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In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we report on, among other items, the progress made in Nigeria on Canadian CEP&rsquo;s donor work, on the work of a new ILO instrument on HIV/AIDS and the world of work, and on PEPFAR, the US President&rsquo;s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. 
 
The ICEM Calls on its Affiliates to Contribute to this e-bulletin 
 
ICEM affiliates are already engaged in a wide range of HIV/AIDS activities. To spread the information on new agreements, awareness, and prevention campaigns, and educational activities, affiliates and project coordinators are invited to send news and information to <a href="mailto:hiv.aids@icem.org">hiv.aids@icem.org</a>. Any feedback on the format and contents of the e-bulletin is also welcome. 
 
Editor: Hans J Schwass, ICEM HIV/AIDS Consultant 

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Progress in Nigeria 
 
In the May issue of the e-bulletin, we gave a summary of programmes planned in 2009 in target countries. We will continue to inform you on the progress and report on implemented activities in selected countries. 
 
In Nigeria, ICEM oil and gas workers&rsquo; affiliates NUPENG and PENGASSAN have continued their successful HIV/AIDS work, which started more than two years ago. The project has seen a tremendous boost in the uptake of voluntary and confidential counselling and testing in major worksites. The project is co-sponsored by the Humanity Fund of the ICEM&rsquo;s Canadian affiliate Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union, the Nigerian affiliates themselves, and the ICEM&rsquo;s HIV/AIDS project. Additional support was received from the Nigeria branch of the international NGO, SMARTWork of the US Academy for Educational Development. 

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More than 150 workers attended sensitisation meetings and advocacy for voluntary counselling and testing at Engine Lubricant Dealers in Lagos and at the KRPC Depot in Kaduna in April. The meetings were conducted by peer educators and counsellors trained in the ICEM project in Nigeria. 
 
A major new activity was practical training exercises for peer educators and counsellors, an activity first conducted in May at the NNPC/PPMC Satellite Petroleum Product Depot in Ejigbo, Lagos State. Professional counsellors assisted eight unionists in counselling services and close to 300 people went for testing. The activity was carried out in close cooperation with the Nigeria Business Coalition against AIDS. 
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International Labour Conference Discusses New HIV/AIDS Instrument 
 
Discussions have commenced at the 98th session of the International Labour Conference (ILC), the annual conference of the ILO, with a view to adopt a new instrument on HIV/AIDS and the world of work. 
 
According to Sophia Kisting, Director of ILO/AIDS, the new instrument should help to establish a basis for an institutional tripartite presence within national AIDS authorities; better coordinate ILO action on HIV/AIDS in the world of work and combat discrimination; improve monitoring and reporting and strengthen the contribution of the workplace to universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care, and support. 
 
While the ILO Governing Body, in March 2007, put the item on the agenda of the ILC with a view to the adoption of an Autonomous Recommendation, workers&rsquo; delegates and some governments are strongly in favour of adopting a more binding instrument &ndash; a Convention. 
 
Discussions in the HIV/AIDS Committee of the ILC take place on the basis of a report reflecting the views of the constituents. Based on these discussions and further consultations, a draft text will be prepared for consideration and final adoption at the 99th session of the ILC in June 2010. 

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PEPFAR Head Nominated 
 
US President Barrack Obama&rsquo;s choice of Eric Goosby as Global AIDS Coordinator for the President&rsquo;s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) was welcomed by a number of organisations. Goosby has more than 25 years of experience working on HIV/AIDS issues and served in leading positions during the Clinton administration. 
 
The US AIDS Healthcare Foundation has, however, chided Obama that he proposed only US$6.6 billion in 2010, while just last year &ndash; as a US Senator from Illinois &ndash; he had voted for US$9.6 billion in annual funding for PEPFAR. The President&rsquo;s Global Health Initiative foresees investments of US$63 billion cumulative over six years to 2014 of which 70 percent or US$44 billion are earmarked for PEPFAR. 
 
(Source: Lab Law Weekly, 15 May, South African Broadcasting Corporation - Reuters, 28 April and White House Press Release, 5 May) 

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India: Sexuality Minorities Organising 
 
Sexuality minorities in India are planning to mobilise themselves in a trade union to ask for fair wages for their work in HIV/AIDS awareness programmes that are funded by the government and various supporting agencies across the states. 
 
