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With a 1 March deadline looming, bargaining has temporarily stalled between the ICEM-affiliated general union, Central Organization of Industrial Employees in Denmark (CO-industri) and the Confederation of Danish Industry (DI). Negotiations are aimed at renewing collective agreements across the country&rsquo;s industrial sector. CO-industri represents 276,000 employees in the trade and service industries, while DI is the leading business lobbying organisation. 
 
The collective bargaining round directly affects 240,000 workers in the manufacturing industry and indirectly affects an additional 350,000 workers in the private sector. Historically, the manufacturing agreement is used as a blueprint for other negotiations. 
 
Business leaders set the tone for negotiations even before it began. DI CEO Hans Skov Christensen outlined his priority for the talks as an opportunity to &ldquo;restore the competitiveness of Danish companies,&rdquo; adding that wages are not the only element in competitiveness, but still a &ldquo;highly central part.&rdquo; These remarks were made by Christensen at the 6 January press conference, immediately prior to the start of discussions with CO-industri. 

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The chief negotiator and President of CO-industri, Thorkild Jensen&rsquo;s, said the union&rsquo;s clear primary demand in talks is the continued positive development of real wages. The secondary demands include improvements in social clauses, including improved pay during sick leave, improved maternity allowances, and improved conditions for shift workers and apprentices. 
 
Equal pay across the gender divide is also high on the agenda for this negotiation, as is the review of a special rule in prior agreements affecting clerical workers. Currently, clerical workers are only covered by the collective agreement if over 50% of workers in a specific company are members of HK, the union for commercial and clerical employees. 
 
Co-industri is following the guidance of the recently established European Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (EMF) policy resolution that calls &ldquo;for more secure employment, against precarious work.&rdquo; This will be included in union demands in terms of increased investment in training and education of workers, and protections for temporary agency workers. 
 
The parties will continue to work towards an agreement without the conciliation of the Ministry of Labour. According to CO-industri&rsquo;s rulebook, every agreement must be put to a ballot, with a simple majority needed for ratification.

Danish Contract Negotiations Deadlocked on National Level

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The renegade Indian steel company run by Pramod Mittal was made to pay back wages to 1,250 members of ICEM affiliate Independent Trade Union of Chemistry and Non-Metals of Bosnia-Herzegovina (SSHN-FBIH) this month. A deadline of 15 February was met by Mittal&rsquo;s company, Global Ispat Koksana Industtrija Lukavac (GIKIL), which manages and half-owns the sodium carbonate plant, and wages were paid through December 2009. 
 
Workers at GIKIL, also half-owned by the Canton of Tuzla, and SSHN-FBIH&rsquo;s President Kata Ivelijc assured that back wages were paid by the delinquent Mittal through their vigilant strikes and determination. They received assistance outside of Bosnia-Herzegovina from the ICEM, the International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF), and the European Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (EMF). 
<img alt="" src="" width="338" height="189" />
Manfred Warda (centre) with Central European Project Coordinator Mato Lalic (next to Warda), and Kata Ivelijc, 5th from left
After receiving no pay for work performed over the final quarter of 2009, SSHN-FBIH took a week-long strike action on 6 January. That strike gained them back-pay for October and November, and then the outside intervention and workers&rsquo; actions at the plant and inside Tuzla got them December&rsquo;s pay by the deadline, 15 February, a date in which workers were braced to take another strike action. 
 
The empowerment by workers in highly industrialized northern Bosnia was widely noted across Europe. But it stands as a reminder that such victories can be fleeting against wayward companies like Mittal&rsquo;s. Both the ICEM and SSHN-FBIH pledge unified vigilance on future salaries to be paid on time, justified increases to those salaries, and improved health and safety conditions at GIKIL. (Read the background to this dispute and information on Pramod Mittal&rsquo;s companies <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/3588-ICEM-IMF-Decry-Mittal’s-Pay-Delinquencies-in-Bosnia-Herzegovina">here</a>.)&nbsp; 
<img alt="" src="" width="272" height="161" />
GIKIL Factory in Lukavac
On 9 February, ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda visited the area and together with workers&rsquo; leaders, met with Tuzla Canton Prime Minister Enes Mujić and three of his ministers. The meeting produced a promise to seriously question Mittal, in a scheduled and upcoming meeting with government authorities, over his management neglect. The trade union delegation also impressed on the Tuzla government that health and safety concerns around the plant&rsquo;s coking ovens must also be addressed. 
 
