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The ICEM-affiliated General Union of Electricity Workers and Technicians in Basra, Iraq, has been faced with a hostile new general manager of the electricity network in Southern Iraq. The union, led by President Hashmeyia Muhsin Saadawi, is attempting to gain wage arrears for power station security guards, who have been illegally refused back wages. 
 
The salary arrears are for overtime work and work that had previously been approved by management. The union has been attempting to negotiate the issue with the manager throughout September, but Hashmeyia Muhsin recently told the ICEM that she has grown frustrated with his intransigence. Of late, the new general manager admitted that &ldquo;the security guards are entitled to the allocation of extra hours, but I am not paying them, so let them complain to the Inspector-General or any other authority.&rdquo; 

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President Hashmeyia Muhsin Saadawi
The claim of the Basra Electricity Workers and Technicians is clear; security guards at the company are contractually allocated 154 working hours per month, distributed over morning, evening, and night shifts. However, those workers work an average of 192 hours per month, and rightfully expect overtime pay. 
 
On 21 September, a large number of the affected security guards, joined by other members of the union, assembled in front of the headquarters of the authority for Power Transmission in Southern Iraq. That action, which illustrated the level of solidarity for the security workers by all segments of workers in the union, did succeed in attracting the attention of the Department of the Inspector General, as well as the Electricity Commission of local government. 
 
But a settlement to the issue still has not been reached. The ICEM will continue to follow and report on this story as, hopefully, positive developments occur.

Iraqi Electricity Trade Union Faces Intransigent Manager in Southern Iraq

Tom Albanese 
Chief Executive 
Rio Tinto plc 
2 Eastbourne Terrace 
London 
W2 6LG 
United Kingdom 
 
Fax +44 20 7781 1800 
 
Geneva, 17 September 2009 
 
Dear Mr. Albanese, 
 
We have recently learned of the contract demands that Rio Tinto has made of 600 miners represented by Local 30 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), AFL-CIO, in Boron, California. 
 
We are deeply concerned that Rio Tinto is creating an unnecessary conflict at this mine. The company proposes to dramatically reduce worker rights provided under the current agreement; terminate the current pension plan; drastically increase costs for dental and medical benefits: eliminate leave for sick workers; take away bidding rights of older workers; and offer no wage increases over 8 years while cutting wages if productivity falls. Clearly, your management is also seeking to weaken the trade union. 
 
The demands made by your management are unjustified and draconian. Moreover, these demands contradict your own policies concerning sustainable development since you seek to punish the workers and their community which have been responsible for your success. 
 
We will be supporting the ILWU in whatever way we can. 
 
Sincerely,

Rio Tinto, Model Letter

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Some 1,200 miners at Shougang Hierro Peru begin their second week of an indefinite strike today, with no end in sight, as the company continues to refuse to enter dialogue with the union. Shougang Hierro&rsquo;s Marcona mine in Southern Peru is the country&rsquo;s only iron ore mine, producing 7.5 million tonnes of iron ore last year, and is part of China&rsquo;s state-owned Shougang Group. 
 
Management has failed to follow through on a collective agreement reached in July this year, which was supposed to raise daily wages by US$1.91 a day. The July agreement was reached through arbitration with Peru&rsquo;s Labour Ministry, and followed a 10-day strike at the mine. 
 
Shougang Hierro is notorious for paying the lowest salaries in Peru&rsquo;s entire mining sector. 

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Shougang Miners
The Labour Ministry resolution last summer called on the company to raise miners&rsquo; wages, or be faced with a large fine. Mine management preferred to pay the fine rather than hike miners&rsquo; wages. The ICEM calls on the government of Peru to take more definitive action against the Chinese mining concern. 
 
Peru&rsquo;s national miners&rsquo; and metalworkers&rsquo; union, ICEM affiliate FNTMMSP, last week called on its members to carry out a nationwide sector strike 19-20 October in support of Shougang miners. 
 
The striking miners are further demanding improved health benefits, and better safety and hygiene. 
 
