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A new three-year labour contract was achieved for 470 Kimberly-Clark paperworkers at the Millicent, Australia, paper mill and Tantanoola pulp mill on 20 November. Union members of the Construction, Forestry, Mining, and Energy Union (CFMEU), Pulp and Paper Division, ratified the accord with 82% approval, granting proof that a positive labour-management relationship can benefit workers in tough economic times. 
 
The renewal agreement provides wage gains of 2.5%, 2.5%, and 4.5%, with the first year&rsquo;s increase paid in back wages to 1 July 2009. 
 
CFMEU&rsquo;s Millicent Sub-Branch leaders used an excellent internal communications network to keep shop-floor workers informed on all details stemming from ten bargaining sessions dating back to mid-year, the date when draconian Australian individual work agreements (AWAs) expired and enterprise or collective agreements again became the official policy of the government of Australia.. 

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At left, CFMEU Sub-Branch Secretary Kevin Millie, Mill Manager Scott Whicker, and CFMEU Pulp/Paper Federal Secretary Alex Millar 
Branch Secretary Kevin Millie said the AWAs were never a concern in the lead-up to this year&rsquo;s bargain, since Kimberly-Clark local management never had attempted to impose individual work agreements during the latter period of Conservative John Howard&rsquo;s government. &ldquo;We kept our members in the loop and that helped us get the agreement we got,&rdquo; said Millie. 
 
He added that sub-branch leaders issued communiqu&eacute;s after each session and that when management proposed a two-year agreement at 2.5% for each of the years, the committee to workers&rsquo; networking produced a massive turnout at a union meeting, thus squelching that proposal and sending the message that workers expect more. 
 
&ldquo;This is a win,&rdquo; said Millicent Sub-Branch President Trevor Sinclair. &ldquo;We maintained our terms and conditions and built on them in some areas.&rdquo; 
 
The CFMEU gained flexibility on long-service leave, allowing workers to take such time off in smaller blocks instead of the prior and required month at a time period. They also achieved wage guarantees on career-path transfers so workers will never receive less, and got written language that Kimberly-Clark will give formal reports on all temporary work performed inside the mills. 

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CFMEU members at Millicent during 20 November ratification meeting 
In compromises to the company, the union agreed to a total on-site ban on smoking, ahead of South Australia state law due to take effect, and agreed to the mandatory wearing of Kimberly-Clark work uniforms. 
 
CFMEU has had a good labour-management relationship at Millicent and Tantanoola, and with general manager Scott Whicker. Workers and managers have worked jointly and hard to deal with high energy costs. They have also dealt together on market pressures on paper towel and tissue manufacturing, including imports and tight domestic profit margins due to only two major Australian major chains that control retailing. 
 
That jointness began in 2002 when the CFMEU Sub-Branch and Millicent management signed a memorandum of agreement, giving the go-ahead for the board of directors of the American-based company to make an A$300 investment at Millicent. That capitalization gave the mill Paper Machine No. 5. In return, the union agreed to transform to skills-based career paths and operator/maintenance duties on paper production equipment. 
 
&ldquo;The magnitude of that investment has become apparent in the years since,&rdquo; said Sinclair. &ldquo;Workers here are confident that Kimberly-Clark is committed to a future at Millicent and that has only enhanced our positive relationship.&rdquo; (Millicent now operates with four paper machines and eight converting lines.) 
 
In other CFMEU bargaining news related to the paper sector, at SCA&rsquo;s Sancella feminine hygiene plant in Springvale, Victoria, near Melbourne, union members will vote on a new three-year labour contract later this week The tentative accord, also backdated to the summer, contains a wage package with 3.5%, 3.5%, and 3.5% wage increases. At SCA&rsquo;s Box Hill towel and tissue mill, where 250 CFMEU members have been covered by an enterprise agreement, that contract comes due in March 2010.

Australia’s CFMEU Pulp, Paper Division Makes Gains with Kimberly-Clark

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The US National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on 20 November informed the Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) that it would seek a rare federal court injunction against Covanta Energy over the waste-to-energy company&rsquo;s unfair labour practices against workers attempting to organize and collectively negotiate a labour agreement. 
 
In issuing the Section 10(j) injunction against Covanta under US labour code, the NLRB has determined that Covanta has committed serious labour law violations that cause real and immediate harm to workers. The NLRB invokes the rare procedural application of Section 10(j) only in cases considered egregious enough to warrant federal court intervention. 

