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At the IMF's last Congress it was decided to give high priority to education. Education should also include a great portion of international issues. The IMF Secretariat was instructed to do its best to get all its affiliates to include in their educational programmes at all levels topics dealing with international questions such as globalisation, transnational companies, international organisations/agencies such as the International Labour Organisation, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, etc. 
The goal is to train and educate people and also give to trade union leaders within the IMF an international dimension which is missing today. This can be achieved only if IMF affiliates begin to work hard at getting international questions dealt with at all levels of their structures. 
Honestly, how many of the IMF's affiliates discuss international matters at their ordinary meetings of the Executive and/or decision-making bodies, except when they have to select a delegation to go abroad to represent their own organization? 
There is nothing wrong with this, but we must try to get every trade union leader to deal with the fundamental issue of finding the links between his or her union work at shop-floor level and the ones at another company at the other end of the world. 
And the IMF has to do its own share of the job if we are to succeed. 
This is why I welcome the initiative taken on May 29, 2000, by the general secretary of the FIM/CISL, Giorgio Caprioli, a member of the IMF's Executive Committee. He called together the General Council of his federation and let them discuss international affairs for a full day. 130 trade union leaders from all Italian regions gathered and debated, after an introduction made by Bruno Manghi and the new international secretary of the FIM/CISL, Beppe Lazzaro. 
After the debate, which lasted for more than five hours, I could express my appreciation not just for the quality of the debate but also for some of the concrete proposals made by some of the delegates. 
It shows that international affairs should not be the exclusive property of a few linguistic experts, but everybody should deal with this in his or her daily work. 
This is a great initiative, which should be followed by others. 
I also hope the Italians of the FIM/CISL will not let this remain as just one isolated event. It must be followed up by others and by more intensive discussion at local level. 
Grazie, Compagni !!

An encouraging initiative in Italy

GENEVA: An encouraging and excellent initiative has come from the IMF-affiliated FIM/CISL in Italy. The General Council of the federation, representing 130 trade union leaders from all regions of the country, got together in Brescia to discuss international affairs for a full day. There was not only a very high quality of debate but also of concrete proposals which were made. 
Marcello Malentacchi, in his new opinion column, says that everybody should deal with international affairs in his or her daily work. The IMF's last Congress gave high priority to education and to getting all its affiliates to include in their educational programmes at all levels a large proportion of topics dealing with international questions. 
Read the IMF general secretary's entire opinion on the associated link.

The FIM/CISL holds a full day of discussion on international questions.

Great initiative from Italy

BRAZIL: The Correio Sindical Mercosul reports that a number of metalworkers' unions and federations belonging to the CNM/CUT are organising activities for a "National Day of Mobilization for Metalworkers", to take place on June 2, 2000. The aim of this rally is to carry out a unified country-wide campaign on "Jobs, Wages and Social Rights". Participants will march under two important banners - one for collective agreements, and the other for reduction of working time to 36 hours without reduction in wages. 
Unions belonging to Força Sindical will also take part in the rally.

The CUT Metalworkers are getting ready for their "National Day of Mobilization".

Brazil&#039;s metalworkers on the march

SERBIA: Following the government-ordered police raid on the offices of the Association of Free and Independent Trade Unions on May 19, several trade unionists have now been arrested. Branislav Djuric, vice-president of the AFITU and coordinator of Alliance for Change in Nis, was detained on May 26. Earlier, on May 24, police arrested Djordje Pasagic, who is the regional representative for the union and an Alliance for Change coordinator in Kraljevo, and on May 25, Dragan Veselinovic, a leading AFITU activist at Electronic Industry Nis, was taken into custody. 
The AFITU, objecting strongly to the intimidation and harassment of the union and its activists, has pressed for their release and called on the workers and public to help them resist such persecution. The union demands the right for all those living in Serbia today "to live as the rest of the civilised world, in a free, democratic country with a developed economy," and rejects the regime's treatment of its activists as criminals. 
The president of the AFITU, Dragan Milovanovic, has tried to recover the union's archives and equipment from the police after the break-in of May 19, but to no avail. He is also a leader of the Alliance for Change and has faced charges by the Serbian government. "We are determined to continue our work, even in these very difficult conditions," said Milovanovic.

