English

Español

Français

Русский

Aerospace

Automotive

Base metals

Chemical, pharmaceutical and bio-science

Energy

Glass, cement, ceramic and associated industries

ICT, electrical and electronics

Mechanical Engineering

Mining and DGOJP

Pulp and paper

Rubber

Shipbuilding and shipbreaking

Textile, garment, shoes, leather and textile services

Sectors

Action on textile and garment industry

Clean up shipbreaking

Ratify ILO C176

United for a just future - time to pay up!

Disinvest from Myanmar

Action Plan 2021-2025

Global Framework Agreements

Union building

Women

Youth

White-collar workers

Health & safety

Industry 4.0

Just Transition

Organizing with industriALL

What we do

Affiliates

Statutes

Elected Officials

Executive Committee

Geneva head office

South East Asia

Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Caucasus

Latin America and the Caribbean

Middle East and North Africa

South Asia

Regional offices

About us

Global worker No1 2022

Global worker No2 2022

Publications

Resources

Press

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
South African ICEM affiliate, the Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood and Allied Workers Union (CEPPWAWU) representing over 70,000 workers begins strike action today in the petroleum, pharmaceutical, industrial chemicals, tissue and allied industries, and plastics industries, as employers continue to stone-wall negotiations for the period 2011-2012. 
 
The Strategic Committee of CEPPWAWU met on 23 June and decided unanimously to strike during the week of 4 July 2011. CEPPWAWU members today, 4 July 2011 are joining NUMSA in the national strike in the MEIBC (Metal and Engineering) sectors. 
 
Negotiations have been deadlocked with employers on wages and conditions in three national bargaining councils - the National Bargaining Council for Chemical Industries, National Bargaining Council for the Wood and Paper Sectors and the Metal Engineering Industries Bargaining Councils. 
<img src="" width="150" height="146" alt="" />
CEPPWAWU&rsquo;s demands include a wage rise of 11-13 per cent across the board, a minimum wage of R6 000 (615 Euros) monthly, annual wage discussions, outsourced and temporary workers to become permanently employed, plus various sector specific social demands including on housing, transport, and maternity benefits. 
 
Employers are offering 4 per cent and 7 per cent, an offer that CEPPWAWU describes as an &ldquo;insult&rdquo; to workers. Union negotiators point to discrepancies between the official rate of inflation, 4.6 per cent, and the real inflation of living costs, as the price of basic items has risen dramatically over the last two years. 
 
In last year&rsquo;s negotiations workers made sacrifices as the country was badly affected by the global recession. This year some employers are seeking to extend those concessions. 
 
CEPPWAWU has asked the South African public to be patient during the strike, as it will result in shortages of drugs in hospitals, of fuel, paper, chemicals. CEPPWAWU remains committed to dialogue towards a solution. 
 
The strike was able to be legally launched today after an attempt by employers of the Plastics Converters Association (PCA) failed in the Gauteng Labour Court, with the judge ruling the strike legal and ordering the PCA to pay legal costs. 
 
An eleventh hour bid to interdict a strike by workers in the metals and plastics sectors failed on Friday, when the Labour Court turned down an application from the Plastics Converters Association (PCA) and ordered it to pay costs.

CEPPWAWU Downs Tools in Demand for Living Wage

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
ICEM&rsquo;s Turkish affiliate Sel&uuml;loz-Is, Pulp, Paper and Products Workers&rsquo; Union has been picketing in front of the plant of Form Mukavva Ambalaj Sanayi ve Ticaret Ltd.Şti located in Torbali, close to the country&rsquo;s third biggest city Izmir. The Sel&uuml;loz-Is picket-line is in protest over the dismissals of sixteen union members by the Turkish-based cardboard packaging company Form Mukavva following recent successful organising drives of the union which lasted several months.
<img src="" width="211" height="160" alt="" />
Sel&uuml;loz-Is applied to the Ministry of Labour on 9 May 2011 for the authorisation documentation showing that the union organises more than the legally-required 50% of workers at the workplace. The Ministry sent the authorisation paper, confirming the union&rsquo;s majority. At the time of the application to the Ministry, Sel&uuml;loz-Is had much more than the legally required minimum 50% registered union members. But when the management received the paper from the Ministry, they first filed a case at local labour court claiming that the union did not hold the required legal majority to become a bargaining partner, a common tactic by employers in Turkey for union de-recognition, subsequently 16 pioneering members of Sel&uuml;loz-Is were kicked out on 20 June 2011. Since then Sel&uuml;loz-Is has conducted industrial action calling for the reinstatement of those dismissed workers and for union recognition. The action is receiving wide support from the families of workers and the local community. 
 