A union spokesman, Julian Julca, stated, &ldquo;The strike is total. We are approximately 1,200 workers on strike.&rdquo; In response to the action by 100% of Shougang Hierro miners, management made a request to the Labour Ministry to declare the strike illegal. 

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A US$1 billion expansion of the mine is currently underway to increase annual output by 10 million tones. Despite the global recession, Shougang Hierro Peru reported profits last year of US$145 million, a 50% increase over the previous year, and a figure almost three times the yearly profit of 2004. 
 
The national mining strike scheduled for 19-20 October is aimed at demanding compliance with the Labour Ministry resolution to raise the wages of Shougang Hierro miners, and will also demand the signing of a mining retirement bill by the government. In addition, FNTMMSP is seeking passage and enactment of mining profits legislation in Congress, which will assist all miners financially. 
 
The federated union also demands release of union leaders who were incarcerated for their involvement in a strike action at Minera Casapalca, and demands respect for the collective negotiation processes for both direct and outsourced workers. 
 
Peru is one of the world&rsquo;s top mining and metallurgical producers. The mining sector accounts for 60% of the country&rsquo;s total exports. The Marcona mine, 220 miles south of Lima, was bought by the Chinese national steel company in 1993.

Strike by Peru’s Miners Against China’s Shougang Group Hardens

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Gabon&rsquo;s oil workers agreed to call off a strike that was to begin 13 March, when government officials entered into negotiations with the 20,000-member National Organisation of Petroleum Workers (ONEP). The strike was set to commence over Gabon&rsquo;s set of revised regulations governing the sector. 
 
The government has angered workers in the sector by proposing to place the energy sector onto the list of services that must remain uninterrupted, together with health services and transport. The move would make it impossible for workers to take legitimate strike action in future disputes, and would undermine an equal playing field regarding collective bargaining. The industry already suffers from unequal and low salary levels, as well as inadequate protection over working hours. 

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Both sides have announced their commitment to reaching agreement soon, and open negotiations are continuing in the West African country. 
 
The strike threatened to halt production of about 250,000 barrels of crude per day in Gabon, Africa's seventh largest producer.

Strike Avoided in Gabon’s Oil Sector

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PENGASSAN&rsquo;s Peter Esele won re-election as President-General of Nigeria&rsquo;s Trade Union Congress (TUC), the national trade centre for senior staff associations. Esele won a contested election for a second three-year term at the 8th Triennial National Delegates Conference in Benin, Edo State, from 17-20 March. 
 
Esele, a former President of the ICEM-affiliated Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), is credited &ndash; together with re-elected Secretary-General John Kolawole &ndash; of building permanent structures into the TUC, a federation comprised of 24 senior staff unions. 

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Nigeria TUC President, Peter Esele
Esele is also credited with heightening the roles of women in the TUC, from mandating seats to women on TUC&rsquo;s National Administrative Council to creating a Women&rsquo;s Wing of the TUC to conducting ILO-sponsored workshops for development of women in trade union leadership roles. 
 
&ldquo;I am proud to honour the diverse contributions of women in advancing the common cause of freedom, justice, and equality,&rdquo; said Esele, who used International Women&rsquo;s Day to call on the government to use 8 March as a work-free day in respect of what women have accomplished. 
 
Esele served as Deputy Vice President of PENGASSAN prior to 2005 and the tragic airplane crash of 10 December 2005 that claimed the life of PENGASSAN President Uche Okoro. He took over those duties then, winning re-election later in 2006. In 2008, already in his first term as TUC leader, he was defeated for the Presidency of PENGASSAN by Babatunde Ogun. 
 
The TUC is one of two national labour centres in Nigeria. The other, representing workers enrolled in the country&rsquo;s blue-collar unions, is the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC).

Peter Esele Re-Elected Head of Trade Union Congress of Nigeria

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The 30,000 technical and professional employees of PEMEX, Mexico&rsquo;s state-owned petroleum company, finally won the right to unionize on their third attempt. The new union, Uni&oacute;n Nacional de T&eacute;cnicos y Profesionistas Petroleros (UNTyPP), received its registration on 16 December 2009, and its leadership was officially recognized for the period 18 March 2008 to 17 March 2012. 
 