Trade union activists of the AFITU are being treated like common criminals.

Serb police arrest trade unionists

EUROPE: May 25, 2000, has been proclaimed the first joint "Steel Action Day" for European steelworkers, with demonstrations organised in numerous production sites throughout Europe. As the 50-year-old European Coal and Steel Community Treaty expires in July 2002, workers want to see concrete steps taken to safeguard the European steel industry before this date. 
According to the European Metalworkers' Federation, key demands being made by steelworkers are for: 
- creation of binding and representative work structures, in which employers and workers can agree industrial, trade, research and social policy; 
- commitment from the European Commission to consult employees and employers on all questions of industrial, research as well as social policy in the steel sector; 
- inclusion of issues relating to protection of work, health and environment into research work for product and process innovation; 
- retention of the code on subsidies to protect the European steel industry from unfair competition, with binding environment and social standards being enforced; 
- strengthening of the instruments for forecasting future development, with information and consultation through the European Commission becoming more effective; 
- extension of social policy measures to accompany any necessary restructuring steps in the sector and affected regions; 
- increasing the number of skill-raising and training programmes, to ensure development of human resources in this sector.

Europe's steelworkers make demands on the European Commission, Parliament and Member States.

Urgent action needed

GENEVA: Just a reminder of the sculpture exhibition organised by the IMF for metalworker artist Jean-Claude Hug. The show opens today, May 22, in the Hall of the Pillars at the International Labour Organisation, in Geneva. It will run until June 9. An opening party is being given in the Hall of the Pillars tomorrow, May 23, starting at 6:30 p.m., at which the IMF and the artist would be happy to welcome all those wishing to attend. 
Download pictures of Jean-Claude's sculptures by clicking on "Publications" on this website. See associated link for further details.

The IMF is sponsoring exhibition of metalworker artist.

Sculptures on show at ILO

SERBIA: The IMF has just received shocking news from the Association of Free and Independent Trade Unions that state authorities have shut down the union. Police stormed into the Belgrade headquarters of the AFITU, confiscating all their materials (documents, archives) plus every piece of office equipment, and has forbidden the union to use its offices. No reports have been made of injuries or arrests. The offices of the AFITU's newspaper, "Worker's Word", were also broken into, and everything from articles for their next issue to a scanner and even their paper clips disappeared. The union's president said that although conditions are very difficult, they are determined to continue their work. 
Marcello Malentacchi, IMF general secretary, condemning these heavy-handed tactics of the state, declared that "such actions are unacceptable for all democratic-thinking people. Milosevic is attempting to silence the voice of workers in order to keep his dictatorship alive. When you start shutting down the independent press and trade unions, you must be running scared." The IMF general secretary believes that Milosevic may think the end of his regime is nearing and is resorting to drastic means to keep it afloat. 
Earlier this week in Belgrade, under the Serbian government's orders, police squads broke into and took over the editorial offices of several independent media.

The government of Serbia ordered the confiscation of union materials and equipment.

Serb police shut down independent union

GERMANY: The German metalworkers' union, IG Metall, is preparing a three-year-long debate on the future. It starts in November this year, and a first round will be ready by April 2001. Thereafter, a second round of discussion on a future programme will take place. A "Congress on the Future" is planned for the first half of 2002. 
"IG Metall must keep in top form for the future," says its president, Klaus Zwickel. "Our debate must be socially and politically influential, but it must also be aimed at changing ourselves." 
The background is the ongoing transformation of society into a service society, worldwide globalisation and increasing individualisation. Trade unions have to review their policy and structure in a self-critical way. 
Zwickel says there will be no taboos in the debate. On the contrary, all questions and demands from IG Metall's members, as well as non members, will be discussed. Scientists and organisations outside the trade union movement will also be invited to take part in the debate. One of the objectives is to make IG Metall more attractive to new groups of workers, and workers who are not organised today. 
IG Metall has 2.8 million members.