The government took up the matter at its regular 11 February session and determined that workers&rsquo; strike actions were justified and legitimate. Those and other conclusions favouring the union were then forwarded to the Assembly of the canton on 16 February. 
 
Further, a commission was established to make corrections to salaries in accord with a previous collective agreement. The commission also will be charged with investigating the health hazards inside the plant. The ICEM is confident that the union and GIKIL workers are now well placed to monitor and participate in the commission&rsquo;s full work. 
 
Kata Ivelijc thanked the ICEM, IMF, and EMF for &ldquo;the cooperation and support&rdquo; and said the intervention &ldquo;left a strong impression on the institutions and media&rdquo; in the region.

GIKIL Pays Back Wages to Bosnian Workers; Monitoring Begins

Two global union federations are urging the Mexican government and Mexican armed forces to use restraint in any attempt to secure Grupo M&eacute;xico&rsquo;s Cananea copper mine in Sonora State. The International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine, and General Workers&rsquo; Unions (ICEM) and the International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF) are deeply concerned that a court ruling last week will precipitate violence between armed Mexican troops and miners represented by an affiliate of the two Geneva-based labour federations, Mexico&rsquo;s National Miners&rsquo; and Metalworkers&rsquo; Union (SNTMMSRM). 
 
The caution to Mexican authorities comes following an 11 February decision by a labour appellate court upholding a Federal Conciliation and Arbitration Board declaration to end a 31-month strike by the union, and terminating the collective agreement between SNTMMSRM and Grupo M&eacute;xico. 
 
The ICEM and IMF are aware that federal troops have been dispatched to northern Sonora State. The ICEM and IMF are also in direct contact with the Mexican trade union and believe miners at Cananea are resolved to continue occupying the mine until a fair and equitable labour agreement is reached. 
 
&ldquo;This week is a very critical time at Cananea and we urge the Mexican government to order its forces to use prudence and abeyance in dealing with workers,&rdquo; said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda. &ldquo;If the mine is to reopen, we insist that Grupo M&eacute;xico, the government, and the union engage in honest dialogue to address the issues that are unresolved, and to recognise the union in a productive spirit.&rdquo; 
 
&ldquo;The use of violence of any kind will serve only to further isolate the parties,&rdquo; said IMF General Secretary Jyrki Raina. &ldquo;We understand that the legal process has now been exhausted, so we urge respect and balance and hopefully a negotiated resolve can occur that will put the miners back to work in a region of Mexico that desperately needs income-generating jobs.&rdquo; 
 
Together, the ICEM and IMF represent 45 million workers globally. The ICEM serves as the umbrella global union federation for 467 trade unions in 132 countries, while the IMF represents the interests of 200 trade unions in 100 countries.

ICEM, IMF Urge Restraint by Mexico at Cananea Copper Mine

The 20-million-member International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine, and General Workers&rsquo; Unions (ICEM) is demanding that the government of Bosnia-Herzegovina intervene on behalf of 1,250 workers in the northern city of Lukavac. The workers have had their pay slashed and are owed wage arrears by India-based Global Infrastructure Holdings Ltd., a subsidiary of the Ispat Group, owned by the Mittal steel-making family. 
 
The company is the minority owner but manages a coke-chemicals enterprise called Global Ispat Koksana Industtrija Lukavac (GIKIL), which sells to steel mills throughout Central Europe, Turkey, and in India. The local government of the Canton of Tuzla is majority stakeholder. 
 
In a 21 January letter to Bosnia-Herzegovina Prime Minister Mustafa Mujezinovic and to Canton of Tuzla Prime Minister Enes Mujić, ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda &ndash; together with International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF) General Secretary Jyrki Raina &ndash; called on both the federal government and regional government to ensure that restoration of previous pay levels dating to 2003 are restored, that wage arrears are paid, and that the governments be more vigilant on potentially serious health risks existing inside GIKIL. 
 