A public meeting organised by the Karnataka Sexuality Minority Forum in Bangalore discussed the need for fair wages and benefits for peer educators in accordance with the labour laws of the country. A representative of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) urged them to organise a trade union for their cause. There is a big gap in wages between those in the top rungs of the HIV/AIDS programmes and volunteers who earn as little as INR 1,500 (about US$30). 
 
(Source: The Hindu, 4 June) 
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Sex Workers in Pakistan on HIV Prevention 
 
Although the recorded HIV prevalence in Pakistan is relatively low, health officials are concerned that a concentrated epidemic of the virus among injection drug users could carry over to commercial sex workers and other high risk groups in the country. To address the issue, the National AIDS Control Program and the United Nations Population Fund recently held a meeting, called the National Consultation on HIV and Sex Work, in an effort to improve HIV prevention efforts targeted at sex workers by consulting with workers in the field. 
 
Sex workers at the meeting made various recommendations, including HIV testing, referrals, and increased efforts to decrease stigma. Pakistan&rsquo;s Ministry of Health reports that female sex workers were at a high risk of HIV. A survey of 4,639 female sex workers found that less than 25% reported condom use. A female sex worker at the meeting said, &quot;It is very hard for us to convince partners to put on a condom, but I feel that a female condom would put us in a position where we can protect ourselves against HIV and sexually transmitted infections.&quot; 
 
She added that female condoms are not widely available. Legalizing sex work would make it easier for sex workers to protect their rights, another female sex worker at the conference said. 
 
(Source: IRIN/PlusNews, 19 May, reprinted from <a href="http://www.kaisernetwork.org">www.kaisernetwork.org</a>) 

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Women at Risk in the Caribbean 
 
An increasing number of women living with HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean face stigma, discrimination, and gender-based violence that is linked to the spread of the disease. UNAIDS reports that women overall now account for half of the population living with HIV in the Caribbean, compared with 30% in 1999. Women, ages 15 to 24, account for 62% of the entire HIV-positive population in the Caribbean. 
 
The Dominican Republic and Haiti, which make up the island of Hispaniola, have some of the highest HIV/AIDS rates in the region, according to UNAIDS. Women account for 51% of the 60,000 HIV-positive people in the Dominican Republic, while they account for 60% of the 120,000 HIV-positive people in Haiti. Myrna Flores Chian &ndash; head of the gender rights program of Profamilia, a nongovernmental organization involved in reproductive rights efforts in the Dominican Republic &ndash; stated, &quot;There are physiological factors that put women and girls at greater risk of infection in unprotected sexual relations.&quot; 
 
She added that &quot;the feminization of AIDS is due above all to social discrimination, gender inequality, and lack of empowerment for women.&quot; She went on to say that gender violence and women's inability to negotiate condom use with partners or other conditions are directly linked to the spread of HIV. 
 
(Source: Inter Press Service, 11 May) 

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News from the Global Union Federations 
 
The fortnightly HIV/AIDS update of the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF) of 15 April reports, among other items, on a new partnership project, designed to put HIV awareness on the seafaring agenda. The group &ndash; called the Global Partnership on HIV and Mobile Workers in the Maritime Sector &ndash; brings together representatives from eight organisations, including the United Nations, non-governmental organisations, unions, and employers (<a href="http://www.itfglobal.org">www.itfglobal.org</a>). 

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This ICEM HIV-AIDS Newsletter &ndash; How to Subscribe or Translate? 
 
