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Press

Global tyremaker Continental today came under growing pressure in its headquarters country, Germany, to settle a nine-month dispute at one of its US plants. It also faces the threat of worldwide union protests to coincide with its annual shareholder assembly on 1 June. 
 
At a press conference in Hannover this morning, the German mining, chemical and energy workers' union IG BCE pledged support for US tyreworkers and their union, the USWA. The IG BCE, which represents Continental's workforce in Germany, hosted the press briefing. 
 
At the global level, both unions are affiliated to the 20-million-strong International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM), which is coordinating worldwide support for the US workers. ICEM General Secretary Vic Thorpe was among the speakers at this morning's briefing in Hannover. 
 
At issue is Continental's treatment of striking (and locked-out) workers at its General Tire plant in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. But union leaders have also voiced concern over the company's declared worldwide strategy of shifting production to &quot;low-cost&quot; areas. 
 
Explaining the US dispute to the German media in Hannover today were USWA Executive Vice-President John Sellers and the union's international corporate campaigner Jerry Fernandez. Also in Germany for the event were Larry Murray, Vice-President of the USWA local at General Tire's Charlotte plant, and Charlotte workers Andy Hodges, Kay Maree and Linda Hatchell. 
 
The core issue is that &quot;Conti&quot; is refusing to pay its Charlotte employees the going rate among leading employers of US tyre workers, even though the plant is now profitable. The American workers accuse Conti of failing to bargain in good faith and of trying to break the Charlotte local of the USWA. After provoking a strike, the company drafted in &quot;permanent replacement&quot; workers last September, thus effectively locking out and dismissing the strikers. 
 
In 1995, after Continental bought General Tire, the workers bailed out the Charlotte plant by &quot;giving back&quot; about 90 million US dollars in pay and benefits cuts. Charlotte is now showing a healthy profit, but the company is still refusing to bring its pay and conditions up to standard. 
 
Sellers said that Continental's conduct of the dispute breached US law. It also violated internationally recognised standards of corporate behaviour, and his union would therefore be lodging complaints with the UN's International Labour Organisation and with the OECD. 
 
The USWA would also put a resolution before Continental shareholders at their annual assembly on 1 June, urging the company to abide by ILO and OECD standards. And if there were no progress in resolving the US dispute, he said, international union action was planned to coincide with the shareholder meeting. 
 
For Germany's IG BCE union, Hannover regional secretary and Continental supervisory board member Dirk Sumpf urged the company to develop the same &quot;partnership&quot; relations with the USWA as it maintained with the German union. &quot;It's not a matter of what is possible under American law. It's a matter of what makes sense.&quot; 
 
And Manfred Warda, who heads IG BCE's international department, added that it was now &quot;mainly the company's responsibility to show ways of constructively resolving a conflict whose continuation cannot be in the company's own interests.&quot; IG BCE remained ready to support such efforts, he said. Continental's relations with the German union were on the basis of &quot;cooperatively and fairly reconciling interests&quot;. It would, Warda emphasised, &quot;be desirable to use these experiences so as to also make an innovative contribution in the USA to the improvement of employee-employer relations. In that regard, &quot;respect for ILO standards and for the OECD guidelines for multinational enterprises is a plausible minimum demand.&quot; 
 
In Charlotte, &quot;Continental is violating the right to organise, as recognised internationally by governments, employers and unions within the ILO,&quot; ICEM General Secretary Vic Thorpe told the press conference. &quot;The American Continental workers have the unhesitating support of the ICEM and its more than 20 million members in 117 countries.&quot; 
 
In particular, Thorpe said, rubber workers worldwide were watching the Continental dispute very closely to see if the company would &quot;show some social responsibility.&quot; This was a &quot;test case&quot;, Thorpe emphasised, because &quot;the behaviour which Continental and other companies espouse at home in Europe must be mirrored in their operations elsewhere.&quot; 
 
Such companies should also be setting an example of good industrial relations to the new market economies of Central and Eastern Europe, Thorpe said. Instead, Continental's behaviour in the US had shocked and disturbed trade unionists as far away as Russia. To prove the point, he read out a message sent today by Russian trade unionists currently attending a conference in Moscow on unions and globalisation. 
 