IG Metall gives green light for debate on the future.

A debate without taboos

GENEVA/BANGLADESH: Since the adoption of Convention No. 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labour by the 87th session of the ILO General Conference, in June 1999, 15 countries have, to date, proceeded to its ratification: Belize, Botswana, Brazil, Finland, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Jordan, Malawi, San Marino, Seychelles, Slovakia, Tunisia, United Kingdom and the United States. 
Now a nationwide trade union campaign has been launched in Bangladesh by the national trade union center - the Bangladesh Free Trade Union Congress (BFTUC) - pressing the government to add its name to this list of countries which have resolved to prohibit and eliminate the worst forms of child labour. 
Officially, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics reports that there is a total of 6.3 million children in the country between the ages of 5 and 14 who work for pay, and are not enrolled in school. This represents about 12 per cent of a total workforce of over 51 million. Approximately 1.9 million are below 10 years of age. Bangladesh, with an overall population of over 87 million, is one of the world's poorest countries, and the reason so many children work is due to this poverty. 
Making the situation even more shocking is the fact that 70 per cent of these youngsters labour in hazardous conditions and abuse of child workers is common. 
The trade unions as well as government and non-governmental organisations are implementing programmes to combat the problem of child labour. At the same time, the BFTUC is organising campaigns, demonstrations, press conferences, discussion groups and information distribution to the public to get their support for ratification of ILO Convention No. 182. 
ILO Convention No. 138 on Minimum Age, dating back to 1973, has also not been ratified by Bangladesh.

Trade unions are pressing the government to ratify ILO Convention No. 182 on worst forms of child labour.

Bangladesh unions oppose child labour

This might sound crazy to most readers. But I think it is time to help the employers get organised internationally. They need it, and so do we. 
Why? Simply because it is necessary to have social dialogue at international level aimed at bringing some order to one of the most crucial issues which will dominate working life for the next few decades, and that is workers' rights. 
If we have a representative and strong counterpart, it would be much easier to discuss and to come to agreement on fundamental issues. 
Let me tell you what happened last week at the ILO, to illustrate what I mean. 
There was a tripartite meeting for one of the most industrialised sectors -- Manufacture of Transport Equipment. These sectoral activities organised by the ILO are very important for us, as this is the only place where workers and employers can confront one another and argue at international level. 
The purpose of these meetings is to discuss a document, normally prepared by experts, and then to draw conclusions and make recommendations to the Governing Body of the ILO. There are also possibilities to submit special resolutions for consideration. All this takes place under a normal negotiating procedure that is familiar to all trade unionists and employers. 
Last week's meeting was no exception. Thanks to very good preparation by the ILO as well as capable and experienced negotiators on all sides, the meeting ended with two very important documents which were accepted and will be submitted to the ILO Governing Body. 
However, on a couple of points in the discussion there remains some doubt, and we need to talk this over with a representative organisation for employers in the metal industry. 
The first of these points is the question of social dialogue. The employers adamantly refused to make any reference to good experiences resulting from the European Works Councils. I think the employers should just ask the more than 300 companies which have already negotiated agreements on EWCs so they can know that experience so far has been positive in most cases. 
No one believes that EWCs will solve all problems, but they can definitely contribute to the development of social dialogue at enterprise level. This should encourage the employers to extend the dialogue to international level as well. 
The second point, where the employers' reaction was even more in contradiction with policy adopted by many companies, is their refusal to allow any reference to promotion of health and safety standards and to the protection of women. Here, we need also mention that the spokesperson for the employers at the meeting openly said that the company she works for was already implementing ILO labour standards with no restrictions! 
Now, the conclusions, the resolution proposed by the IMF delegation, along with a special report on the discussion will be submitted to the Governing Body in November 2000. Then it will be up to the three partners to implement them. 
We all share a responsibility vis-à-vis all people employed in this sector as well as to those depending on it. And this would be much easier to fulfil if we could continue the discussion with a valid, strong and representative counterpart. 
Employers, get together and get organised!!!

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