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In May 2008, 140 workers at a Covanta solid waste plant in Rochester, Massachusetts, voted in an NLRB-conducted election to join ICEM-affiliated UWUA. Since, the UWUA and its Local 369 bargaining committee at Covanta have negotiated in good faith in hopes of achieving a first labour contract, but the company has frustrated that process. 
 
Earlier in 2009, the NLRB did issue unfair labour practice complaints against the company, including one charging Covanta with withholding scheduled salary and bonus payments to workers because they formed a union. 
 
An NLRB trial before an administrative labour law judge resumes today in the state of Massachusetts over that and other illegal workplace practices committed by the company. 
 
Publicly-listed Covanta generates electric energy from the burning of solid waste at some 40 US locations. As the company has attempted to expand its waste-to-energy businesses in the UK, Ireland, Netherlands, and Canada, the ICEM has assisted the UWUA in illuminating Covanta&rsquo;s work rights violations, safety and health infractions, and certain environmental practices before communities and trade unions in those countries. 
 
For more information on the UWUA&rsquo;s Campaign for Justice at Covanta, visit <a href="http://www.cjcw.org">here</a>.

US Labour Board Issues Stern Injunctive Relief against Covanta

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The daily dangers continually faced by trade union officials and activists in Iraq were graphically demonstrated by the brutal murder 26 November 2009 of Majiid Karim, an executive member of the General Federation of Iraqi Workers. Brother Karim died when his car exploded. An improvised explosive device, believed to have been timed, had been attached to his car by as yet unknown individuals. 
 
The GFIW is the largest national trade union centre in Iraq, two of its affiliates covering workers in the Oil and Gas and Electric Power Industries are affiliated to ICEM. 

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Majiid Karim had been a key union official ignoring the anti-trade union legislation from the Saddam era and actively organizing workers in the public sector despite continued government attempts to use legislation 150 of 1987 to ban public sector workers from trade union membership. He was also a key figure in building unity among Iraqi workers and in the trade union movement. 
 
ICEM joins the GFIW in mourning their loss, as well as joining their demand that the Iraqi government and its security authorities conduct an urgent and thorough investigation to uncover the full circumstances of this appalling criminal act, and ensure that the guilty are brought to justice. 
 
We will keep you informed of the case as more information becomes available.

Iraqi Trade Unionist Murdered

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G&uuml;neydoğu Avrupa Enerji Sendikaları B&ouml;lge Ağı'nın 3. Genel Kurulu 19 Eyl&uuml;l 2009 tarihinde Sırbistan'da toplandı. Genel Kurul'un divan başkanlığını evsahibi EPS'den (Sırbistan Elektrik İş&ccedil;ileri Sendikası) Milan Kovacevic yaptı. 
 
Genel Kurul'da eski Yugoslavya'nın yerine kurulan b&uuml;t&uuml;n &uuml;lkelerin petrol, kimya ve gaz sendikaları ile Yunanistan, Arnavutluk, T&uuml;rkiye, Kıbrıs, Romanya ve Bulgaristan sekt&ouml;r sendikaları bir araya geldiler. 
 
Genel Kurul'da ICEM ile EMCEF'i Jim Catterson, Uluslararası Kamu Hizmeti Emek&ccedil;ileri Federasyonu (PSI) ile Avrupa Kamu Hizmeti Emek&ccedil;ileri Federasyonu'nu (EPSU) ise PSI Orta Avrupa Sekreteri Josef Krejbych temsil ediyordu. 

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Sırbistan medyası genel kurula &ouml;zel bir ilgi g&ouml;sterdi. 
 
&ldquo;Enerji D&uuml;nyanın B&uuml;t&uuml;n &Uuml;lkelerinde Kamu Malıdır&rdquo; sloganının yazılı olduğu bir pankart altında toplanan Genel Kurul'da ana konu, b&ouml;lgede bir &ldquo;kaos ekonomisi&rdquo; yaratan neoliberal siyasete karşı alternatif bir g&uuml;&ccedil; oluşturmaktı 
Delegeler kendi &uuml;lkelerinde enerji sekt&ouml;r&uuml;ndeki gelişmeler ve durum hakkında rapor sundular. 
 