&ldquo;The reason for the dismissal of our members was that they enjoyed trade union rights guaranteed by the country&rsquo;s constitution&rdquo; said Ergin Alşan, President of Sel&uuml;loz-Is. &ldquo;We vehemently protest dismissals of our members because of their joining our union. We clearly announce that our struggle will continue until our members are reinstated&rdquo; added Alşan.
<img src="" width="146" height="110" alt="" />
President Ergin Alşan
In his letter to Yılmaz Mineli, Owner and General Director of Form Mukavva, the ICEM General Secretary urged the company that sixteen dismissed workers must be immediately reinstated without delay. &ldquo;This targeted and systematic attack by your management to block your employees from exercising their right to organise and bargain collectively will cause much anger. We expect the hindrance of union rights at Form Mukavva Ambalaj in Turkey to be solved without further intervention&rdquo; added Warda. 
 
ICEM&rsquo;s <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/65.ICEM.Form%20Mukavva%20Ambalaj.Turkey.27June.pdf">protest letter</a> can be found here. Support letters to Sel&uuml;loz-Is can be sent to <a href="mailto:selulozis@selulozis.org.tr">selulozis@selulozis.org.tr</a>.

Turkey’s Selüloz-Is struggles for recognition at Form Mukavva

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
In New Zealand over the weekend, ICEM joined host union, Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU), and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) of Australia in calling for recovery of the bodies of 29 miners killed inside Pike River Coal Ltd.&rsquo;s colliery. The unions want the miners&rsquo; remains returned to families before the mine is sold and reopened. 
 
ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda, ICEM Japanese Affiliates Federation (JAF) General Secretary Yoshio Sato, and Asia-Pacific Regional Contact Person Phee Jungsun joined EPMU leaders on 1 July in making the demand at Greymouth and then again the next day at the Pike River mine in New Zealand. 
<img alt="" src="" width="183" height="159" />
At a press briefing in Greymouth, the trade unionists said it was morally irresponsible for New Zealand&rsquo;s government to allow the trustee of the mine, PricewaterhouseCoopers, to sell the mine and allow production to begin before bodies are recovered. The unionists also met with families of the deceased miners, their representative Bernie Monk, and Greymouth District Mayor Tony Kokshoorn, who is adamant that victims&rsquo; families get a full accounting of events of the November 2010 methane gas explosions. 
 
The ICEM delegation on 2 July laid a wreath in memory of the 29 at the Pike River colliery, New Zealand&rsquo;s largest underground mine laden with seams of premium metallurgical coal under the Paparoa Range of the South Island. 
 
On 19 November 19, a horrid methane gas blast killed 29 miners, including 11 members of ICEM affiliate EPMU. It was the worst New Zealand mine disaster in 119 years, killing 24 Kiwi nationals, two Australians, two UK citizens, and one South African. A subsequent explosion occurred on 24 November, after which authorities declared the miners dead, and in the days that followed two further explosions occurred. 
<img alt="" src="" width="196" height="160" />
Warda lays wreath
&ldquo;Mine workers have a special bond with one another and we will use our influence globally to assure that production at Pike River does not re-start until the bodies are recovered,&rdquo; said Warda. 
 
EPMU National Secretary Andrew Little and Assistant National Secretary Ged O&rsquo;Connell were part of the delegation. Little said New Zealand&rsquo;s government must be mindful that the Pike River catastrophe had reverberations world-wide, highlighting the nation&rsquo;s lax mine-safety regulations. 
 
O&rsquo;Connell said recovery of miners&rsquo; bodies remains a priority for the EPMU. The trustee or prospective owners, he said, &ldquo;must have a recovery plan for those bodies to the satisfaction of the families before they consider mining coal, or making money out of that mine.&rdquo; 
<img alt="" src="" width="215" height="161" />
Name badges of those miners still to be recovered from the mine
PricewaterhouseCoopers became receiver of the mine in January after Pike River Coal Ltd., an enterprise previously owned by New Zealand Oil &amp; Gas Ltd. with minority stakes held by Indian and Asia steel-making concerns, filed for bankruptcy due to the tragedy. The mine ramped up to full production only in 2010. It contains reserves of 17.6 million tones of hard coking coal. 
 