The ICEM, a Geneva-based global trade federation that numbers 467 affiliated trade unions in 132 countries, is pursuing justice for Lukavac workers on behalf of one of those affiliates, the Independent Trade Union of Chemistry and Non-Metal Workers of Bosnia-Herzegovina. 
 
&ldquo;The ICEM has probed Global Infrastructure Holdings, its parent, the steel-maker Ispat Group, and Pramod Mittal himself.&rdquo; said Warda. &ldquo;What we find is a history of depraved conduct placed on people in many countries and total disregard for global social standards, as well as statutes enshrined in European law.&rdquo; 
 
In Lukavac, workers have carried out lawful strikes twice in six months, laying claims to salaries owed them. Despite all workers taking membership in the union, GIKIL&rsquo;s Indian managing director, Guttupalli Jagannadham, has bypassed the union in slashing pay to 55% of previous earnings. That level is below the minimum wage standard contained in the national collective agreement for chemistry and non-metals, and amounts to just above &euro;200 per month (400 marka), putting it well under the minimum wage threshold for the sector in Bosnia-Herzegovina. 
 
Workers staged a strike from 6 January to 14 January after salaries had not been paid in October, November, and December 2009. During the strike, the October and November pay was made, but December salaries are still in remiss. A mediated agreement that ended a three-day strike in July 2009 called on GIKIL management to honour the collective agreement, and pay all wages due by 31 December 2009. 
 
The ICEM and IMF also stated concern for workers&rsquo; health at GIKIL in the letter to the Bosnia-Herzegovina government. The Independent Trade Union of Chemistry and Non-Metal Workers believes a number of workers have acute cases of cancer due to lack of safeguards around coke ovens. 
 
In the joint letter, the combined 45-million-member ICEM and IMF cautioned the government not to lose oversight over labour-management relations at GIKIL. &ldquo;We think this a mistake, considering the recent history of wage arrears, asset stripping, and general social depravation brought by Global Infrastructure Holdings.&rdquo; 
 
The ICEM cites a number of instances in the near past where Ispat and its Global Steel Holdings and Global Infrastructure Holdings subsidiaries have not met payrolls and displayed other social misconduct following privatizations and restructuring. Those cases have occurred in Nigeria, Libya, Bulgaria, as well as against Indian expatriate staff working abroad. 
 
&ldquo;We take the breach of contract, failure to engage the union in social talks, and wage issues very seriously,&rdquo; said Warda of the conflict in Lukavac. &ldquo;Either the government of Bosnia-Herzegovina corrects the wrongs imposed on workers, or we carry this dispute to different levels.&rdquo; 
 
For More Information, Contact: or Kata Iveljic, Tuzla Branch President, Independent Trade Union of Chemistry and Non-Metal Workers, <a href="mailto:sindikat.tz@bih.net.ba">sindikat.tz@bih.net.ba</a>, +387 35 279 081 (mobile: +387 61 894 385); or Dick Blin, ICEM Information and Campaigns Officer, <a href="mailto:dick.blin@icem.org">dick.blin@icem.org</a>, +41 22 304 1842 (mobile: +41 79 734 8994).

ICEM, IMF Decry Mittal’s Pay Delinquencies in Bosnia-Herzegovina

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While the campaign for retention of coal-mining jobs and a fair contract by the Construction, Forestry, Mining, and Energy Union (CFMEU) with Xstrata in Australia continues, another union is resisting proposed mining and metallurgical job cuts by the Anglo-Swiss mining house. 
 
In North America, the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) launched a campaign in northern Ontario in mid-December to preserve 676 copper and nickel smelting and refining jobs at Xstrata&rsquo;s Kidd Creek metallurgical plants in Timmons, Ontario. The company announced on 8 December that it was permanently shuttering a smelter and refinery, effective 1 May 2010, thus heaping further economic havoc on a region already beset by job losses and a strike. 

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The proposed job losses come on top of 725 mineworker layoffs by Xstrata in February 2009, when it temporarily shut three mines in the region. CAW Local 598 of Sudbury, Ontario, which is currently engaged in negotiations with Xstrata Nickel toward a 1 February contract expiration, has made recall of those jobs its number one bargaining table priority. 
 