The first two attempts at unionization, with union acronyms of ONTCIP and UNTCIP, were denied registration by the government and the leaders fired. 
 
Following the successful court battle, culminating in registration from the Secretary of Labor and Social Welfare&rsquo;s office for the Registration of Associations (STPS), members of the new union were informed by company management that in order to retain their jobs, they would be required to sign two documents: one calling for the cancellation of the registration, the other a resignation from the union. 

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Those who refused, along with organisers of the UNTyPP, were fired and violently removed from their workstations by paramilitaries, including the entire National Executive Committee of the union. These workers must be immediately reinstated, and their rights respected under both Mexican and international law. PEMEX is also being urged by the international labour movement to accept union calls to come to the bargaining table and establish a working relationship with them. 
 
UNTyPP organisers have faced continued intimidation and threats throughout their campaign for registration. 
 
PEMEX is the 10th largest oil company in the world, and is the sole supplier of all commercial petrol and diesel stations in Mexico. Annual company revenue is US$78 billion. 
 
Visit the Labourstart campaign website <a href="http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=654 ">here</a> to write to President Calder&oacute;n and PEMEX management, condemning these violations of labour and human rights against the new UNTyPP trade union.

Despite Winning Recognition, Mexico’s White-Collar Pemex Workers Still Repressed

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Two separate, yet distinct mill occupations by paperworkers in France and Spain in March drew attention and support for ICEM-affiliated trade unions determined to protect workers&rsquo; interests in cases of employer recalcitrance and joblessness brought on by a failed paper mill sale. 
 
In both situations, the sit-ins proved successful. In France, in the southwestern department of Dordogne, a nine-day strike by FILPAC-CGT and 700 workers of Papeteries de Condat ended only after the union&rsquo;s bargaining committee held management&rsquo;s team captive inside the shut mill on day six of the strike. 

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That tactic at the integrated pulp and coated printing papers mill gave a satisfactory result to 2010 contract negotiations. After five years of going without a raise, management&rsquo;s initial proposal of 1% was unsatisfactory. Workers of FILPAC were seeking at least a 3% increase. 
 
The indefinite strike began on 3 March and when managers still wouldn&rsquo;t budge by 8 March, the committee backed by throngs of strikers on the outside of the mill in Le Lardin St. Lazare, took matters into hand. The sequestering produced a compromise two days later, when Papeteries de Condat agreed to pay 1% retroactive to 1 January 2010, and another 1% on 1 July. Additionally, the union won full-time employment rights for ten of 24 temporary workers. 
 
&ldquo;Certainly, we did not win everything that we deserved,&rdquo; said FILPAC assistant regional secretary Tahar Messaoudi. &ldquo;But we are satisfied and we returned to work with our heads held high.&rdquo; 
 
Papeteries de Condat is owned by the Spanish-based Lecta Group, which itself is wholly owned by CVC Capital Partners of London. Besides the 540,000 metric tonnes per year Condat mill, Lecta runs paper operations in Spain, the Torraspapel mills, and in Italy, the Garda mills. 

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At the Papelera de Basaya mill in Torrelavega, Spain, 110 members of both CC.OO and UGT paper branches occupied their mill for four days from 6 March to 9 March. The issue was the Spanish chemicals company Snaice SA&rsquo;s decision to back out of a deal to buy the shuttered mill in Cantabria state in north-central Spain. 

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Snaice had agreed to purchase the mill on 19 January, but backed out a month later when it learned the debt-load of the operation was twice what it had anticipated. The mill&rsquo;s works council began the sit-in upon learning at a meeting that the previous owner was to declare insolvency. Works council members were immediately joined by 80 other workers. 
 
The sit-in braved extremely cold weather, and was met by heralded support by citizens of Torrelavega, local politicians, and even Snaice management, which operates an adjacent pulp mill in the city. Twice each day, for two-hour periods, family members of the workers joined them in tearful displays of solidarity. 
 