PricewaterhouseCoopers had hoped to sell the mine&rsquo;s assets by June, but a possible sale has now been pushed backed until later in the year. Meanwhile, a Royal Commission conducting an inquiry into the search and rescue attempts, and the safety and government regulatory policies surrounding the Pike River tragedy. The Commission held a preliminary hearing in Greymouth on 5 April (see <a href="/en/97-Sustainable-Development-Health-and-Safety/4385-Royal-Commission-Convenes-over-Pike-River-New-Zealand-Mine-Deaths ">ICEM report</a> here), and will begin full proceedings on 11 July. 
 
Prior to visiting the South Island and the Pike River mine site, the ICEM delegation laid a wreath in the city of Christchurch near the Canterbury Television site in memory of a Turkish student, 31-year-old Didem Yaman, who was killed there by an earthquake earlier this year. She is the niece of a member of ICEM-affiliated Petrol-Is in Turkey.

New Zealand: ICEM Wants Bodies Recovered from Inside Deadly Pike River Mine

<img alt="" src="" width="120" height="59" />
Metalliliitto, Finland&rsquo;s Metalworkers&rsquo; Union, has reached a tentative agreement with KMW Engineering, preventing for now a blockade on construction of the nuclear power reactor Olkiluoto III. On 13 April, the Polish air-conditioning subcontractor agreed to compensate workers for shortfalls in pay required under the Finnish labour standards. 
 
Under the agreement, KMW Engineering did give an accounting that showed arrears in Sunday and overtime pay. It agreed to compensate back wages and pledged to uphold Finnish terms of employment in the future. It also agreed to correct its deficient safety and health standards on the 1.6 gigawatt (1,600 megawatt) nuclear plant.
&nbsp;<img alt="" src="" width="337" height="190" />
Construction of Olkiluoto III 
Photo: YLE/Termonen Tapio&nbsp; 

Metalliliitto had given the subcontractor until 15 April to comply with Finnish social standards, or face a construction-wide blockade that would have halted all work on Finland&rsquo;s fifth nuclear reactor. (See <a href="http:// /en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4343-Finland’s-Metalworkers-close-in-on-Blockade-of-Nuclear-Plant-Work">ICEM report</a> from 28 March.) A Metalworkers&rsquo; blockade had endorsement and would have been honoured by Finland&rsquo;s Construction Trades Union, the Electrical Workers&rsquo; Union, and Proliitto, the union for salaried workers of Finland. 
 
A regional state labour agency of Finland&rsquo;s South-West found in late March that KMW did not keep overtime records as required under the working hours act. It also determined that payment of wages for Sunday and overtime work varied. Failure to comply could have brought state sanctions to the nuclear construction site, which would have affected other contractors. 
 
Metalliliitto Compliance Officer Jyrki Virtanen said the union will now fully monitor future social conduct by KMW Engineering. The Olkiluoto III nuclear power station is owned by private-sector energy concern Teollisuuden Voima Oy (TVO), and has as general contractor Areva of France. Olkiluoto III, a &euro;3.95 billion project that is now &euro;1.5 billion over budget, is the biggest investment in the history of Finnish industry.

Polish Engineering Firm Concedes to Finland’s Metalliliitto at Nuclear Plant

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The result of long-running consultations with trade unions, the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises have been updated and improved, representing a positive opportunity to force global capital to respect workers. Stronger clarification that companies&rsquo; must ensure compliance throughout supply chains is a significant improvement, as is a new chapter on human rights which requires multinational companies to respect human rights of all workers, in line with the Guiding Principles for Implementing the UN Framework, Protect, Respect, Remedy. 
 
The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises are a strong international instrument for promoting corporate social responsibility. In practice, however, their implementation has encountered limits. In this regard, the Update will create a number of improvements in the Procedural Guidance including provisions for: indicative timescales for the completion of cases; and stronger cooperation between home and host country NCPs (National Contact Points). 
<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="126" />
The new developments to the text must now be effectively implemented and respected by national governments. 
 
Other important advances include language on outsourced and temporary work, providing a tool for problematic precarious work to be addressed; and provisions for workers to receive a decent wage or &ldquo;at least adequate to satisfy the basic needs of the workers and their families&rdquo;. 
 