To subscribe to the e-bulletin, send an email to <a href="mailto:press@icem.org">press@icem.org</a>. Please put &ldquo;subscribe ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin&rdquo; in the subject line. 
Unfortunately, the e-bulletin can only be published in English. 
For a free automated (non-ICEM) translation of this HIV-AIDS bulletin into other languages, you may want to try http://www.google.com/language_tools and insert the following URL into the window &ldquo;Translate a Web page&ldquo;: 
<a href="/index.php?id=72&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3265">/index.php?id=72&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3265</a>
Or click directly on the links below: 
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Cette traduction est faite automatiquement par un logiciel internet gratuit. L&rsquo;ICEM n&rsquo;assume aucune responsabilit&eacute; &agrave; cet &eacute;gard. Elle est approximative, mais peut n&eacute;anmoins vous donner une id&eacute;e g&eacute;n&eacute;rale du contenu de l&rsquo;article. 
<a href="http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.icem.org%2Findex.php%3Fid%3D72%26la%3DEN%26doc%3D3265&amp;sl=en&amp;tl=de&amp;hl=en&amp;ie=UTF-8">Hier Klicken f&uuml;r eine maschinelle &Uuml;bersetzung ins Deutsche.</a> 
Diese &Uuml;bersetzung, f&uuml;r die die ICEM keine Verantwortung &uuml;bernimmt, erfolgt durch eine frei zug&auml;ngliche Internetsoftware. Diese &Uuml;bersetzung ist nicht perfekt, gibt aber eine ann&auml;hernende Idee, wor&uuml;ber der Artikel handelt. 
<a href="http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.icem.org%2Findex.php%3Fid%3D72%26la%3DEN%26doc%3D3265&amp;sl=en&amp;tl=ru&amp;hl=en&amp;ie=UTF-8">Щелкните мышью здесь для получения машинного перевода на Русский.</a> 
Этот перевод выполняется автоматически с помощью бесплатной Интернет-программы, и ICEM не несет за него ответственности. Перевод приблизительный, но все же может дать общее представление о содержании статьи. 
<a href="http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.icem.org%2Findex.php%3Fid%3D72%26la%3DEN%26doc%3D3265&amp;sl=en&amp;tl=ja&amp;hl=en&amp;ie=UTF-8">日本語への翻訳について、無料オン� ��イン翻訳サービス利用されたい方はここをクリックしてください。ただし、当該サ� ��ビスを利用した翻訳の質等について 、ICEMは一切責任を負いませんので、� ��了承ください。 
</a> 
<a href="http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.icem.org%2Findex.php%3Fid%3D72%26la%3DEN%26doc%3D3265&amp;sl=en&amp;tl=es&amp;hl=en&amp;ie=UTF-8">Haga clic aqu&iacute; para una traducci&oacute;n autom&aacute;tica en espa&ntilde;ol.</a> 
Esta traducci&oacute;n se hace autom&aacute;ticamente con tecnolog&iacute;a libre del Internet. La ICEM no se responsabiliza de ella. La traducci&oacute;n es aproximada, pero puede proveer una idea general del contenido del art&iacute;culo. 
<a href="http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.icem.org%2Findex.php%3Fid%3D72%26la%3DEN%26doc%3D3265&amp;sl=en&amp;tl=sv&amp;hl=en&amp;ie=UTF-8">Klicka h&auml;r f&ouml;r en maskin&ouml;vers&auml;ttning till svenska.</a> 
Denna &ouml;vers&auml;ttning utf&ouml;rs automatiskt med kostnadsfri internetteknik. ICEM tar inget ansvar f&ouml;r den. Den &auml;r inte helt korrekt men ger dig &auml;nd&aring; en allm&auml;n uppfattning om vad artikeln handlar om.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin No. 45 June 2009

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The issue of forced labour in Burma was prominent during the opening days of the 98th session of ILO&rsquo;s International Labour Congress, with a general session held on the issue on 6 June. The debate centered on what the Burmese military junta has done to eradicate forced labour, and how the ruling regime conspires to block any meaningful reform on forced labour in the southern Asian country. 
 
The session provided grim evidence that Burma is nowhere near fulfilling progress toward ratification of ILO Conventions 29 and 87, the Forced and Compulsory Labour Convention (1930) and the Freedom of Association Convention (1948). The debate also proved the regime is doing too little to bring the issue into effect through local statutes in towns and villages. The 6 June ILO debate was the ninth time the ILO has taken up the despicable Burmese work practice of forced labour in special session. 

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FTUB President Maung Maung has been in exile in Thailand
Representatives from the ILO workers&rsquo; group, Actrav, presented several examples aside horrid statistics to prove the illegitimate government has failed to adequately address the issue. The employers&rsquo; representative, despite few employer delegates being present at the general session, said &ldquo;words are not enough&rdquo; in giving failing marks on the junta&rsquo;s progress on the issue. 
 
The governments of China and other Asian nations claimed progress is being made. For example, the re-signing earlier this year of a &ldquo;supplementary understanding&rdquo; between the ILO and the military rulers was cited. But the employer representative&rsquo;s remarks and the facts prove differently. 
 
One such fact, cited by Chihiro Ikusawa of Japanese trade union federation JTUC-Rengo, is that despite the common opinion that international divestment from Burma must occur, direct investment in 2008 over 2007 increased 93%. She said a good portion of this is Chinese investment, and most specifically in mining. 