In Timmons, CAW Local 599 has started a public campaign aimed at drawing business and government pressure on Xstrata Copper Canada to reverse the Kidd Creek closure. A major part of the campaign is aimed at the federal government, which, the union contends, must protect Canadian jobs as part of the C$19 billion sale of these former Falconbridge assets to Xstrata in 2006. 
 
That issue is similar to one included in the campaign by the United Steelworkers (USW) in its strike against Brazilian Vale. The CAW has supported USW Local 6500 on picket lines and with financial support in its current six-month strike against Vale, and it has also joined USW in calling on the Canadian Parliament to enact legislation that would give transparency to deals made under the Investment Canada Act. 
 
In the corporate takeovers of both Vale buying Inco and Xstrata paying a premium to get Canadian-based Falconbridge, many details between the federal government and the foreign mining houses were kept secret, and the job-slashing now &ndash; the unions feel &ndash; could have been prevented had more disclosure come in 2006. 
 
CAW Local 599 is pursuing an aggressive petition campaign calling for both retention of the Kidd Creek facility and for government action on the proposed job cuts. Visit the union&rsquo;s website <a href="http://www.caw599.ca">here</a> to learn more and to join the petition. 

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In Australia, CFMEU&rsquo;s campaign against Xstrata in New South Wales on redundancies and lack of a current enterprise agreement continues. Last summer, Xstrata announced it was cutting 180 coal-mining jobs at two collieries, Tahmoor and Ulan. 
 
The union has been engaged in lawful industrial actions at Tahmoor over the past several months (see past ICEM coverage <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/">here</a> and <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/">here</a>), with miners conducting a march through Tahmoor on 21 December to coincide with a 24-hour work stoppage. Other industrial actions included the refusal to load coal on to trains for shipment to Port Kembla. 
 
Early in the new year, the industrial actions were halted so coal could be loaded on to trains and eventually shipped to German steelmaker ZKS. That request came from metalworkers in Germany due to low inventories and in order to keep operations at ZKS in production. 
See the CFMEU's campaign website <a href="http://www.xstratafacts.com/">here</a>.

Mine Unions in Australia, Canada Reject Xstrata’s Job Cuts

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At a press conference on 8 January in Mexico City, during an ICEM North American Regional Coordinating Committee meeting there, Canadian and US ICEM leaders denounced the Mexican government of Felipe Calder&oacute;n Hinojosa&rsquo;s anti-union conduct in dissolving the Mexican Electrical Workers&rsquo; Union (SME) and its continuing persecution of the National Miners&rsquo; and Metalworkers&rsquo; Union (SNTMMSRM, or Los Mineros) and its General Secretary Napole&oacute;n G&oacute;mez Urrutia. 
 
The regional forum, led by ICEM North American Vice Presidents Ken Neumann of the United Steelworkers (USW) and Dave Coles of the Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union of Canada, stressed that the repressive tactics heaped upon trade unions by the Calder&oacute;n government is an affront to human rights and that these actions will receive world-wide attention. 

<img alt="" src="" width="261" height="196" />
ICEM North American leaders at press conference 
The North American ICEM leaders also said the anti-union policies subject millions of Mexican workers to poverty. They also called attention to Mexican trade union leaders like Los Mineros&rsquo;s Juan Linares Mont&uacute;far who have been jailed for their legitimate union activities. The press conference was attended by members of Los Mineros, by several ICEM North American delegates, and by ICEM&rsquo;s Director of Industry and Corporate Affairs Joe Drexler. 
 
Napole&oacute;n G&oacute;mez himself has escaped jail in Mexico by fleeing to Canada, with the Mexican government now seeking his extradition. 

<img alt="" src="" width="120" height="145" />
Neumann, the USW&rsquo;s National Director for Canada, said that there is evidence that the charges against Napole&oacute;n G&oacute;mez are unfounded and purely an invention by the Mexican government in sync with the mining company, Grupo M&eacute;xico. &ldquo;Mexico is a NAFTA partner with Canada and the United States and we will not sit back and allow these repressions to occur,&rdquo; said Neumann. 
 