The occupation ended when the regional government of Cantabria pledged to find a buyer for the mill, with Snaice agreeing to operate it until that happens. The 80,000 metric tonnes per year mill producing uncoated printing papers had been idle since October 2009. 
 
Joaquina Rodr&iacute;guez Torrej&oacute;n of CC.OO told the ICEM that 16 paper mills have been closed in Spain between 2007 and 2009. She credited the heroic actions of workers at Papelera de Basaya this month with giving this mill an opportunity to re-start. 
 
Meanwhile in Spain, 275 paperworkers are to begin a 10-day strike today against Iberpapel at its Papelera Guip&uacute;zcoa de Zicu&ntilde;aga mill in Hernani, Guip&uacute;zcoa state. The strike is over shift-work bonuses, pension entitlements, sickness and accident benefits, and new work-time rules for the summer. The pulp and paper mill produces 342,000 metric tonnes of woodfree uncoated papers from three paper machines.

Plant Occupations at Spanish, French Paper Mills Produce Results

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ICEM workshops in Tanzania on 12-13 March reveal blatant abuses of freedom of association by subsidiary mining enterprises of AngloGold Ashanti and Barrick Gold. The workshops were done specifically for ICEM affiliate Tanzania Association of Mining and Construction Workers&rsquo; Union (TAMICO), under the auspices of ICEM&rsquo;s Sub-Saharan African Regional Organisation (SSARO), with ICEM President Senzeni Zokwana and ICEM/SSARO staff person Fabian Nkomo leading the important sessions. 
 
In attendance were the secretaries of TAMICO&rsquo;s four regions, plus district secretaries and key Tanzanian union activists. This ICEM project, called the Organizational Growth Project, is sponsored jointly by FNV Mondiaal of the Netherlands and LO-TCO of Sweden. 

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ICEM President Senzeni Zokwana
The focus of the two-day meeting was on AngloGold&rsquo;s 100%-owned Geita Holdings Ltd. and African Barrick Gold Plc., 75% owned by Barrick Gold of Canada and an asset that this week will see an initial public offering of the remaining 25% on the London Stock Exchange.. Both companies, separately, have engaged in labour relations conduct that is counter-productive to adherence of ILO Conventions 87 and 98, the basic workers&rsquo; rights of freedom of association and right to organise and bargaining collectively. 
 
At Geita Gold, management illegally screens all TAMICO membership forms, and has refused union recognition to those workers that it does not want in the union. Despite the union recruiting 900 mill and mine workers into TAMICO, Geita management in the Mwanza Region of Tanzania only recognizes 400 workers as members of the union. The ICEM has long known that Geita human resources director Philemon Tano openly discriminates against union membership, and this issue has been brought before AngloGold, a company that is obligated to respect labour and other standards with the ICEM through a Global Framework Agreement. 
 
From the outcome of these workshops, SSARO will again lodge a compliant with AngloGold Ashanti in Johannesburg, South Africa, on this inappropriate conduct. 

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Fabian Nkomo
At Barrick&rsquo;s, Tanzania&rsquo;s largest gold producer with mines at Bulyanhulu, Buzwagi, North Mara, and Tulawaku, management has continued to issue dismissals as a method to discourage membership in the union. In 2007 at the Bulyanhulu mine, following a break-down in negotiations between TAMICO and management over salaries, working conditions, and medical care that caused a strike by some 1,000 miners, Barrick&rsquo;s summarily fired all strikers. Reports at the workshop stated that TAMICO members are sacked almost on a daily basis by African Barrick Gold Plc. 
 
(On 16 March, three miners were killed at the underground Bulyanhula mine when a cave-in brought giant rock down on the miners. The ICEM extends deep sympathies to the families of the miners &ndash; Dickson Kadelema, Vedasstus Wilfred Tandise, and Joel Nicholas &ndash; and calls on Barrick&rsquo;s to ensure proper safeguards are in place inside its mines in Tanzania and elsewhere.) 
 