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The Korean workers&rsquo; delegate, C.K. Lee of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), called attention to specific Korean investments in Burma and said his government &ldquo;has betrayed our confidence&rdquo; in endorsing such business ventures. A Brazilian workers&rsquo; delegate said forced labour violations are too numerous, and banking and financial ties with Burma must be broken. 
 
A vivid connection between labour and agriculture was also mentioned by one speaker, who said government decrees mandating a portion of a farmer&rsquo;s lands for a specific state purpose is, in and of itself, forced labour. The issue of child conscription into military duty was addressed. And the EU representative present &ndash; from the current EU chair, the Czech Republic &ndash; said Burma&rsquo;s rulers &ldquo;lack any credibility&rdquo; until they release some 2,000 political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi. Other speakers noted the timing of the Nobel peace laureate&rsquo;s current incarceration with upcoming 2010 elections. 
 
In a report issued by a panel of ILO experts, a recommendation is offered to the ruling government to amend part of its new constitution giving it power to conscript Burmese citizens into captive labour jobs. That will likely be ignored, and the political and financial windfall that has driven forced labour will continue.

ILO: Burmese Junta Hammered Again on Forced Labour

Sappi: pulp &amp; paper/p&acirc;te et de papier/pulp y papel 
Urgent Alert, Sappi/South Africa: Voice Opposition, Support CEPPWAWU 
 
ICEM is calling for immediate action to a union-smashing affront by Sappi at its Enstra mill in Springs, South Africa. Sappi suspended 19 shop stewards and 23 other workers due to their union affiliation with Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood, and Allied Workers Union (CEPPWAWU), a longtime ICEM affiliate. 
Starting on 6 May, SAPPI systematically and maliciously began taking disciplinary actions against CEPPWAWU leaders inside the 650-worker Enstra sulfate pulp and printing papers mill. The allegations: inciting workers (90% of whom are CEPPWAWU members), harassment, and use of company property for union purposes. At a 28 May meeting, SAPPI said it would start disciplinary hearings on them, hearings that will be one-sided and unfair. The ICEM urges that messages get sent and that this posting gets wide attention: union bashing will not be tolerated in South Africa! 
 
ICEM finds it reprehensible that SAPPI refuses meeting participation by CEPPWAWU&rsquo;s National Coordinator for Sappi branches, and called it &ldquo;a blight on Sappi everywhere,&rdquo; in a letter to SAPPI house in South Africa. The ICEM calls it a blatant violation of basic trade union rights and this union-bashing merits immediate condemnation. Respond! 
 
Take the message below, and send to Enstra manager Dave Glazebrook at <a href="mailto:dave.glazebrook@sappi.com">dave.glazebrook@sappi.com</a> and <a href="mailto:Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com">Wikus.van.Zyl@sappi.com</a>, <a href="mailto:Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com">Jan.labuschagne@sappi.com</a>, and then pass it to others to do the same: 
 
Sappi: Hands Off Union at Enstra. 
 
NO!!! &hellip; Union Bashing in South Africa! 
No &hellip; no suspending Union Rights in South Africa! This is malicious, anti-democratic, and anti-people &hellip; there is no room for it in economic recovery. Sappi cannot afford disrepute now or ever in its paper businesses. Reinstate the workers&rsquo; representatives and others at Enstra Now. These trade union members have been incriminated because they represent Sappi&rsquo;s biggest trade union in South Africa. It is deplorable labour-relations and employment conduct &hellip; and a cancer inside South Africa. Trade union rights at Enstra &ndash; anywhere at Sappi &hellip; Europe, North America, or in South Africa &ndash; are guaranteed and will never be denied! 
 
 
Please send solidarity messages to CEPPWAWU: <a href="mailto:secretariat@ceppwawu.org.za">secretariat@ceppwawu.org.za</a>

SAPPI: Act Now!!