On 10 October 2009, the Calder&oacute;n government swept in with federal agents and armed police to shut down the country&rsquo;s second largest utility, the Mexico City regional Luz y Fuerza del Centro (LyFC), or Central Light and Power. Calder&oacute;n used an executive decree to merge the electric power distributor with the Federal Electricity Commission and to disband the 95-year-old and 60,000-member SME. 
 
The North American ICEM representatives condemned the government for not proceeding through legal channels if it suspected there were misdeeds inside the utility.

ICEM North Americans Use Mexican City Press to Condemn Calderón’s Labour Policies

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On 14 December 2009, the Supreme Court of Namibia struck down a two-year-old government law that banned labour hire agencies. In a unanimous, five-judge decision, the court said that government must first try to regulate irregular work imposed by labour hire firms before imposing a ban on them. 
 
The court&rsquo;s decision also cited the law as unconstitutional because it fails to protect the right to practice &ldquo;occupation, trade or business.&rdquo; In 20-year-old Namibia, images of an entrenched contract labour system through apartheid are recent, and this labour issue has both the emotions and the memories to make it a leading story in all of Africa. 
 
The Supreme Court itself called it &ldquo;an emotive and politically charged&rdquo; issue, and both opponents and proponents of agency labour expressed sharp differences on the court&rsquo;s ruling. 
 
The decision was the second time within a year that the High Court in Namibia has taken up the case. It had earlier upheld the ban on labour hire agencies, contained inside Section 128 of the 2007 Labour Act. But Namibia&rsquo;s largest temporary employment agency, Africa Personnel Services (APS), appealed the constitutionality of this section of the labour code on the eve of it taking effect. The 14 December ruling overturns the High Court&rsquo;s earlier decision, and now places responsibility on the government and civil society to implement stringent regulatory measures on the operations of labour agencies. 
The head of the Namibia Employers&rsquo; Federation, Tim Parkhouse, heralded the court&rsquo;s decision, calling it an investment attraction. 

<img src="" width="133" height="133" alt="" />
But the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW) reacted angrily to the court&rsquo;s decision, while Minister of Labour and Social Welfare, Immanuel Ngatjizeko, said that although the government must abide by the decision, he pledged the government of President Hifikepunye Pohamba will not allow the labour-hire system to continue in its current form. 
 
Ngatjiseko, in a Windhoek newspaper, said: &ldquo;It is ironic that a provision of the Namibia Constitution that was intended to eradicate apartheid practices that subjected black workers to the injustice and humiliation of job reservation, influx control and the like has now been interpreted to turn a blind eye to commercial arrangements for the rental of human labour in order to avoid the protections afforded to workers by the labour laws.&rdquo; 
 
Ngatjiseko said the current system in Namibia, where labour hire firms are allowed to employ people who then provide these people to clients, is exploitative and reminiscent of the apartheid contract labour system because workers in Namibia with few or no other options for gainful employment fall into the clutches of labour agencies. 
 
The NUNW, linked in history with the ruling South West African People&rsquo;s Organisation (SWAPO) 
political party and a union itself banned in the pre-Namibia days of the 1970s and 1980s because it dared to challenge the apartheid labour system, was more blunt in its assessment of the court&rsquo;s decision. &ldquo;We firmly believe that one cannot regulate slavery and thereby give it a human face,&rdquo; said the federation. 

<img src="" width="146" height="66" alt="" />
The court&rsquo;s decision last month provoked wide opinions, proving again the intensity of the labour hire issue inside Namibia and in all of Africa. 
 
The New Era, a Windhoek publication, predicted, &ldquo;There is no denying that labour hire is a niece of the contract labour system that we have supposedly got rid, but when weak regulations are approved, the Supreme Court would be left with no choice but to stick to what is lawful on paper.&rdquo; 
 
An editorial in The Namibian, another Windhoek newspaper, stated, &ldquo;The principal of labour hire may be an important one, especially in a country with a very high unemployment rate, but it cannot be allowed to perpetuate exploitation of workers to the benefit of middlemen; to provide ways around employer adherence to the Labour Code; and to shut out unions.&rdquo; 
 
On 5 July 2007, the country&rsquo;s National Assembly passed an amendment to the labour code stating that &ldquo;no person may, for reward, employ any person with a view to making that person available to a third party to perform work for the third party.&rdquo; The law was to take effect on 1 March 2009. But on 27 February, the High Court suspended implementation of the law to hear APS&rsquo;s appeal.