The 12-13 March ICEM workshops in Dar es Salaam did produce an aggressive action plan. Participants vowed to strengthen organizationally TAMICO, particularly the union&rsquo;s regional structures and the development of mandates from the union&rsquo;s leadership. This plan was put forth to better monitor and record AngloGold and Barrick&rsquo;s employment and trade union abuses. TAMICO&rsquo;s four regional secretaries attending the workshops pledged to recruit a total of 12,000 new members in 2010. 
 
Participants also launched a campaign specifically at AngloGold&rsquo;s Geita subsidiary to win full union recognition by the end of June 2010. South Africa&rsquo;s National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), which already works closely with TAMICO, will ramp up efforts through SSARO to strengthen the Tanzanian union&rsquo;s structures in order to meet the workshop&rsquo;s goals.

Breaches of Freedom of Association Rife at AngloGold, Barrick Gold Mines in Tanzania

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A historic protocol agreement between ArcelorMittal and ICEM-affiliated Forestry, Logging, and Industrial Workers&rsquo; Union of Liberia (FLIWUL) will guarantee that a collective labour contract is in place when the world&rsquo;s largest steelmaker begins revenue-earning operations at an iron ore enterprise. The two parties agreed to an &ldquo;Interim Procedural Agreement&rdquo; on 6 March that assures 3,000 workers will have trade union protections once ArcelorMittal comes on line with a US$1.5 billion mining, rail, and export operation in the West African country. 
 
The deal also sets forth the process in which FLIWUL now begins to build a free and democratic trade union inside the country-wide branch union, called ArcelorMittal Workers&rsquo; Union FLIWUL No. 4. This week, from 24 to 28 March, FLIWUL will begin conducting on-site nominations and elections from among the existing 750 workers at mine sites in northern Nimba County to the port of Buchanan, some 250 kilometres south on the Atlantic Ocean. 

<img alt="" src="" width="280" height="129" />
FLIWUL General-Secretary David Sackoh said the union will then begin electing shop stewards at mines near Yekepa, two company hospitals, transport workers along the rail link, and port workers at Buchanan. The final step, starting about mid-year, according to Sackoh, will be an extensive survey inside the various work units that will &ldquo;transform our compilations into collective bargaining proposals.&rdquo; 
ArcelorMittal has not been always this cooperative to work with FLIWUL in Liberia. A short 11 months ago, the company attempted to subvert a lawful union recognition vote with strong-arm tactics. (See prior ICEM news dispatch <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/3153-Despite-Interference-FLIWUL-Wins-Union-Rights-for-ArcelorMittal-Workers-in-Liberia">here</a>.)&nbsp;But a Labor Ministry ruling declaring the union certification fair and legal, as well as intervention by the US-based United Steelworkers (USW) directly with the company&rsquo;s CEO and founder, Lakshmi Mittal, convinced Liberian management that recognizing and working with FLIWUL was in the best interests of the company. 
 
Sackoh said the company is now moving in mining equipment and completing work on the rail link. By mid-year, employment should reach 2,000, and then climb to over 3,000 by the time ore is ready for export in first quarter 2011. ArcelorMittal has a 25-year concession with the Liberian government to mine some one billion cubic metres of iron ore reserves in Nimba County, at the point where the Liberian, Guinean, and C&ocirc;te d&rsquo;Ivoire borders meet. 

<img alt="" src="" width="149" height="112" />
FLIWUL activists in Harbel
The mining assets were once owned by the Liberian American Swedish Chemicals Company (LAMCO), but production ceased and the assets started to deteriorate when civil war started in 1989. 
 
The &ldquo;Interim Procedural Agreement&rdquo; contains basic framework standards covering health and safety conditions, protection of the environment, current working conditions, and protection of communities. It also contains a grievance process for workers. FLIWUL&rsquo;s union-building efforts now will assure worker input in a collective agreement due to take effect next year, a workers&rsquo; contract that most certainly will stand as a model in Liberia. 
 