Bir&ccedil;ok delege yaptığı konuşmalarda, B&ouml;lge Ağı'nın yapısı i&ccedil;inde ICEM ve PSI &uuml;yesi &ouml;rg&uuml;tler ve uluslararası herhangi bir &uuml;yelik bağı bulunmayan sendikalar yer aldığı i&ccedil;in, uluslararası ve Avrupa d&uuml;zeyindeki sendikal merkezler arasında daha sıkı işbirliği &ccedil;ağrısı yaptı. B&ouml;lge Ağı uluslararası sendikal yapılardan bağımsız bir stat&uuml; taşıyor. ICEM bir s&uuml;redir, davet edildiğinde, G&uuml;neydoğu Avrupa Enerji Sendikaları B&ouml;lge Ağı'nın toplantılarında temsil ediliyor. 

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Genel Kurul delegeleri anat&uuml;z&uuml;kte bir sonraki Romanya kongresinde yapılacak değişiklikleri g&ouml;r&uuml;şt&uuml; ve bu bağlamda, Y&ouml;netim Kurulu'nun &uuml;ye sayısını, her &uuml;ye sendikanın başkanını kapsayacak şekilde artırmayı kararlaştırdı. Ayrıca, ağa katılan sendikaların sayısının artırılması ve bu &ccedil;er&ccedil;evede &ouml;zellikle &Ccedil;ekya, Macaristan, Polonya ve Slovakya sendikalarının da katılımının sağlanması konusu da g&ouml;r&uuml;ş&uuml;ld&uuml;. 
 
Genel Kurul bir dizi karar taslağını oybirliğiyle onayladı. Onaylanan kararlar arasında bir bildirge, bir strateji belgesi ve &ouml;zelleştirmeye karşı Sırbistan h&uuml;k&uuml;metine y&ouml;nelik bir uyarı yer alıyordu. 
 
Ayrıca, b&uuml;t&uuml;n G&uuml;neydoğu Avrupa enerji sendikalarına ağa katılmaları konusunda &ccedil;ağrı yapıldı. Bir &ccedil;ağrı da ortak &ccedil;alışma ve birlik konusunda uluslararası ve Avrupa d&uuml;zeyindeki sendikal &ouml;rg&uuml;tlere yapıldı. Ağın bir sonraki genel kurulu Romanya'da yapılacak.

Güneydoğu Avrupa Enerji Sendikaları Bölge Ağı (RETUNSEE) Genel Kurulu Eylül&#039;de Sırbistan&#039;da Toplandı

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This morning, 500 workers demonstrated infront of the Headquarters of Ceramics company Preiss Daimler, in the Belgian city of Saint-Ghislain. Protesters denounced the loss of 173 jobs following the announcement that the ceramics refractory had bankrupt. Workers losing their jobs were not even paid their salary for the month of September. 
 
Slogans of the angry workers, members of the ICEM affiliated FGTB, included: &lsquo;Press Daimler, Rogue Bosses!&rsquo; and &lsquo;Press Daimler, 173 workers on the tiles!&rsquo; 

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The ICEM supports the demands from the FGTB, that these workers deserve respect for their skills, and should be offered new prospects for work in their sector. It should not be the workers who are to pay twice for the financial crisis. 
 
The Press Daimler workers call for intervention from politicians and business leaders to save jobs through a take-over of the company.

Belgian Ceramics Workers Protest Job Losses

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A special feature at the IGBCE Congress in Hannover, Germany, occurred on closing day, 16 October. It was a round-table forum on Global Networks. The panel was moderated by Constantin Grund of the Freidrich Ebert Foundation, and included&nbsp;ICEM President Senzeni Zokwana. 
 
It also included Fabio Lins from ICEM Brazilian affiliate CNQ/CUT, who addressed the highly successful Latin American network of workers within the German chemical company BASF; Robert Oswald, chairman of the European Works Council of BASF; and Ralf Blauth, Human Resources director of Evonik, now a German chemicals firm that evolved from another company, RAG, that had been signatory to a Global Framework Agreement with the ICEM. 

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Fabio Lins, Senzeni Zokwana,&nbsp;Constantin Grund, Robert Oswald, Ralf Blauth
Zokwana spelled out the ICEM&rsquo;s philosophy behind Global Agreements, as well as the distinct features of ICEM workers&rsquo; networks within single multinational companies, specifically related to the regional and global level. 
 
&ldquo;These networks are the direct result of several years of contact between workers of the same company,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We have found that the regional networks are working the best, partly because of language and work similarities, but also because company managers have joined with these taking on a high degree of dialogue and actual negotiations.&rdquo; 
 
Lins added that the best example of this might be BASF in Latin America, which has now completed its tenth year. &ldquo;We have succeeded in convincing the BASF managers in both Europe and Latin America to play a hands-on role in this network,&rdquo; said Lins. &ldquo;That has enhanced our work, brought better safety standards to all worksites, and addressed such issues as subcontracting directly with management.&rdquo; 

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Oswald added that the BASF Asia-Pacific Network is moving forward, with the introduction of methods and common values brought forward from both Europe and Latin America. &ldquo;I must add that Supervisory Board members and workers&rsquo; representatives on BASF&rsquo;s European Works Council have gained valuable knowledge and benefited greatly from the experiences that have been shared in both regions,&rdquo; said Oswald. 
 
