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In Turkey, the ICEM affiliate Petrol-İş seeks to pre-empt an auto-parts rubber manufacturer from challenging a majority of workers in their right to collective bargaining. Standard Profil, a maker of rubber weather-sealing devices, met a public campaign last week by the union in the northern Anatolian city of D&uuml;zce, where the company operates its biggest factory. 
 
The public message was simple: Petrol-İş has succeeded in gaining well over 50% of Standard Profil&rsquo;s 2,300 Turkish workers seeking union representation, the Labour Ministry has deemed Standard a part of the oil, chemicals, and rubber sector, so the company must forego any appeal and begin good faith social dialogue with Petrol-İş. 
 
It is common in Turkey for employers to thwart union recognition drives with frivolous appeals in order to block workers&rsquo; their legitimate workplace rights. Such appeals can take up to two years. By taking the Standard Profil appeal public, Petrol-İş, with a strong presence in D&uuml;zce and other manufacturing zones of Turkey, is initiating a unique pro-active strategy inside Turkey intended to deflect company resistance to union rights. 
<img alt="" src="" width="217" height="201" />
Petrol-İş President Mustafa &Ouml;ztaşkin (right) at News Conference, with Nimetullah S&ouml;zen, Petrol-İş&nbsp;Organising Secretary
At a press conference in D&uuml;zce on 21 March that the ICEM participated in, Petrol-İş President Mustafa &Ouml;ztaşkin stated, &ldquo;We want to sit down at the negotiations table with Standard Profil and conduct a peaceful process of mutual understanding.&rdquo; Labour relations, he added should &ldquo;start with mutual good and consideration of mutual interests.&rdquo; 
 
On 19 March, Turkey&rsquo;s Labour and Social Security Ministry did formally confirm that Standard Profil staff work in Petrol-İş sectors. The company has 15 days to contest that verification and the message is that they do not. The governmental process is now underway to certify the union with majority interest from workers and that will likely be affirmed in a matter of weeks. Again, the message in D&uuml;zce and along Standard Profil&rsquo;s supply chain is meet Petrol-İş at the bargaining table. 
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Union justification that Standard Profil not challenge unionisation at its 1,850-worker D&uuml;zce plant and a smaller but growing plant in the city of Bursa is furthered by the fact that the company has positively addressed freedom of association and given workplace rights training inside the plants. 
 
That came late in 2008 and early 2009 after Petrol-İş and its national labour centre, T&uuml;rk-İş, lodged a complaint with the World Bank&rsquo;s International Financial Corporation (IFC). The IFC and the accompanying Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) loaned the company development money, and criteria under that loan requires the company live up to social and environment standards. 
 
After assessment, a compliance office for IFC/MIGA determined that managers must undertake awareness and education efforts regarding labour rights and work conditions. At last week&rsquo;s news conference, &Ouml;ztaşkin reminded of that, emphasizing that the union stands ready and willing to make Standard Profil a quality, reliable, and globally-preferred supplier of automotive sealing systems. 
<img alt="" src="" width="172" height="170" />
Union Organisers at Standard Profil, &Uuml;nal Akbulut and Hakan Ko&ccedil;ak
The point was reinforced by letters presented at the press conference on behalf of the <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/In%20Solidarity%20with%20Petrol-IS%20Workers%20at%20Standard%20Profil%20in%20Turkey%2018%20March%202011.pdf">International Metalworkers Federation</a> (IMF), the <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/UAW%20Statement%20of%20Support%20.pdf ">United Auto Workers</a> (UAW) of the US, the <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/2011-03-18_09-37-04.pdf">Volkswagen Works Council</a> in Germany, and ICEM German affiliate <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/vl_160311_solistandardprofil.pdf ">IGBCE</a>. In the <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/19.%20Solidarity%20with%20Petrol-Is%20on%20organizing%20efforts%20at%20Standard%20Profil.pdf ">ICEM&rsquo;s letter</a>, General Secretary Manfred Warda called on Standard Profil to embark on a &ldquo;peaceful and constructive labour relations atmosphere at your workplaces which will result in enhanced business performance.&rdquo; 
 
Leaders of several textile, metal, and other regional trade unions also attended the news conference, lending their support to the Petrol-İş message. Standard Profil, owned by London-based Bancroft Private Equity LLP whose investments mostly are in Central Europe, supplies door, boot, engine cover, and other rubber seals to a number of auto firms. Its larger customers are General Motors, Volkswagen/Audi, Fiat, Ford, and Honda.