Namibian Supreme Court Strikes Down Labour Hire Bill

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The struggle continues for trade union rights for contract workers at Colombia&rsquo;s vast mining complex, Carbones del Cerrej&oacute;n. ICEM mining affiliate Sintracarb&oacute;n has been fighting to organize the contract workers at the mine. 
 
Following the successful organization of mechanics and machinists of the company Chaneme at Cerrej&oacute;n in November (see InBrief No. 144 <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/">here</a>), the new union Sintrachaneme was formed and recognized by Chaneme. Since, the company has refused to discuss even the slightest improvements to salaries and working conditions with either Sintrachaneme or Sintracarb&oacute;n. 

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="108" />
A second union of contract workers under Sintracarb&oacute;n&rsquo;s guidance, Sintrans, representing transport workers of the Sotrans company, has seen that employer refuse to recognise the union or to consider any of the bus drivers&rsquo; demands. In fact, the sacking of union activists among bus drivers has brought fear and reluctance by workers to engage in union activity. 
 
Sintracarb&oacute;n, with the full support of ICEM, is focusing efforts towards the consolidation of Sintrachaneme and pressuring the mechanical maintenance contractor to accept the demands of workers. International support is important in the push for a collective agreement between Chaneme and its 300 staff, an accord that will guarantee the existence of the union. 
 
&ldquo;The Chaneme management, Carbones de Cerrej&oacute;n management, and the Colombian Ministry of Social Protection must all commit to the process,&rdquo; said Sintracarb&oacute;n representative Jaime Deluquez. 

<img alt="" src="" width="146" height="66" />
Since workers of Chaneme and Sotrans at Cerrej&oacute;n took the step to organize, they have suffered a campaign of harassment and persecution from employers. Sintracarb&oacute;n, consisting of 3,500 direct employed miners at Cerrej&oacute;n, has denounced complicity by their employer of denial of work rights by contractors, saying Carbones del Cerrej&oacute;n has &ldquo;turned a blind eye to the abuses.&rdquo; 
 
Harassment has included workers being visited at home, with threats of dismissal or offers of perks in return for loyalty to the contractors and a turn against the newly-formed unions. 
 
Cerrej&oacute;n management is also criticised by its mining workforce for applying double standards, claiming on the one hand that it respects human and trade union rights with rhetoric that it support the free association into unions of workers of contractors, while working covertly with the contractors and units of government to destroy the trade union organization process. 
 
These abuses of the right of association and collective bargaining contravene national law, the Colombian Constitution, and ILO Conventions 87 and 98, ratified by Colombia. 
 
An ICEM Project on Social Dialogue, organized by Colombian Coordinator Carlos Bustos and counting Carbones del Cerrej&oacute;n as a participant, has achieved exemplary results. The multinational companies holding stakes in one of the world&rsquo;s largest open-cast coal mining operations &ndash; Xstrata, AngloAmerican, and BHP Billiton &ndash; must now prove that a commitment to the Social Dialogue Project and to global labour standards is genuine by stepping forward to defend the rights of outsourced workers at its mining operation in La Guajira department in northeastern Colombia.

Union, Contract Workers Continue Fight for Work Rights at Cerrejón in Colombia

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A 53-day strike by 1,500 leather workers in Iraq concluded successfully on 7 December 2009, after the state-run Enterprise of Leather Industries and Iraq&rsquo;s Ministry of Industry acceded to demands of workers on safety benefits. The leather workers, part of the Federation of Workers&rsquo; Councils and Unions of Iraq (FWCUI), won added payments totaling 25-30% of salaries for working in hazardous conditions. 
 
The workers&rsquo; committee, led by Sa&rsquo;ad Issa and Munadhil Atiya, displayed persistence and resolve throughout long negotiations with the state, and even after reaching a deal with state administrators in the early days of December, the strike continued for three days until all workers were paid the safety stipend in cash. 