Blauth addressed the question of a merged company &ndash; RAG and Degussa forming Evonik &ndash; coming forward now to re-negotiate a Global Agreement. He said it is still too early in the process to predict an outcome. &ldquo;We are pragmatic and will place great emphasis on the practicability of reaching such an agreement. The communication process is important in and of itself, and this process inevitably leads to improved company practices. 
 
Warda concluded the session by stating both Global Framework Agreements and multinational workers&rsquo; networks are invaluable instruments to improve dialogue between labour and management, as well as setting forth best practices for trade unions in cross-border workplaces to adopt and implement so work standards can become harmonized.

IGBCE Congress Features Panel on Global Workers’ Network on Closing Day

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The IG BCE National Executive last week raised the urgency for a round of collective bargaining for Germany&rsquo;s 550,000 workers in the chemical sector. Under the motto &ldquo;Seize opportunities for employment&rdquo;, the 2010 round of negotiations will focus on job security and good career prospects for young people, along with the goal of achieving commensurate increases in income. The labour agreement will apply for twelve months. 
 
Peter Hausmann, in charge of the tariff policy of the IG BCE&rsquo;s National Executive stated &ldquo;Especially during the economic crisis, it is important that we stick to our long-term tariff policy objectives. We want decent work with fair conditions, we want to protect jobs and create more opportunities for employment. And of course we want to make gains in income&rdquo;. 

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Peter Hausmann
The new agreements would cover workers in around 1,900 companies in the German chemical industry. There are eleven regional commissions, the debate will occur in each, with collective industry-wide decisions also made. In the collective bargaining districts, Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine current contracts run until 31 March 2010, in Westphalia, Bavaria, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Lower Saxony / Bremen, Schleswig Holstein and Berlin they expire 30 April, in the Saarland and East 31 May. 
 
A date for the negotiations to begin is not yet set, but it is estimated that they will start in spring 2010.

IG BCE Begin Preparations for Collective Bargaining in Germany’s Chemicals Industries

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ICEM&rsquo;s Spanish affiliate FITEQA-CC.OO., 1st May Foundation, Trade Union Study Center of CC.OO and Observatory of Trade Unionism in Globalisation jointly organised a seminar on new trade union internationalism, in Barcelona on 26 November 2009. 
 
The ICEM was represented at the seminar through its Chemical and Rubber Industries Officer Kemal &Ouml;zkan along with other speakers Philippe Pochet, Director of the European Trade Union Institute, Tomas Nieber, Industrial policy officer of the IGBCE of Germany and Chairman of the ICEM&rsquo;s Chemical Industries Division, Javier Doz, International Secretary, CCOO (Comisiones Obreras) and Isidor Boix, Director, Observatory on &ldquo;Trade Unionism in Globalisation&rdquo;, 1st May Foundation, CCOO; Secretary for International Trade Union Action of FITEQA-CCOO. The seminar was moderated by Rodolfo Benito, Chairman of the 1st May Foundation, and Confederation Research Secretary, CCOO. 

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Opened by Joan Carles Gallego, Secretary General, CONC, discussions took place around some basic questions such as &ldquo;Internationalism as opposed to nationalism? Does this involve any aspects that are specific to trade unionism?&rdquo;, &ldquo;Does &lsquo;globalisation&rsquo; offer anything new in line with trade union interests? &ldquo;New trade union internationalism and the rules of world trade. Protectionism?&rdquo;, &ldquo;Multinationals as a possible specific framework for these concepts &ndash; codes of conduct, international framework agreements, trade union networks, EWC, worldwide committees&rdquo;. 
 
&ldquo;Under the circumstances of a globalised economy using outsourcing, privatisation, capital mobility and destruction of the welfare state resulting in mass unemployment and income insecurity, we, trade unions, are not passing through easy times. We need to be able to wage efforts to reshape our organisations and policies, to overcome the challenges arising from changing circumstances&rdquo; stated ICEM&rsquo;s Kemal &Ouml;zkan. International level industrial relations through Global/regional framework agreeements, union networking at different level and campaigning, particularly against companies that insist not to respect trade union rights and freedoms, were all important tactics for the international labour movement, concluded the seminar. 
 