Petrol-İş Demands Immediate Recognition at Standard Profil in Turkey

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Showcasing unions fighting back against austerity cuts will be featured in the line-up for the Global Labour Film Shorts in 2011. Affiliates are invited to submit their films for possible inclusion in the one hour line-up of the best short films from around the world by April 1. 
 
Since the beginning of the global economic crisis, trade unions internationally have denounced its fast and increasing negative impact on workers. Some of this action has been captured on film, an essential platform for communication in many union campaigns and actions today. 
 
Over the last four years, the Geneva Labour Film Shorts Festival has taken place in downtown Geneva enabling unions and working people worldwide to share their stories. This year, in order to reach a wider international audience, the festival is refocusing to an on-line and DVD presentation that will be submitted to over 36 labour related film festivals around the world. The line-up will also be available on DVD for affiliates of all Global Union Federations and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) to use in their own events and activities. 
 
The one-hour DVD will focus on short films that are excellent examples of communicating labour stories and messages and the selection will include a range of different films from different parts of the world. The launch of the Global Labour Film Shorts 2011 will take place at the European Metalworkers' Federation (EMF) &ldquo;Unions in Motion&rdquo; film festival, coming up on June 10-11 at Landschaftspark Nord in Duisburg, Germany. 
 
Please send copies of your films on DVD with a short paragraph describing the film, why it was produced and how it was used. The IMF, coordinating the work, will need unfettered rights to show the film and publish it online, of course with full acknowledgement of who created the material. Due to resource constraints for interpretation, the IMF is only able to accept films in English language or with English subtitles. 
 
We need to receive copies of all possible films by April 1, 2011. 
 
Please send to: 
Cherisse Fredricks 
International Metalworkers' Federation 
Case Postale 1516 
CH1227 Geneva 
Switerland

Fight Back on Film!

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Neil Reimer, National Director Emeritus of the Canada&rsquo;s Energy and Chemical Workers&rsquo; Union (ECWU) &ndash; one of the Communications, Energy, Paperworkers (CEP) Union&rsquo;s founding unions &ndash; passed away on 30 March in Edmonton, Alberta. He was 89. 
 
Neil Reimer has been described as a &quot;giant of the labour movement,&quot; and surely no one could argue with that description. 
 
For nearly 70 years, Reimer was a strong and dedicated advocate of workers&rsquo; issues. Beginning his career in 1942 as an organizer for the Oil Workers International Union (OWIU) while working at Consumers Co-operative refinery in Regina, Saskatchewan, he played a major role in organising his first energy workers&rsquo; union there. He 1951, he moved to Edmonton, where he organised oil and chemicals plants. He was also mayor of Edmonton. 
 
He helped found the New Democratic Party (NDP) of Canada in 1961, and was elected the first leader of NDP&rsquo;s Alberta branch in 1963. 
<img src="" width="133" height="190" alt="" />
Neil Reimer
He went on to become leader of the Canadian district of the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers International Union (OCAW), and ultimately founder of the independent Canadian union, the ECWU. 
 
His retirement from this position in 1984 only slowed him some, as he remained active in politics and social justice movements until his death. 
 
Canadian trade unionists and social leaders knew him as a &ldquo;visionary.&rdquo; He did not simply look toward the future, he tried to build it according to the principles he believed in. Those principles included decency, respect, and dignity for workers and their families. 
 
He understood the need to organize and he believed in the independence of the Canadian labour movement. He believed that Canada should control its own natural resources &ndash; especially energy resources &ndash; for the benefit of Canadians. Under his direction, some of the most progressive union policies of the day were produced on topics from energy and the environment, to working hours to national collective agreements, to health and safety. 
 
Neil played a big role inside the ICEM. He was a personal friend of many ICEM elected representatives and staff officers. He was an influential member of the then ICEF Executive Committee up until his retirement, and many of his ideas live on in ICEM policies. 
 
Neil led a long and active life and his accomplishments helped make the world a better place. The Canadian labour movement, the CEP, the ICEM, and indeed all workers have much to thank Neil Reimer for. He will be well remembered and sadly missed.

Canadian Energy Union Stalwart, Neil Reimer, Dies at Age 89

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A three-day workshop in&nbsp;basic safety&nbsp;radiation training for workers employed around uranium and uranium mining was held in Windhoek, Namibia, from 24-26 March. The ICEM-sponsored workshop was the second such workshop, the first one held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in June 2009. 
 