<img alt="" src="" width="304" height="228" />
Munadhil Atiya (above) and Sa&rsquo;ad Issa (lower, centre) implore leather workers to continue the fight during 53-day strike 
The leather workers are employed in two factories in Baghdad and a third in Al Kūfah, some 160 kilometres south of the capital city. They produce shoes, bags, and clothing items such as leather coats. The strike began in mid-October and was brought on by workers having to deal with hazardous chemicals and operate dangerous equipment. 
The leather workers&rsquo; strike served as an inspiration for 4,000 textile workers. Following the early December end of the leather strike, Baghdad-area textile workers embarked on an 18-day strike of their own and won partial safety stipends from a separate state-run enterprise inside the Ministry of Industry. 
 
&ldquo;The strike organizers showed an ability to lead and maintain a determination among the ranks that lasted for more than seven weeks,&rdquo; said FWCUI President Falah Alwan. &ldquo;We learned a valuable lesson in this strike. That lesson is not to respond to hollow promises intended to slow or extinguish the movement of workers. 

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="119" />
Falah Alwan
&ldquo;The victory of the workers in the leather industries is the beginning of a new drive for the workers&rsquo; movement in the public sector and in all sectors.&rdquo; 
 
The strike was marked by continual dialogue with state administrators, but talks that produced only false promises and nothing substantive. Anticipating this, strike leaders engaged fellow workers to conduct constant demonstrations, marches, and public gatherings demanding safer work conditions and safety benefits. 
 
Leather workers also participated in a peaceful 6 October Baghdad manifestation, in which protestors were met by Iraqi armed troops firing rubber bullets. (See InBrief No. 143 <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/3531-Iraqi-Trade-Unionist-Murdered">here</a>.)&nbsp;In that clash, FWCUI strike leader Munadhil Atiya was beaten and then arrested for his participation. 
 
Nearly 90% of all industry in Iraq is incorporated in state hands and the country still abides by the Saddam-era Decree 150 of 1987 that prohibits independent trade unions in the public sector. Thus the need for persistent and ongoing direct action by workers is in order to gain labour rights from the al-Maliki government. The ICEM commends the leather and textile workers of the FWCUI for their heroic and historic actions in late 2009.

Safety Benefits Won by Iraqi Leather Workers after 53-Day Strike

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
The world&rsquo;s biggest steelmaker announced to workers and trade unions at its December European Works Council (EWC) that the company likely will continue to reduce its global workforce in 2010. Trade union projections suggest that ArcelorMittal plans to cut some 10,000 jobs, or 3.5% of its total global workforce, as the company seeks cost savings of US$500 million. 
 
Arcelor Mittal currently employs 285,300 people worldwide. The Luxembourg-based company aims to regain lost market share. Company spokesman Bill Steers told the EWC at a plenary meeting on 9 December that &ldquo;global workforce reductions [will be] due mainly to natural attrition and optimisation of production.&rdquo; 

<img src="" width="100" height="95" alt="" />
The company has said that most of the cuts will affect US and Europe, where its growth potential is limited. ArcelorMittal workers in South Africa were relieved to be told that the announcement of 10,000 job losses would not affect them. Some of ArcelorMittal's facilities in the U.S. and South America are struggling, particularly those producing flat rolled steel for the auto industry. 
 
Dave McCall, District 1 director for the ICEM-affiliated United Steelworkers (USW), said the union did not expect mass job cuts in the US, as demand there is picking up some in the wake of the financial crisis. 
 
Overall, demand for steel is rising again, after most steelmakers took a major hit in 2009 and were forced to cut their production in response to a slump in demand. ArcelorMittal has put a bid down on Zimbabwe's Zisco; it has invested in a mill in India; and is looking at further Brazilian operations to match iron-ore supplies there. The company has operations in 60 countries around the world. 
 
The cuts are expected to affect workers who were temporarily laid off at plants idled last year. 
 
The company had originally planned to eliminate 9,000 positions in its administrative and commercial functions during 2009, but ended up cutting 36,000 jobs, of which 50 percent were in Europe.

ArcelorMittal to Cut 10,000 Jobs This Year

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