The updated Guidelines will be adopted at the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting on Wednesday 25 May, and will be immediately in effect. 
 
The ICEM participated in dialogue over the past year with OECD governments. Centrally important in those consultations was TUAC (Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD), with the ITUC, GUFs, BIAC (Business Forum), and OECD Watch also partners. There remains more room for improvement of the Guidelines, and dialogue will be ongoing. 
 
The OECD Guidelines hold the potential to promote corporate social and environmental responsibility worldwide and to make an effective contribution to sustainable development and to the social dimension of globalisation. Potential is increased through this update.

OECD Guidelines Improved

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
Better than 99% of 2,400 Greek oil refinery workers ended a four-day strike at three oil refineries this morning, 23 May, sending a strong message that they will not become economic scapegoats inside Greece&rsquo;s financial crisis. It was the second major strike in six weeks against Greek industrial giant Hellenic Petroleum by ICEM affiliate Pan-Hellenic Federation of Employees in Petroleum Products, Refineries, and the Chemical Industry (POEPDHV), and its courageous branch union, the Pan-Hellenic Union of Employees in Hellenic Petroleum. 
 
Following a 17-day legal strike from 3-19 April (see <a href="/en/78-ICEM-InBrief/4368-Greek-Petrochemical-Union-Extends-Refinery-Strikes-until-19-April">ICEM report</a> here), the union was prepared for further industrial action on 6 May. But Hellenic Petroleum gained a court order blocking the strike, something that failed in April. Last week, the company did not seek court action, perhaps speculating that large numbers of oil workers at Aspropyrgos, Thessaloniki, and Elefsina refineries would not honour the strike. 
<img alt="" src="" width="295" height="199" />
19 May: Aspropyrgos Refinery
If so, Hellenic Petroleum guessed wrong. But why would it expect any differently when the company is out to slash salaries by 20-25%? Or different by the way the company disrespects staff by engaging in a public campaign declaring unionised oil workers are overpaid with too many perks? 
 
Besides the steep wage cuts, Hellenic is seeking to abolish a skills recognition or experience value system reached by continuous employment progressions, and an increase in the work-week from the present 38 hours. The company, 35% owned by the Greek state, posted &euro;208 million in net profit in 2010 and is on target for surpassing that in 2011. 
 
At a press conference on 19 May, the start of this latest strike, union leaders and branch union militants expressed anger that oil workers were being painted the scapegoats. &ldquo;It is not our salaries that are to blame for the crisis and this is the message voiced by today&rsquo;s strike turnout,&rdquo; POEPDHV President Nikos Orfanes. 
<img alt="" src="" width="137" height="136" />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <img alt="" src="" width="150" height="136" />
Panagiotis Ofthalmidis, Nikos Orfanes
Panagiotis Ofthalmidis, chairman of the branch union, Pan-Hellenic Union of Employees in Hellenic Petroleum, is also on the company&rsquo;s board of directors representing workers. He told the press briefing that the company has &ldquo;devalued workers through the media&rdquo; and asked: &ldquo;If they cut our salaries where will the savings go? Will it go to social causes? Or will it go in the pockets of shareholders.&rdquo; 
 
The ICEM and the European Mine, Chemical, and Energy Federation (EMCEF) lent the Greek unions support at the press conference in refuting the company&rsquo;s claims that Greek oil workers are the highest paid in Europe. 
 
This past weekend&rsquo;s strike&nbsp;resulted in resumption in bi-lateral talks that will take place next week. The union is seeking only inflation level increases, but also is demanding full staffing (250 jobs) next year at new refining units coming on line at the Elfinsa refinery. The union and Hellenic are five months into a six-month dispute resolution process under Greek labour law. It runs until late June, at which time the contract is terminated. Due to the stalemate and entrenched positions of senior Hellenic management, the union had engaged in 24-hour strikes throughout March. 
 
Late last year, the two sides agreed to a set of social obligations related to impending industrial activity, as required under Greek law. It includes safety maintenance during strikes, ordering shutdowns and start-ups of equipment for operational integrity, and minimal levels of production for emergency public services.

Greek Petro Workers Take Stand in Crisis ‘Blame Game’

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The shocking Contract and Agency Labour (CAL) documentary on conditions facing exploited contract workers in the cement industry in India is now available in French. 
 