The training was attended by 22 people, including 15 African mine union leaders and seven trainers. Funding came from the ILO and the Friedrich-Ebert Foundation (FES) of Germany. Besides the ICEM, the Power Workers&rsquo; Union (PWU) of Canada, the Untied Steelworkers (USW), and the Canadian Nuclear Workers&rsquo; Council committed resources. Nuclear power companies Cameco and Ontario Power generation also provided support and assistance. 
<img alt="" src="" width="289" height="179" />
The workshop addressed radiation sources, protection, detection measurements, as well as radioactive gases in underground, open cast, and milling workplaces. ILO Conventions 176 and 183 were also reviewed, and sessions on national legislative and regulatory frameworks were held. 
 
Instructors included Dave Shier and Bob Walker of the PWU; Nancy Hutchison of the USW; Michael Schultheiss of FES Namibia; Marko Baran of Cameco; and Brian Kohler of the ICEM. ICEM Sub-Saharan African Regional Officer Fabian Nkomo was also a facilitator and selected the 15 African trade unionists, with the aim to give them basic training in safe uranium&nbsp;processes in order that they carry the training back to their worksites.

Namibia: ICEM Conducts Second Uranium Training Programme

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Employment law changes in New Zealand&nbsp;took effect 1 April have given all employers the right to dismiss employees within a first 90-day &ldquo;trial&rdquo; period, with no rights to&nbsp;grievance procedure. This rule previously applied for small businesses of fewer than 20 employees.
Now it applies in all workplaces, no matter the side of the workforce.&nbsp; 
 
The regressive changes also include restrictions on trade union access to a worksite, relaxation of&nbsp;fairness tests on dismissals, the ability&nbsp;of employers to bypass the union in collective negotiations, the possibility to exchange holiday days for money, the&nbsp;right to shift public holidays without payment, and the right for employers to demand a medical certificate for one day&rsquo;s sick leave. 
 
There is nothing fair in the workplace law changes, according to ICEM-affiliated Engineering, Printing, and Manufacturing Union (EPMU). 
<img alt="" src="" width="130" height="124" />
EPMU National Secretary, Andrew Little
Click here to sign the <a href="http://www.epmu.org.nz/petition-2/">EPMU&rsquo;s petition</a>. 
 
&quot;We are approaching employers with either collective bargaining claims to stop things like the 90 day no rights law, or the new rules on medical certificates being used by employers, or seeking a pledge that they will not reduce themselves to the low level that the law represents,&quot; said EPMU National Secretary Andrew Little. Some employers have already agreed not to use the bad new law, including Telecom, which employs 7,000 employees in New Zealand.

New Zealand Labour Law Changes Damage Worker Rights

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Turnout by EDF and GDF SUEZ workers for a day-long strike 7 April called by five French unions was enough to cut power output by over 15,000 megawatts across the country, according to one of the unions. Upwards of 80% of workers of the two former French government companies protested last Thursday, although the utilities said only half of total staff participated. 
 
The electric and gas workers were striking over a plan by the companies to reduce the preferential rates that workers get on electric and gas bills. French unions CFDT, CGT, FO, CFE-CGC, and CFTC endorsed the industrial action as a way&nbsp;to express workers&rsquo; displeasure with the proposed take-aways. 
<img alt="" src="" width="220" height="139" />
French workers have had the discounted rate plan since 1946, when the companies where chartered and nationalised following World War II. The partial rate discounts&nbsp;amount now&nbsp;to between &euro;1,000 and &euro;1,500 annually and workers consider the discounts a complement to their now stagnant wages. 
 
The last time management of the then state-owned companies tried to eliminate the discounts, in 1983, strike participation by 96% of workers dissuaded the companies from following through. The unions met last Friday, 8 April, to assess what next step to take if the current plan to reduce discounts continues. 
 
Last Thursday&rsquo;s power outages saw the equivalent of ten nuclear plants out of France&rsquo;s 58 total plants that&nbsp;stopped generating electricity. Gas and supply deliveries were also halted across the country, as manifestations occurred in scores of French towns and regions, including a massive one attended by thousands of EDF and GDF SUEZ staff at la D&eacute;fense, Paris&rsquo;s corporate capital and site of headquarters of the two companies.

French Power Cut as EDF, GDF SUEZ Staff Manifest on 7 April

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A two-week strike against Finnish papermaker UPM by 1,000 members of ICEM affiliate Ammattilitto Pro is continuing. Production is seriously crimped at six pulp and paper mills of Finland&rsquo;s largest pulp and paper firm, with work stoppages at 20 other facilities including UPM&rsquo;s administrative centre in Tempere and its export facility at the Kotka port. 
 
The strike began 6 April and will run until 20 April. Ammattiliitto Pro, representing 4,000 white-collar salaried, technical, and clerical workers across the Finnish pulp and paper sector, targeted UPM because of the Finnish Forest Industries Federation&rsquo;s (FFIF) unwillingness to offer a national salary structure during a March reopening of a two-year labour agreement. 