Sappi: pulp &amp; paper/pâte et de papier/pulp y papel

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Seven sit-ins at rural offices of three MPs and four Ministers &ndash; including Canada&rsquo;s Finance, Treasury, and Inter-Governmental Affairs Ministries &ndash; got Stephen Harper&rsquo;s attention and the question now is will his government listen. Tomorrow, Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union will stage another manifestation on the crisis facing the forest sector, this time a protest and march that will lead to direct face-to-face talks with the Harper team in Ottawa. 
The sit-ins were carried out early last week in an escalating strategy by the CEP to spotlight the mass job and social loss that has overtaken forest-based communities across Canada. CEP is adamant that it is Harper&rsquo;s responsibility to find the answers. And CEP is ready to work with government to ensure the correct measures are found. 
<img src="" width="200" height="148" alt="" />
March and Rally 
Tuesday, June 2
The sit-ins follow mid-May strategy meetings and a protest at AbitibiBowater&rsquo;s headquarters in Montr&eacute;al. That protest was directed more at the Harper government than at the bankrupt newsprint company. Last week&rsquo;s sit-ins at the rural offices of key lawmakers mean this issue will stay focused on rural Canada&rsquo;s very survival and way-of-life. 
Tomorrow, 2 June, at 11h30 in Ottawa, the CEP will rally first at the offices of Natural Resources Minister Lisa Riatt and then march to Prime Minister Stephen Harper&rsquo;s building. They then will meet with Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, whose Ontario offices in Whitby-Oshawa were the only CEP-occupied offices not in a rural area. 
Six of the seven sit-ins across four of Canada&rsquo;s provinces produced immediate results. Three sit-ins occurred in rural government offices in Qu&eacute;bec, two in British Colombia, and one each in New Brunswick and Ontario. In British Colombia, an MP, Jay Hill, a lead Tory whip in Ottawa from Prince George/Peace River riding, was the only legislator refusing CEP&rsquo;s invitation to discuss the crisis. At the other occupation in British Colombia, inside the offices of John Duncan, Vancouver Island North riding, the CEP spokesman for the occupying team, promised, &ldquo;We plan to keep on making noise and do whatever we have to do&rdquo; to move this government to action. 
<img src="" width="180" height="109" alt="" />
The CEP is demanding financial support for the industry at the federal level. The union is also demanding iron-clad protections on pensions, something that will not be compromised. And CEP will insist tomorrow that the Harper government must enact industry tax relief for companies&rsquo; converting black-liquor from the wood-pulp process to energy. That set of tax breaks exists for pulp and paper firms in the US and the CEP insists on a level playing field. 
The CEP is also demanding a national summit on the forestry crisis in which key stakeholders will decide on strict guidelines aimed at employment stabilisation and forest regeneration measures. The sit-ins made one targeted politician jump on that idea quickly. In Qu&eacute;bec, the Minister for Inter-Governmental Affairs, said she will convene such a summit. 
ICEM affiliate CEP calculates that 55,000 jobs in the forestry sector have been lost over the past two years alone. Far more were lost in earlier years. The impact of these good-paying jobs on others in rural communities &ndash; when those jobs disappear &ndash; is immense and the ripple effects must be multiplied to get the real economic picture.

Canadian Ministry Sit-ins Awaken Stephen Harper to Jobs Crisis

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Australian trade unions have won a first round by stomping on a Rudd government plan to raise the pension age to 67 by the year 2023. This story serves as a global reminder that Australian trade unions will not let down their guard and will prevent a labour government from rolling back into the Howard era. 
 
The plan came inside a Treasury budget proposal to gradually increase the pension age beginning in 2017. Construction, Forestry, Mining, and Energy Union (CFMEU) and the Australian Manufacturing Workers&rsquo; Union (AMWU), and other unions, including the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), posted immediate challenges and Kevin Rudd backed down. 

<img height="93" alt="" src="" width="90" />
But the plan will likely re-surface in coming years, and trade unions now are well placed for full engagement. CFMEU, AMWU, and others correctly label the measure, &ldquo;a path to the false economy&rdquo; and point out that the proposed retirement system unfairly affects low-paid, blue-collar workers, particularly those doing physical labour in construction and industrial sectors. The government&rsquo;s plan disregards future health-care disabilities and the needed funds to maintain an effective and inclusive medical social net. 

<img height="132" alt="" src="" width="100" />
ACTU President Sharon Burrow
ACTU President Sharon Burrow aptly stated that workers&rsquo; bodies are &ldquo;broken way before&rdquo; they reach age 67. Research polling showed that 72% of Australians think the Rudd government plan is unfair to labourers, while 61% think it is unfair to trades and crafts workers. 
 
Separately and a fairer proposal,&nbsp;in a joint letter to Rudd by CFMEU National Secretary John Sutton and AMWU National Secretary Dave Oliver, they&nbsp;said&nbsp;roll-backs of&nbsp;tax concessions on superannuation accounts should be a priority&nbsp;in order to raise revenue. By raising the eligibility threshold at which tax relief is granted on superannuations, the unions maintain, Australia creates equality and fairness for all. 
 
