for relief to rising electric and food costs. COSATU also issued a stern demand for a decent living wage to counter a June inflation rate that hit 12.2%. 

In the South African capital of Pretoria last week, 30,000 trade unionists marched on a government building while the cabinet of President Thabo Mbeki was meeting inside. In Cape Town, another 40,000 staged a four-hour march.
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Across South Africa, some 18 pockets of mass strike activity and protests took place. Nearly all the major mining houses were forced to cease operations because miners heeded their union&rsquo;s call to stop work, and three auto assembly plants were also shut by striking workers. 

The nation&rsquo;s workers and consumers demanded a roll back of a government-imposed 27.5% tariff increase in July atop already high electricity costs from state-owned utility Eskom. They also vowed to resist another two-cent-per-kilowatt increase due in September. 

They also protested a hike to food prices totaling 17% in recent months, interest rates that just broke the 20% mark, and fuel prices that rose a full 35% from 2007 to 2008. 

The first national strike called by COSATU this year happened on 9 July. The national labour centre followed that up with strikes on 16 July, targeting the provinces of Kwazulu Natal, Western Cape, Mpumalange, Free State, and Northern Cape. On 23 July, the day-long stay-aways expanded to Gauteng, Eastern Cape, North West, and Limpopo provinces.
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&nbsp;NUM General Secretary Frans Baleni 

The 320,000-member National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), COSATU&rsquo;s largest affiliate, fully endorsed the walk-outs. NUM General Secretary Frans Baleni said fuel costs alone have made it prohibitive for many miners to travel from worksites to their homes to visit families when they are not working. 

&ldquo;We need to send a very strong message that the poor of our society are deeply affected&rdquo; by this current economic crisis, said Baleni. &ldquo;Electricity, food, and everything else is quickly becoming beyond reach.&rdquo;

South African Unions Conduct Wave of National Strikes, Protesting Energy, Food Costs

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Strategic, year-long pressure by the Pulp and Paper Workers&rsquo; Branch of Australian ICEM affiliate Construction, Forestry, Mining, and Energy Union (CFMEU) appears to have severed a supply contract between retail grocery chain Woolworths and Indonesian-based Asia Pulp and Paper (APP). The supply arrangement was for kitchen towels and tissue products. 

The pressure, countering Woolworth&rsquo;s environmental claim on packaging of its Select private-label towel and tissue products, came to a head last week when Woolworths announced it had &ldquo;concluded its contract commitments for the supply of Select paper products.&rdquo; 
The CFMEU is now looking for Australia&rsquo;s largest retailer to tell the country&rsquo;s consumers that it will, in fact, rely only on paper producers that adhere to sustainable forest practices. 

&ldquo;If Woolworths has finally decided to do the right thing, they need to show us by a clear and unequivocal statement they will never go back to APP,&rdquo; said CFMEU&rsquo;s Pulp and Paper Secretary Alex Millar. They must now prove &ldquo;they will source their product from Australia and support Australian jobs the way they expect Australian consumers to support them.&rdquo; 
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The CFMEU campaign focused on a Woolworths packaging claim that its Select products were sourced from an &ldquo;environmentally managed company.&rdquo; In fact, Indonesia&rsquo;s Centre for International Forestry Research in 2007 found that APP relies on 60-70% of its wood fibre from clearing first-growth, protected forests in Sumatra. And much of that is by using illegal logging practices. 

The campaign then discovered that many Select products are made in APP&rsquo;s Chinese mills, where much of the wood fibre used is also derived through illegal means. 

After CFMEU appeals to Woolworths shareholders, most notably in November 2007, the retail chain pulled the Select brands from its shelves. But a few weeks later, those brands were back on the retail market, but without the environmental friendly claim. 

Millar says the CFMEU will now recommend to Woolworths paper-producing companies inside Australia which use proven, sustainable fibre sourcing in paper manufacturing.

CFMEU Forces Woolworths Hand on Sustainable Forest Products

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Rubber workers of Kiyan Tyre in Chahardangeh, Iran, continued their protests last week over wage arrears. Some 600 workers of the factory began striking on 16 July and the protests escalated last week when strikers began setting portions of the factory on fire. 
 
Shouting anti-government slogans on 22 July outside a management building in Chahardangeh, a western suburb of Tehran, workers threatened to bring their next protest to Iran&rsquo;s Majlis, or Parliament.
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On 12 April, 1,000 workers at Iran&rsquo;s biggest rubber plant took job actions because their wages had not been paid in five months. Then, the repressive State Security Force ran bulldozers into the protestors, and arrested all 1,000 using electric batons. Most were held for 36 hours, while some 100 strike leaders were held longer. They were finally freed, but as a condition for release, the workplace leaders were forced to sign statements that they would not protest again. 
 
The more recent protests are against a hand-picked management team which reportedly is under-paying wages, or denying payment altogether. Kiyan, formerly called Alborz Tyre Mfg. Co., was established in 1958 as a joint venture with the American company B.F. Goodrich Co. In 1979, it became part of state-owned National Iranian Industries, before being sold to private Iranian investors in 1994.

Tyre Manufacturing Workers in Iran Again Strike Kiyan

Archive

NUM Files Strike Notice on 3 South Africa Mining Houses; Safety Strike Looms at Gold Fields

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin

ICEM intensifies Campaign on Contract and Agency Labour with New Site and New Publications

ICEM Women's Bulletin: September 2008 (No. 31)

More Deaths Inside and Outside of South Africa’s Mines

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin

Finland’s Electrical Workers’ Union Wants Utility Pole Creosote Use to End

South African Unions Conduct Wave of National Strikes, Protesting Energy, Food Costs

CFMEU Forces Woolworths Hand on Sustainable Forest Products

Tyre Manufacturing Workers in Iran Again Strike Kiyan

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