<img alt="" src="" width="240" height="135" />
UPM's Rauma, Finland, Mill
The ICEM issued a <a href="/en/19-Pulp-Paper/4355-Action-Needed-Votre-intervention-est-souhaitée-Se-requiere-acción-urgente">Solidarity Alert</a> to global trade unions of the sector on 6 April, and union activists are encouraged here to heed that call by sending messages of support to Ammattiliitto Pro.
 
The industrial action came after a government conciliator failed to put forward a compromise on 4 April. Despite promises in early rounds of talks that a national pay scheme would be submitted and structured around work skills and work requirements in a sector dramatically downsized, the FFIF put forward nothing in federal level talks. 
 
Instead, it deferred all bargaining over pay to the individual mills, or within local workplaces. Pro is seeking some level of equity for lower-paid staff, many of whom are women and deserve some semblance of pay equity. 
 
&ldquo;We want a system that recognises the increased work and greater responsibility taken on by our members,&rdquo; said Pro&rsquo;s chief negotiator for the Pulp and Paper Sector, Jukka H&auml;m&auml;l&auml;inen. Some 1,000 clerical and salaried staff in Finland&rsquo;s pulp and paper industry have been furloughed over the past few years because of an economic downturn that only now is recovering. 
 
On 17 March, the union sent notice of termination of the agreement, effective 1 April. It issued its intent to strike on 23 March and following the complete failure of mandatory government intervention on 1 April and again on 4 April, the strike began 6 April.

Ammattiliitto Pro Strike in Finland Against Paper Firm UPM Continues

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Workers in the chemicals sector scored the highest 2011 pay gains yet in all German industrial and service sectors, thanks to mobilisation rallies, worker involvement, and the bargaining tenacity of ICEM affiliate IGBCE. On the final day (31 March) of the second round of federal talks for 550,000 workers of 1,900 companies in Bad Honnef, a 14-month pay increase of 4.1% was won. 
 
The increase will become effective at different times in different regions: retroactive to 1 March for chemical workers in North Rhine, Rheinland-Pfalz, and Hessen R&uuml;ckwirkend; on 1 April in Westfalen, Bayern, Baden-W&uuml;rttemberg, Niedersachsen/Bremen, Schleswig-Holstein/Hamburg, and Berlin; and 1 May in Saarland and the North-east. 
 
The agreement also gives flexibility for employers still recovering from the economic crisis to effectuate the wage increase in May, while most of the major chemical companies that are on strong standing will have&nbsp;already given the increase. 
 
Of particular note, the IGBCE and the chemical employers&rsquo; association, BAVC, agreed to add small- and medium-sized businesses to the unique &ldquo;Start in den Beruf&rdquo; programme, a &ldquo;start your active job&rdquo; project that places young people into chemical enterprises with opportunities for career enhancement and advancement. 
<img height="140" width="165" src="" alt="" />&nbsp;&nbsp; <img height="132" width="175" src="" alt="" /> 
 
Michael Vassiliadis&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Peter Hausmann
These employers will now receive subsides from an industry-funded bank that will offset apprenticeship costs for companies. The highly-successful programme developed in social talks in the mid-2000s between IGBCE and BAVC has brought close to 3,000 young persons into relevant positions in Germany&rsquo;s keystone chemicals industry. 
 
The 2011-12 accord also grants current apprentices a &euro;35-per-month increase. 
 
&ldquo;Last year, we signed an agreement that was a bridge between crisis and recovery,&rdquo; said IGBCE President Michael Vassiliadis. &ldquo;Now, as we predicted, we signed a growth agreement. This shows the social partnership in chemicals remains on solid footing in solving some very difficult problems.&rdquo; 
 
IGBCE Head of Collective Bargaining Peter Hausmann added: &ldquo;We fought hard for this achievement. We mobilised and without the outstanding support from workers in the various enterprises, we would not have come to this result.&rdquo; 
 
An ICEM report on <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4340-IGBCE-Mobilises-for-Second-Federal-Round-of-German-Chemical-Talks ">IGBCE&rsquo;s two months of mobilisations</a> leading up the final Bad Honnef settlement can be found here.

IGBCE Carves 4.1% 2011 Increase for 550,000 German Chemical Workers

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Eighty delegates from eight Latin American and Caribbean countries attended the ICEM&rsquo;s region meeting 4-5 April in Mar del Plata that was marvellously hosted by Federaci&oacute;n Argentina Sindical del Petr&oacute;leo, Gas y Biocombustibles (FASPyGP) at the trade union&rsquo;s hotel. 
 