The Russians, including ICEM-affiliated unions there, &quot;strongly support the just demands of the USWA workers and call upon Continental/General Tire to put an end to its anti-worker policy.&quot; They &quot;insist that the company adhere to the highest possible labour standards wherever it does business, including respecting the right of workers to join trade unions without employer interference, the right of workers to engage in collective bargaining, and the right of workers to strike without losing their jobs.&quot; So the Russians &quot;urge Continental Tire to return immediately to the bargaining table and to negotiate a reasonable and just contract with the USWA.&quot; 
 
Several speakers at the press conference emphasised that Continental's use of &quot;replacement workers&quot; during the dispute would be illegal in Germany and most other European countries. Also taking part in the Hannover briefing was Jacques Caltot, who heads the rubber division of the ICEM-affiliated French union FCE-CFDT. 
 
Further international support for the US workers came from the International Metalworkers' Federation, whose Organisation and Solidarity Coordinator Brian Fredricks spoke at today's press conference. 
 
In the US, meanwhile, a &quot;public awareness&quot; campaign launched by the Charlotte workers is bearing fruit. Consumers and trade unionists are calling tyre retailers all over the country and urging them to enquire into the safety of tyres built by unskilled &quot;replacement workers&quot; in Continental's Charlotte plant. The callers are also voicing safety concerns about the company's alleged plans to import tyres from Mexico.

Conti Faces Global Union Alliance Over US Dispute

In the largest ever European demonstration by energy workers, the European Union Energy Ministers came under pressure to halt job losses that have ravaged the European energy sector. In a joint statement fully supported by the 20-million-strong International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM), the European Federation of Public Service Unions (EPSU) and the European Mine, Chemical and Energy Workers&rsquo; Federation (EMCEF) demanded that EU-wide social measures become a priority in the sector. 
<img height="269" src="/wp-content/uploads/articles/may9911a.jpg" width="350" alt="" />
 
It is predicted that job losses, in a large part due to the European Commission's extensive liberalisation programme in the electricity and gas industries, will lead to one worker in five - or 200.000 - being made redundant by 2004. More than 150.000 jobs have already gone during the past five years, as utilities have cut permanent workforce and service in the preparations for a competitive market. The EU's free-market policies have also contributed to the destruction of the coal mining industry, which used to be a major provider of direct and indirect jobs in Europe. 
 
European workers and citizens face dangers of &lsquo;profit driven energy grid&rsquo; 
 
The big turnout in the demonstration reflects the level of frustration regarding EU energy policies, or the lack of them. Unless the EU institutions adopt a co-ordinated, responsible approach to energy liberalisation, it is ultimately the European citizens who will bear the brunt of market forces, through higher prices and lower standards. 
<img height="445" src="/wp-content/uploads/articles/may9911b.jpg" width="300" alt="" />
 
&quot;Without proper social control and regulation both at the European and national level, there is a real danger of major job losses, social and environmental dumping, higher prices for small consumers, and deteriorating quality of service&quot;, said Lars Myhre, addressing 5000 demonstrating energy workers from different European countries. Myhre is the President of the ICEM-affiliated Norwegian Oil and Petrochemical Workers' Union (NOPEF) and the Chairman of EMCEF's and ICEM's Energy Committees. 
 
&quot;There must be protection for jobs and for public services&quot;, said Carola Fischbach-Pyttel, EPSU General Secretary. &quot;Despite an intensive lobbying campaign to highlight the haemorrhaging of jobs, the Commission seems blind to the dangers of a profit driven European energy grid. &quot; 
 
Franco Bisegna, EMCEF General Secretary, said that &quot;the Commission must show willingness to prepare a package that stimulates employment and facilitates re-training &ndash; the Energy Ministers can provide vital direction on this matter.&quot; 
 
High Quality Public Services Essential in the Energy Sector 
 
The emphasis on responsible policy was underlined by Jean Lapeyre, Deputy General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). &quot;The energy sector has the chance to be a leader for responsible, citizen-based public services. The ETUC Charter for Public Services calls on all actors in essential services to be aware of the wider dimension including citizen&rsquo;s rights and environmental concerns.&quot; 
 
The European Federation of Public Services Unions is the largest federation affiliated to the ETUC and represents 10 million workers providing services to the public in health and social care, local, regional and central government, and utilities in energy, water and waste. 
 
The European Mine, Chemical &amp; Energy Workers' Federation is affiliated to the ETUC with 3 million members in 27 countries in the EU and Central and Eastern Europe. EMCEF organises workers in the energy industries including coal and lignite mines, oil, gas, nuclear and renewables.