&ldquo;FLIWUL has much to be proud of in achieving this milestone,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. &ldquo;The assistance they received from the USW &ndash; both on-the-ground in Liberia and intervention at the corporate level &ndash; is also exemplary and will guarantee that miners, transport workers, and other staff have an excellent collective agreement.&rdquo;

FLIWUL, ArcelorMittal in Liberia Reach Accord at Iron Ore Operation

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In this issue of the ICEM HIV/AIDS newsletter, we introduce the revised ICEM HIV/AIDS website and report on the G8 &ldquo;Days of Action,&rdquo; and how the Zimbabwe energy sector deals with HIV/AIDS.
The ICEM Calls on its Affiliates to Contribute to this e-bulletin 
 
ICEM affiliates are 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. 

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ICEM HIV/AIDS Website Revamped 
 
The ICEM HIV/AIDS website has seen a major overhaul in the past few weeks. A key article on how the ICEM responds to HIV and AIDS reports on the achievements of ICEM&rsquo;s HIV/AIDS work. It also gives a brief description of all projects in cooperation with Solidarity Support Organisations and ICEM affiliates. 
 
As in the past, a link is provided to important HIV/AIDS websites, such as ILO/AIDS, UNAIDS, the Global Fund and others with updated information on these organisations. 
 
A new and especially practical feature on the link to useful materials are examples of an HIV/AIDS Policy for unions and an HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy. These were initially developed in the LO/FTF-sponsored HIV/AIDS project for the mining sector in Ethiopia. Generic versions enable affiliates to draft their own policy and negotiate a comprehensive workplace policy with companies. 
 
Also useful for training activities are four new PowerPoint presentations on Basic Facts about HIV/AIDS, on HIV/AIDS and the Workplace, on Elements of an HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy, and on Negotiating on HIV/AIDS. 
 
A key feature of the website is the inclusion of this e-bulletin. Directly available are also the two major ICEM publications: The HIV/AIDS Training Manual for Collective Bargaining and the Guide on HIV/AIDS Resources and Funding. 
 
Discover the revised ICEM HIV/AIDS website by going to <a href="http://www.icem.org">www.icem.org</a> and click on HIV/AIDS! Please give us your feedback. 
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African, Canadian Unions Plan &lsquo;Days of Action&rsquo; on AIDS for G8 
 
Trade unions throughout Africa and in Canada will join forces in a week of action, 21 &ndash; 27 March, to lobby the G8 and G20 for the provision of universal access to HIV and AIDS prevention, treatment, and care. The action is timed to precede a meeting of the foreign ministers of the G8 and G20 countries in Ottawa, 29 &ndash; 30 March. 
 
National trade union centres in Africa will deliver messages to the Canadian embassies in their country calling on the Canadian Prime Minister to play a leading role in convincing his fellow leaders to take quick and decisive action on HIV and AIDS. As the host country, Canada will preside over the G8 Summit and will co-host with South Korea the G20 Summit in June. 
 
It may be recalled that 2010 is the target year for the G8 commitment to achieving universal access to HIV prevention, treatment and care made in 2005, and for achieving the second target of Millennium Development Goal 6, universal access to treatment. 
 
(Source: Press Release of the Canadian Labour Congress, 23 February) 

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The 2010 Universal Access Promise 
 
Trade union HIV/AIDS activists need not be reminded that 2010 marks the year when the goal of universal access to HIV prevention, treatment and care is to be achieved. But just how much progress has been made, and more importantly, how much remains to be done may not be as well known. 
 
To learn more about the extent of the unfinished business visit the UNAIDS website at <a href="http://www.unaids.org">www.unaids.org</a> where you can find an interactive map which shows the extent of the work that remains to be done. 
 
A key statistic is central to the union response: 7,400 people become infected with HIV every day and the majority of these people are of working age. Unfortunately, workplace-based prevention strategies often have a low priority in national strategies where prevention itself is often a low priority compared to treatment. When for every three people put on antiretroviral treatment, there are five new infections, the case for prevention is clear. This calls for strong union advocacy efforts this year calling on world leaders to deliver on their commitment for universal access so that workers and their families do not continue to bear the brunt of HIV infections. 
 
