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Dear Mr. Chaika, I am deeply alarmed by attacks and threats made to trade union leaders and activists in Russia. I am gravely concerned about the authorities&#039; indifference to violations of fundamental human and labour rights and the failure to act promptly and effectively to ensure these rights are fully upheld and protected against any such attack.I urge you to apply all your efforts in order to carry out an immediate, unbiased and transparent investigation into the attacks against  Alexei Etmanov, the leader of the Ford-Vsevelozhsk trade union and co-chairman of the Interregional Trade Union of Autoworkers (ITUA) and the leaders of the local ITUA of Taganrog automobile plan Alexei Gramm and Sergei Bryzgalov, as well as the death threats made to Vladimir Lesik, vice chair person of the ITUA union at Ford-Vsevelozhsk plant.Sincerely,

Violation of trade union rights in Russia

Text of the protest letter

Alexei Etmanov, the leader of the Ford-Vsevelozhsk trade union and co-chairman of the Interregional Trade Union of Autoworkers (ITUA) has been the target of two brutal attacks on November 8 and 13, 2008. An anonymous caller following the first assault contacted the union and warned Etmanov to stop his union activities or &quot;we will take away your life,&quot; the caller said. No one has been charged for the crimes. Other members of the ITUA have been assaulted, including the leaders of the local ITUA of Taganrog automobile plant, Alexei Gramm and Sergei Brizgalov. Those incidents were not investigated either. The International Metalworkers´ Federation is carrying out a campaign to protect the leaders of ITUA, demanding that the Russian authorities conduct a complete investigation of all cases of the assaults and to punish the guilty ones - both those that took part and those who ordered the crimes to be committed.

Demand authorities conduct a complete investigation into all cases of violence and threats of violence against trade unionists in Russia.

Help Stop the Violence Against Russian Unionists!

Market opening should be an instrument for sustainable development. This requires that the promotion of quality employment becomes the primary goal of trade liberalisation, with a fair distribution of the wealth for the workers who create it. The sustainable growth we stand for cannot happen at the expenses of weaker parties. The IMF, particularly through its Working Party on Trade, Employment and Development, works to build solidarity and harmonize the legitimate interests of workers in the North and the South, and to promote a transparent debate on the concerns arising from trade liberalisation.

Trade, employment &amp; development

All workers should enjoy equal rights. Yet workers throughout the world continue to be subject to discrimination, resulting in many being denied their right to join a union. Discrimination also means that women and young workers are over-represented in precarious employment.IMF activities focus on assisting affiliates to develop specific organising strategies to improve unionisation rates among women, migrant workers and young workers. Strategies focus particularly on electronics production workers and workers in EPZ, areas where young women and migrant workers predominate, labour rights are abused and trade unionism is repressed.Women&#039;s representation at all levels of trade union organisation is still too low. IMF has taken steps towards improving the level of participation within the organisation and will continue to work with affiliates to assist them to remove barriers to women&#039;s representation in their unions.

Equal rights

Building strong national trade unions is crucial. The strong unions which are in a permanent democratic relationship with workers, are capable of achieving real gains through collective bargaining, by organizing the unorganized, striving for trade union unity at the national level and building unions through training, education and effective exchange of information.To learn more about the IMF union building philosophy please click <a href="../index.cfm?c=21980&amp;l=2">here</a>.

Bad working conditions are experienced on a daily basis by workers. Even small improvements in occupational health and safety are well received by the most vulnerable groups of workers. Through education, IMF is assisting affiliates in setting up effective health and safety committees in all workplaces. IMF is working with affiliates in order to achieve an international ban on the production, import, export and use of asbestos, responsible for more than 100,000 deaths yearly.

Health and Safety

The structural and technological transformation of metal industries has brought about profound changes in the occupational pattern of the workforce. Non-manual workers are growing in number but are poorly organised or not organised at all.  Like those on the shop-floor they are drawn into the race to the bottom in the global economy. The IMF and its affiliates need to engage and mobilise these workers around labour and professional issues to build greater solidarity and bargaining strength.

Non-Manual

Thank you for taking ACTION!Visit the IMF website for regular updates on the Sinter Metal campaign or sign up for IMF Action Alerts to be notified of urgent solidarity requests and campaign developments immediately when they arise.<h3>This page will reload to the protest letter again in 5 seconds</h3>

Visit the IMF website for regular updates on the Sinter Metal campaign.

Thank you for taking ACTION!

In December 2008, Sinter Metal, a Turkish company that supplies components to major auto manufacturers, fired 350 workers for their union activity. Sinter Metal workers are fighting for their jobs and the fundamental right to join unions and bargain collectively. The International Metalworkers' Federation and European Metalworkers' Federation are calling on Sinter Metal Imalat Sanayi A.Ş to immediately reinstate unjustly dismissed workers, stop violations of rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining, and start negotiations with the union, Birlesik Metal-IS, leading to a fair and just resolution.

Tell Sinter Metal to reinstate all unjustly dismissed workers and respect Turkish labour law and basic trade union rights now.

Demand Justice for Sinter Metal Workers in Turkey

NETHERLANDS: On May 7-8 in Amsterdam, makeITfair and the GoodElectronics network hosted a round table for the electronics industry and civil society organisations. The aim was to enable discussions to take place between representatives of the world&#039;s major electronics brand name companies and unions and NGOs on how to improve labour standards in the industry.  The makeITfair campaign is a European project to inform young people across Europe about labour rights abuses and environmental problems in the manufacture of electronic products.  The GoodElectronics network was co-founded by IMF and brings together unions, human rights organisations, labour organisations and others concerned with improving human rights and sustainability in the global electronics sector.Industry participants at the roundtable included representatives of industry groupings the Electronic Industry Corporate Citizenship (EICC) and the Global e-sustainability Initiative (GeSI), as well as major individual companies, including suppliers.  The industry was urged by the IMF, the EMF, trade unions and labour rights NGOs from production countries as well as organisations such as SOMO and CAFOD to recognise the central role of trade unions in improving labour standards and giving workers a voice at their workplace. Poor working conditions are endemic in the production of computers, mobile phones and other electronic products. Many factors contribute to this situation, including the complicated product chain, the high percentage of outsourcing, rapid product developments, lack of unions, as well as weak implementation of (inter)national labour law. Five years ago, electronics companies got together to develop a voluntary sector code, the EICC, but campaigning groups have pointed out weaknesses in the code itself and criticize its ineffective implementation. At the roundtable, a range of more effective alternatives to the CSR approach adopted by the industry were presented and analysed. Presentations were made on the mature systems of industrial relations approach now favoured by leading clothing manufacturers that recognise the limitations of an approach based solely on implementing unilateral company codes of conduct. Other strategies successfully employed in the textile and garment sector were also examined and consideration was given to how they could be adopted for the electronics sector. These include International Framework Agreements and the ILO&#039;s Better Work program.

At a roundtable meeting in Amsterdam with many of the world's major brand name electronics manufacturers, IMF joined with NGOs in calling on the companies to drop their hostility to trade unions and respect the rights of their workers to freedom of association.

Electronics companies urged to recognise workers&#039; right to unionise

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