The ICEM commends the CFMEU and AMWU, and all Australian unions, for leading a rapid vanguard over this issue and supports future efforts of trade unions to block similar regressive and anti-people policies.

Australian Unions Push Back Over Pension Age Issue

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Labour unrest by French, Spanish, Italian, and other workers at French MNC Saint-Gobain continued last week, with the heaviest coming in France. This follows a European-wide manifestation at Saint-Gobain&rsquo;s head office in Paris on 20 May, which occurred during Saint-Gobain&rsquo;s social dialogue meetings. 
 
European trade unions at Saint-Gobain, a glass and building materials manufacturer, are protesting further restructuring, which to them means job loss and social dumping. The resulting industrial actions inside Saint-Gobain factories attest to collective rejection of both. 
 
Strikes inside a factory in the Charente region of France have crimped production and interrupted orders. Workers feel cheated because &ldquo;efficiency bonuses&rdquo; have not been paid as promised, at a time when Saint-Gobain is coming for another round of restructuring. Protests have spread to Vauxrot and Ch&acirc;lon-sur-Sa&ocirc;ne in France in a show of visible frustration and worker rebellion. 

<img src="" width="256" height="192" alt="" />
In Spain, at Sekurit worksites in Avil&eacute;s and Arb&oacute;s, local managers are skittish following a furnace accident and blame the French corporate group for mandating further the social cuts that nobody wants. Spanish unions point to management ineptitude on the part of both local and Paris levels, and worry that research and development in Avil&eacute;s might be in jeopardy. 
 
In Italy, unions in all three federations &ndash; FILCEM-CGIL, FEMCA-CISL, and ILCEM-UIL &ndash; jointly manifested at Saint-Gobain&rsquo;s regional office in Milan, while jointly conducting timely four-hour work stoppages at Italian plants. They reject the company&rsquo;s decision to close a Sekurit plant in Savigliano, northern Italy, cut in half the number of staff at another Cuneo region plant, this time in Cervas, a glass-to-appliance factory, and workers at the Flovetro plant in Chieti, central Italy, have serious concerns over continued production. 
 
Nationally in France, similar to union convergence in Italy, the CFDT, CGT, and FO have teamed to pressure the Saint-Gobain Works Council to look first at workers&rsquo; interests. That happened again last week, on 26 May, and the bond between French unions has gotten stronger, providing the needed pressure point on both Saint-Gobain and the WC. 
 
In Liverdun, along the French Moselle, the mayor of that city recently stricken by Saint-Gobain&rsquo;s factory cuts said it strikes fear in him each time he thinks of the difficulties that the discarded workers of Saint-Gobain now must face.

European Labour Unrest Spreads to Saint-Gobain, Glass Sector

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The first collective agreement between nickel miners and smelting workers of the United Steelworkers (USW) in Ontario, Canada, and Companhia Vale do Rio Dice (Vale) of Brazil expired over the weekend, but the two sides have extended the current three-year agreement until 12 July in order to give more time to resolve issues. 
 
The USW represents some 4,500 workers at Sudbury, Ontario, site of one of the world&rsquo;s largest nickel processing operations, and another 180 at Vale&rsquo;s Port Colborne, Ontario, facility. Both USW branches are bargaining jointly on a common labour agreement. It is the first time that the USW and Vale have negotiated in Ontario&rsquo;s copper and nickel belt since the world&rsquo;s biggest iron ore miner bought Inco late in 2006. 

<img src="" width="160" height="88" alt="" />
At that time, USW held talks with Brazilian managers and laid forward a set of social principles that the union expects the company to follow in Canada. USW also crafted a Solidarity Statement called the &ldquo;Sudbury Accord&rdquo; in 2006 between Canadian, Brazilian, and other trade unions, calling for global bargaining power at all Vale worksites. 
 
Speaking on the extension, a company spokesman told the Sudbury Star newspaper that it shows a &ldquo;continued willingness for the two parties to keep working together to achieve an outcome, a successful outcome.&rdquo; The USW is holding membership meetings today and tomorrow, 1-2 June, to inform members on the outstanding issues, and to get direct feedback. 
 
Sudbury area and Port Colborne USW members did vote overwhelmingly for a strike mandate on 21 May. The USW had another collective agreement which was earlier extended with Vale at Voisey Bay, Newfoundland. That contract expired 1 May 2009. 
 