(Source: Contribution from Robert E. Lovelace, GUAP HIV/AIDS Consultant, Washington) 
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South Africa: Younger Teachers more open about HIV 
 
Younger teachers in South Africa are taking the lead in talking to students about HIV but are not practicing what they preach, according to a study by the University of KwaZulu-Natal. 
 
Younger educators, who feel that they are more informed about HIV and less inclined to stigmatise infected people, are also more likely than their older colleagues to talk to students about HIV-related issues because they are closer in age and because they are more likely to know someone living with HIV. 
 
The study, which surveyed 34 schools in the Free State province, also found that younger teachers were not immune from taking chances with their own health and that of their partners. Almost 50% of the teachers did not know their HIV status and most said they did not use condoms. 
 
(Source: IRIN PlusNews, global HIV/AIDS news and analysis, 9 February at <a href="http://www.plusnews.org">www.plusnews.org</a>) 
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Zimbabwe: HIV/AIDS Policy for the Energy and Textile Sectors 
 
Employers&rsquo; and workers' representatives in the energy and textile sectors have come up with new policies in an attempt to foster debate around HIV/AIDS at the workplace. The unions want to make the debate part of the &quot;boardroom agenda&quot; at executive meetings. The project is supported by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida). 
 
To reduce employment-related stigma and discrimination against persons living with HIV and AIDS, employers and unions are embarking on a campaign to raise awareness and getting commitment at the highest corporate level, in a programme dubbed, &quot;Making HIV and AIDS a Boardroom Agenda.&quot; Successful and comprehensive HIV and AIDS intervention strategies will only happen provided there is board buy in and support. 
 
Zimbabwe Energy Workers' Union (ZEWU) President, Angeline Chitambo, said there was need for the government and employers to take issues of HIV/AIDS more seriously. &quot;HIV is now a topical workplace issue which cannot be ignored. We want the government and employers implement what the policy says,&quot; said Chitambo, who is also an ICEM Vice President. 
 
(Source: Zimbabwe Standard, Harare, 27 February) 

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Labour Advocacy Toolkit now Available 
 
The Labour Advocacy Toolkit is now available on the website of the World AIDS Campaign (WAC) <a href="http://www.worldaidscampaign.org">www.worldaidscampaign.org</a> under Constituencies / Labour. 
 
The ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin reported on the development of the Toolkit in its issue No. 50 of November 2009. The toolkit, with the subtitle, &ldquo;Organising to Achieve Universal Access to HIV Prevention, Treatment, Care and Support,&rdquo; can help trade union AIDS activists assess whether key indicators for the national AIDS response meet the needs of the working people, determine where unionists are positioned in national discussions about AIDS, and suggest how they can build campaigns to make sure that universal access is achieved. 
 
Trade unions are among the best positioned mass organisations at country level to create change. This is no less true when it comes to union mobilising the response to HIV and AIDS. This Toolkit is for those who have not run campaigns on HIV and AIDS as well as for more experienced campaigners looking for new campaign tools. 
<img alt="" src="" width="40" height="40" />
News from Global Unions 
 
In its most recent issues of the fortnightly HIV/AIDS updates of January and February, the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITF) at <a href="http://www.itf.org.uk">www.itf.org.uk</a>) reports on awareness campaigns for the maritime sector in India. In Ukraine, a campaign to promote safe sex was organised at the Odessa National Maritime Academy, which has about 4,000 students. Ukraine is experiencing one of the fastest growing HIV epidemics in the world with a prevalence rate of 1.6%. 
 
An extensive article deals with the anti-gay legislation in Uganda. The proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill would, if enacted, broaden the criminalisation of homosexuality by introducing the death penalty for people who have previous convictions, are HIV positive, or engage in same-sex acts with people under 18 years of age. 

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This ICEM HIV-AIDS Newsletter &ndash; How to Subscribe 
 
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.

ICEM HIV/AIDS e-bulletin - No. 54, March 2010

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