Watch the <a href="http://labouredu.blogspot.com/2011/04/salaries-temporaires.html">film</a> on the website of the Thai Labour Education Centre here.&nbsp; 
 
The international campaign, launched by the Building and Wood Workers&rsquo; Federation (BWI) and ICEM, for regularisation of CAL workers at Holcim&rsquo;s subsidiaries in India continues. Hundreds of trade union organisations around the world responded to the call for messages to be sent to Holcim&rsquo;s CEO, ahead of the multinational company&rsquo;s annual general meeting on 5 May. 
<img alt="" src="" width="146" height="66" />
On 1 May, an industrial strike was conducted in the industrial area of Bhilai in solidarity with the struggle of contract workers of ACC-Holcim, The following demands were put forward: 
 
&bull; No to Contract Labour 
&bull; The Right to Organize 
&bull; A Living Wage 
&bull; Safety at work 
&bull; 8- hour work day 
 
On 4 May, a cross-sectoral group of local and regional trade unions held a demonstration outside the corporate headquarters of Holcim India, in Churchgate, Mumbai. 
 
See the prior <a href="/en/21-Materials-glass-ceramics-cement/4404-Global-Campaign-Launched-for-Indian-Cement-Contract-Workers">ICEM report</a> here, and follow this link to write to Holcim&rsquo;s CEO Markus Akermann.&nbsp;

ICEM CAL Film on India’s Cement Workers, Now in French

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
ICEM&rsquo;s affiliated trade union in Indonesia&rsquo;s pulp, paper, and packaging sector, Federasi Serikat Pulp dan Kertas (FSP2KI), conducted its Third Congress in Bandung, West Java, from 22-24 April. The union, with some 20 branches and 15,000 members, amended its structures at this Congress and made the decision to affiliate with Indonesia national labour centre KSPI, the Indonesian Trade Union Confederation. 
 
The Congress pledged to continue growing in the burgeoning Indonesian pulp and paper industry, and it resolved also to work to eliminate temporary or precarious labour in favour of full-time employment in the sector. 
<img src="" width="251" height="161" alt="" />
Re-elected President of FSP2KI was Irzan Zulpakar, while Etin Rodiana was re-elected General Secretary. Guests to the Congress included Somahsundram Bala of the Malaysian Pulp and Paper Products Manufacturing Employees Union (PPPMEU), Mikale Lilja of the Swedish Paperworkers&rsquo; Union, Pappers, and Bambang Surjono of Indonesian SPKEP-KSPI. 
 
FSP2KI holds membership among workforces of a number of companies, including Asia Pulp and Paper&rsquo;s (APP) PT Pinto Deli mills in Karawang, APP&rsquo;s Kiat tissue mill in Tangerang, West Java, Asia Pacific Resources International&rsquo;s (APRIL) PT Riau mills, the PT Lontar tissue mill in Jambi, Sumatra, and Japanese-based Marubeni&rsquo;s mill in Kab. Maura Enim, South Sumatra.

Indonesian Pulp, Paper Union, FSP2KI, Holds Congress

<img src="" width="100" height="39" alt="" />
ICEM&rsquo;s Asia Pacific Rubber Workers&rsquo; Unions held its second meeting on 22-23 April in Seoul, South Korea. The meeting was attended by 30 trade union representatives from Japan, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Nepal, Sri Lanka, China, and South Korea. 
 
Two affiliates of the ICEM, the Federation of Korean Chemical Workers&rsquo; Unions (FKCU) and Korean Chemical and Textile Workers&rsquo; Union (KCTF) hosted this meeting of the Network, supported by the German Friedrich-Ebert Foundation (FES). The meeting also welcomed the ICEM Secretariat and the Japanese Affiliates&rsquo; Federation (ICEM-JAF) to Seoul. 
 
&ldquo;Given the growing importance of the Asia Pacific region in the rubber industry, our network has a very crucial role in unifying the unions of the sector,&rdquo; said Toshiaki Hojo, President of Japanese Rubber Workers&rsquo; Confederation (GOMU RENGO), who chairs this Asia Pacific workers&rsquo; network. 
<img src="" width="359" height="164" alt="" />
&ldquo;The meeting coincided with a very critical time in South Korea because of modifications to South Korean labour code have potential dangers on rights and freedoms,&rdquo; said the FKCU Vice President Yoon Jinsoo. &ldquo;Mobilizations at Kumho Tire&rsquo;s two plants in South Korea gave us a burning need for solidarity in the rubber industry,&rdquo; added KCTF General Secretary Im Youngguk. 
 