These are the not the first set of collective negotiations in Canada between the USW and Vale. Last September, 1,300 miners in Thompson, Manitoba, ratified a three-year contract with the Brazilian mining company.

USW’s Canadian Miners Extend Labour Agreement with Vale

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Thousands of workers took to the streets of Islamabad, Pakistan, last week, on 26 May, calling for improvements to the National Pay Scale in the next federal budget, as well as demanding that the Pakistani government shelve plans to privatize national utilities. The march last Tuesday arrived at the National Parliament where the assembled workers presented a detailed memorandum, containing their demands, addressed to the Speaker of the Parliament. 
 
Public owned industries that are at risk of being privatized include electricity, rail, postal, oil and gas, and the national steel mills. 
 
The proud ICEM affiliate, the Pakistan WAPDA Labour Union (PWLU), took a leading role in organizing the rally. Also central to the demands of the assembled workers is the issue of Contract and Agency Labour. A strong call has been issued that enterprises must treat these workers on an equal basis with regular employees. Outdated labour laws, including the Industrial Relations Act, are clearly in need of reform, according to unions. 
 
An encouraging sign of government response was the successful meeting of the Federal Minister for Water and Power, Pervez Asraf, with WAPDA on 23 May. The Minister discussed strategies to combat the national energy shortage and pledged to bring a halt to this shortage by the end of 2009. The Minister also discussed new projects scheduled, including a new power plant in Lahore, an energy deal with Turkey, and continued work on hydro projects in Neelum-Jahlum and Bhasha Dam. 
 
The meeting between the ICEM affiliate and the Energy Minister also achieved a regularization of daily wage employees of WAPDA Water and Power, and a grant of 45 percent of housing rent for WAPDA employees, as well as the building of a 50 bed hospital for Wapda employees in Larkana.

Pakistan’s Trade Union WAPDA Demonstrates for Improved Wages and Conditions

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The Spanish union, FIA-UGT, representing chemical, energy, mining, and textile workers of that labour federation held its Fifth Ordinary Congress from 14-16 May in Tarragona, Spain, with some 400 delegates attending. 
 
The theme was Todas y Todos, or Women and Men All Together. The Congress adopted two new departments, Equalities and Union Elections. 
 
FIA-UGT&rsquo;s traditional international mission was an important focus at the Congress, with three videos highlighting major efforts undertaken by the union in Latin America. One of the most important decisions taken by the Congress was to start talks with the agricultural and food workers&rsquo; union, FTA-UGT, toward a merged union. 
 
The President of ICEM-affiliated Colombian trade union, SINTRAELECOL, Danuil Gomez,&nbsp;addressed the Congress and thanked FIA-UGT for its continuing solidarity efforts with Colombian workers, as well as in building an effective ENDESA workers&rsquo; network. 

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FIA-UGT General Secretary Antonio Deusa Perazo
FIA-UGT General Secretary Antonio Deusa Perazo was re-elected to lead the union, and an Executive Committee also was elected. 
 
They Executive Committee includes: Paula Guill&eacute;n Lerma, Secretary of Organisation and Communication; Ram&oacute;n Ruiz D&iacute;az, Secretary of Trade Union Action; Bego&ntilde;a Abdelkader, Secretary of Administration; Montserrat L&oacute;pez Garc&iacute;a de la Torre, International Secretary; Francisco Ligero Pozo, Secretary Health and Safety; Eugenia Mart&iacute;n Abdrada, Union Elections Secretary; Paula Alv&eacute;s Da Silva, Equalities Secretary; Francisco Durb&aacute;n Mart&iacute;n, Secretary of Training; Victor Fern&aacute;ndez V&aacute;zquez, Mining Secretary; Jos&eacute; Carlos Ru&iacute;z Palacios, Chemicals Secretary; Manuel Garc&iacute;a Sanchez, Energy Secretary; and Jos&eacute; Emilio Mesa Ortega, Textile Secretary. 
 
The ICEM looks forward to continued cooperation with FIA-UGT&rsquo;s Antonio Deusa and members of the union&rsquo;s Executive Committee.

FIA-UGT Hold Congress in Spain, Re-Elect Antonio Deusa General Secretary

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Pakistan’s Trade Union WAPDA Demonstrates for Improved Wages and Conditions

FIA-UGT Hold Congress in Spain, Re-Elect Antonio Deusa General Secretary

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