Discussions will be published soon at <a href="http://www.1mayo.ccoo.es">www.1mayo.ccoo.es</a>

Spanish Trade Unions Discuss Trade Union Internationalism

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Conflict was resolved at the Haldia Petrochemicals company in India last week, where a four day strike was ended by a new collective agreement, ensuring significant wage gains for CAL workers. The wage revision saw workers receive a 104 percent rise in the first year of the agreement, followed by 21 percent the second year and a further 20 percent the third year. There are 1,500 workers at the plant who will benefit from the new collective agreement. 
 
Talks were brokered by the country&rsquo;s Department of Labour, and discussions were held at the office of the Labour Commissioner. The top officials of the Haldia Petrochemical Ltd. management had previously refused to sign the Charter of Demand (COD) presented by leadership of the HPL Servicing and Maintenance Contractors Union (HSMCU), who are not ICEM affiliates. The union responded with indefinite strike action, on Saturday 21 November, which was ended after four days. 

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HSMCU General Secretary Debashish Maity stated that the lowest paid CAL worker at the plant received Rs. 3,000 per month (US$65), prior to agreement. The originally rejected COD sought to raise that figure to Rs 6,000 in year one, Rs 7,600 in year two, and Rs 8,500 in year three. The agreement reached following strike includes this wage structure. Similar percentage raises will apply to better paid workers at the factory, &ldquo;&hellip;the average hike of the structure will be up from Rs 6,000 to Rs 11,000,&rdquo; stated General Secretary Maity. Workers will also receive a monthly salary, as opposed to the daily wage they received prior. The wage gains apply for the last five months, and workers will receive those arrears immediately. 
 
The company has been carrying out a second phase of expansion, named Project Supermax, which would increase the capacity of the naphtha cracking from 520 kilotonnes to 675 kilotonnes per year. The union action was well timed and the company could not afford to halt the expensive expansion process for strike. 

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The new collective agreement also changes the rules on workers receiving their salary payments on time, as salaries are paid to the employees via the contractor firms, workers had complained of severe delays. This will no longer be possible. 
 
There are still considerable differences in the standard of working conditions for the outsourced workers and regular employees at the plant. The struggle will continue to end this discrepancy.

Considerable Wage Gains Achieved by Indian Petrochemical Workers

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The ICEM fully supports the &lsquo;Justice for Colombia&rsquo; campaign against the signing of an EU-Colombia free trade agreement (FTA). The trade agreement is currently being negotiated, despite strong opposition when it first appeared on the agenda, five months ago. 
 
Justice for Colombia is a coalition of trade unions in Europe, especially the UK, and is backed by the TUC. The coalition supports the Colombian trade union movement and Colombian people, in their struggle for social justice, decent work, and respect for trade union rights. EMCEF (European Mine, Chemical and Energy workers' Federation) has also expressed strong support for the campaign, the ICEM and EMCEF call upon affiliates and supporters to take action in support of this campaign. Visit the campaign website <a href="http://www.justiceforcolombia.org/?link=3_0_3">here</a>.&nbsp; 

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The human rights concerns in Colombia are extreme. The murder of trade unionists is becoming more and more common, with the country&rsquo;s security forces consistently involved in the crimes. Those security forces act with the support of the government, who often publically label trade unionists as terrorists and never chase convictions for those responsible for the murders. These concerns have moved the US and Canada to delay their FTAs with Colombia, and the EU should also refuse to reward the Colombian government, until the human rights situation improves.

ICEM Backs Trade Union Campaign against EU-Colombia Free Trade Agreement

Archive

Australia’s CFMEU Pulp, Paper Division Makes Gains with Kimberly-Clark

US Labour Board Issues Stern Injunctive Relief against Covanta

Iraqi Trade Unionist Murdered

Güneydoğu Avrupa Enerji Sendikaları Bölge Ağı (RETUNSEE) Genel Kurulu Eylül'de Sırbistan'da Toplandı

Belgian Ceramics Workers Protest Job Losses

IGBCE Congress Features Panel on Global Workers’ Network on Closing Day

IG BCE Begin Preparations for Collective Bargaining in Germany’s Chemicals Industries

Spanish Trade Unions Discuss Trade Union Internationalism

Considerable Wage Gains Achieved by Indian Petrochemical Workers

ICEM Backs Trade Union Campaign against EU-Colombia Free Trade Agreement

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