The meeting also received a detailed report from ICEM-JAF General Secretary Yoshio Sato on the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Sato thanked all ICEM affiliates who showed solidarity to Japanese unions by sending messages and donations. 
 
ICEM Chemical and Rubber Industry Officer Kemal &Ouml;zkan presented major developments and challenges in the global rubber industry and profiles on the multinational companies. The rubber industry did start to recover following the global financial crisis, but such recovery is no cause for celebration due to continued high unemployment and deteriorating pay and work conditions. 
 
Participants then gave country reports. According to the report of GOMU RENGO, the Japanese rubber industry suffered severely from the economic crisis and now from the accident, reflected by automobile production dropping by 600,000 units, which now is causing extreme after-shocks in the global supplier segments. 
<img src="" width="285" height="162" alt="" />
In Indonesia and Malaysia, performing union activities is difficult. Representatives of China&rsquo;s Chemical and Energy Workers&rsquo; Union reported that the union at Bridgestone successfully established a collective wage consultation system, in which in 2010 saw salaries increase by 16%. A Sri Lankan delegate spoke on organising against transnationals such as Trelleborg, Ansel, and Loadstar. 
 
The Thailand report included review and dissection of problems at Michelin, Goodyear, Sumitomo, and Yokohama companies. Vietnam is also attracting investment in the rubber industry. The country&rsquo;s national chemical company, Vinachem, operates five rubber factories, including two Vietnamese-Japanese joint ventures, Yokohama and Inoue. The Korean Metal Workers Union (KMWU) reported on its struggle with Kumho and thanked the ICEM for support. KMWU identified three areas of difficulty in Kumho in Korea, namely wage, bargaining, and disciplinary actions. 
 
The meeting also produced an extensive discussion on the rising trend of Contract and Agency Labour. It was agreed that the network should continue to handle precarious employment issue as one of its main working areas. 
 
Delegates broke into working groups according to their companies, with the Goodyear and Bridgestone working groups establishing details to continue further communications. Korean and Vietnamese participants agreed to closely cooperate on Kumho, since the Vietnamese operations are organized. 
 
The meeting also adopted two resolutions: one to <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/1105.Resolution%20on%20Solidarity%20with%20Japan.pdf ">support Japanese workers</a> in the aftermath of the great natural accident and the second to <a href="/wp-content/migration/icem/Resolution%20on%20Keum%20Ho%20Tire.pdf ">support the KMWU in Korea on its struggle at Kumho</a>. Participants, most of whom are local level union representatives, collected symbolic donations for their Japanese sisters and brothers. 
 
The next meeting of ICEM&rsquo;s Asia Pacific Network is scheduled in 2013 in Malaysia.

ICEM Asia-Pacific Rubber Workers’ Network Held in Seoul Last Month

<img alt="" src="" width="100" height="39" />
The sixth meeting of the Mercosur Union Network of Belgian chemical and plastics producer Solvay met 18-21 April in Bahia Blanca, Argentina. The meeting saw 25 representatives from all plants of Solvay in Argentina and Brazil, as well as municipality authorities from Bahia Blanca and representatives of CUT Brazil. 
 
The meeting marked the first-ever meeting held in Argentina. This gave an opportunity for more Argentine workers to learn the goals, functions, and actions of the important regional network. Brazilian participants learned of some Argentina processes that do not exist in Brazil, and about union organizing and the collective bargaining process in Argentina. 
<img alt="" src="" width="315" height="170" />
The major issues discussed included health and safety, the ICEM&rsquo;s Global Framework Agreement (GFA) with Rhodia and the future of that GFA now that Solvay has initiated a friendly takeover of Rhodia, and the Horizon Plan, which was put in place by Solvay late last year and is to create 800 dismissals worldwide by the end of 2012. Mercosur network members requested ICEM&rsquo;s support in linking up with global trade unions and Solvay&rsquo;s European Works Council in order to soften the effects of this restructuring. 
 
As is regular custom from previous meetings, the participants were welcomed by local management of Solvay. The group after toured the production areas. The meeting was finalized with expectation of a renewed dialogue with the company.

Mercosur Region Meeting of Solvay Meets in Argentina

Archive