The regional meeting produced three resolutions, including condolences to Japan over human deaths brought by the earthquake/tsunami and heartfelt appreciation to aid workers, especially nuclear workers of ICEM affiliate Denryoku Soren, who have worked non-stop to prevent mass disaster at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. 
<img height="150" width="222" src="" alt="" />
Another resolution was in support of Chile copper miners represented by Sindicato de los Trabajadores de Collahuasi over persecution following a recent strike&nbsp;by Do&ntilde;a Ines de Collahuasi, owned by Xstrata and AngloAmerican. The third was a statement buttressing the legitimate trade unions of Mexico in their current fight to repel regressive labour legislation. 
 
ICEM Latin American/Caribbean Vice President Sergio Novais proudly reported the work plan of the region and that it&nbsp;had exceeded expectations. He also detailed the eight projects he is overseeing in the region. ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda gave a progress report on integration with the International Textile, Garment, and Leather Workers&rsquo; Federation (ITGLWF) and the International Metalworkers&rsquo; Federation (IMF), and IMF Regional Representative Jorge Alemida explained how the industrial sectors would be integrated. 
<img height="176" width="150" src="" alt="" />
ICEM Latin American/Caribbean Vice President Sergio Novais
Other reports were given by Colombia trade union affiliates, including Uni&oacute;n Sindical Obrera (USO), and Manuel Mu&ntilde;oz and Lincon Esponoza, representing the Collahuasi copper miners of northern Chile, told of their strike and their efforts to ratify ILO Convention 176, the Safety and Health in Mines Convention, in the South American country. 
 
A detailed report was given by Secretary-General Alberto Roberti of FASPyGP on the burgeoning biofuels industry in Argentina. He said his union is in the&nbsp;forefront in defending the environment and emphasized the need to maintain a balance between producing biofuels and sustained food production to meet the country&rsquo;s growing needs. 
 
Overall, the regional meeting proved a good prelude to ICEM&rsquo;s Fifth Statutory Congress, to be held 24-26 November 2011 in Buenos Aires, with the host union providing excellent example to Argentine unions in how to meet the logistics for 1,200 delegates and guests expected to&nbsp;attend.

Argentine Petroleum, Gas Workers’ Host ICEM’s Latin, Caribbean Region Meet

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Some 2,000 iron ore miners and pellet-plant workers in northern Qu&eacute;bec, members of four United Steelworkers (USW) locals, came to excellent wage, pension, and work terms with ArcelorMittal Mines Canada. 
 
The six-year agreement, ratified by 75% of union members on 3 April, came after arduous bargaining dating to last November. A prior labour agreement in Qu&eacute;bec&nbsp;between the USW and the world&rsquo;s largest steelmaker expired in February. 
 
The contract will give hard-rock miners and processing-plant workers a 45% pay increase over the six years, inclusive of enhanced bonuses and hefty improvements to the yearly cost-of-living adjustment. The hourly wage increase will average 4.1% per year, and 25.6% over the six years. 
<img alt="" src="" width="105" height="160" />
USW Region Five Director Daniel Roy
Additionally, USW Qu&eacute;bec region and local branch negotiators withstood a management affront to create a two-tier pension scheme, with a proposal to cast new hires into a defined contribution plan. Not only did the bargaining units retain a defined benefit pension plan, but they made improvements to it as well. 
 
Workers with 30 years of service will realise a monthly increase of C$210 per month, or 18%, and the union negotiated a 3% increase for current retirees. Steelworkers under the new agreement are employed at the Mont-Wright and Firelake mines near Fermont in northern Qu&eacute;bec, along a 400-kilometre rail link, and at an ArcelorMittal&nbsp;pellet plant at Port-Cartier on the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 
 
&ldquo;This employment contract reflects the mining boom currently underway in the north coast and Qu&eacute;bec region,&rdquo; stated USW Region Five Director Daniel Roy. &ldquo;It is also the product of difficult negotiations, during which the committee showed determination and solidarity. 
 
&ldquo;I invite non-unionised mine workers a take a look at what we accomplished at ArcelorMittal Mines.&rdquo; 
 
The labour agreement contains new restrictions on outsourcing by strengthening the union-rostered stability list. Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal purchased the iron ore assets in 2006 from Qu&eacute;bec Cartier Mining Co., then owned by an investment company. ArcelorMittal produces 40% of Canada&rsquo;s iron ore output.

Steelworkers Achieve Exemplary Labour Pact with ArcelorMittal in Québec

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