Keep the Lights On, Energy Workers Tell the European Ministers

Rio Tinto, the world's biggest mining corporation, will face protests from a broad alliance of international campaigning organisations inside and outside its Annual General Meeting at London's Queen Elizabeth Conference Centre tomorrow 12 May. 
Prominent among the protesters is the Australian miners' union CFMEU and its supporters from the UK and other countries. The unions are targeting Rio Tinto's continued refusal to recognise basic trade union rights in its Australian operations. 
 
Leading the Australian contingent is CFMEU National Secretary John Maitland. He is also Vice-President of the 20-million-strong International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM), to which the CFMEU is affiliated at the global level. Maitland commented: 
 
&quot;Rio Tinto continues to use labour laws in Australia which in March of 1998 were found by a committee of experts of the UN's International Labour Organisation (ILO) to violate international standards on collective bargaining rights and freedom of association. Rio Tinto is directly implicated in this because they helped the Australian government to draft this legislation. Since the ILO ruling, Rio Tinto has neither apologised nor sought to reverse its input into the Australian government's breach of international law. 
 
&quot;Rather, the company is actively seeking to deunionise its Australian operations by replacing unionised workers with non-union labour and by forcing workers onto individual employment contracts instead of trade union collective agreements.&quot; 
 
ICEM British Vice-President Fred Higgs announced today that the ICEM had discussed the Australian situation with Rio Tinto CEO Leon Davis at a recent meeting. &quot;We offered the services of the ICEM to find a resolution to the issues in Australia,&quot; Higgs said. &quot;We are extremely disappointed that Rio Tinto has not so far taken up this offer, and we will continue to campaign on behalf of our Australian affiliate.&quot; 
<ul>
 <li>A Stakeholders' Report on Rio Tinto will be distributed to shareholders and others at the AGM tomorrow. Published by the ICEM in cooperation with a wide range of organisations campaigning on rights and environmental issues, the report severely criticises Rio Tinto's performance in many parts of the world. It also raises questions about the company's non-standard reporting of profits and the sustainability of its current dividend pay-outs. </li>
 <li>A motion was tabled in Britain's House of Commons today criticising Rio Tinto's human rights performance and calling on the British government to press the company to comply with international standards. Rio Tinto is headquartered in London. The Commons motion was brought in by Labour Member of Parliament Michael Clapham and others. </li>
 <li>This week, US unions in Rio Tinto operations agreed to step up their participation in the worldwide campaign. 
 </li>
</ul>

Rio Tinto AGM Faces Protests Over Rights Abuses

The ICEM has published the <a href="/sites/default/files/migration/icem/0606ICEMHIVAIDSManualEN.pdf">ICEM HIV/AIDS Training Manual for Collective Bargaining</a> and a <a href="/sites/default/files/migration/icem/0701ICEMHIVAIDSGuideEN.pdf">Guide on HIV/AIDS Resources and Funding</a>. Both publications are available in English, French and Spanish. They can be accessed from the <a href="/en/72-HIV-AIDS">front page</a> of the&nbsp;HIV/AIDS section of the ICEM&nbsp;website. In the framework of the LO/FTF-sponsored HIV/AIDS project for the mining sector in Ethiopia, two policies were developed in workshops with participants from the National Industrial Federation of Energy, Chemical and Mine Trade Unions (NIFECM). These are an <a href="/index.php?id=72&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3650">HIV/AIDS Policy for a union</a> and an <a href="/index.php?id=72&amp;la=EN&amp;doc=3649">HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy</a>.&nbsp;Affiliates are urged to use these policies as examples to formulate their own HIV/AIDS policy and to negotiate HIV/AIDS workplace policies with employers. These are generic versions in which only the names of the union, country and company have to be filled in. Also included are power point presentations on <a href="/sites/default/files/migration/icem/2010-PPP_Basic%20HIV.ppt">Basic Facts about HIV/AIDS</a>, <a href="/sites/default/files/migration/icem/2010-PPP_HIV_workplace.ppt">HIV/AIDS and the Workplace</a>, on <a href="/sites/default/files/migration/icem/2010-PPP-Negotiating.ppt">Negotiating on HIV/AIDS</a> and on <a href="/sites/default/files/migration/icem/2010-PPP-WPPolicy.ppt">Elements of an HIV/AIDS Workplace Policy</a>. You can adapt these PPPs and use them in your educational activities. A large number of documents is available. We can only give a small selection of what we consider the most relevant. We refer you to the links of the organisation on this website. Most of their publications are not included here. The Global Union AIDS Programme initiated a survey on union action with case studies, which was published by UNAIDS in September 2006 <a href="http://www.unaids.org">www.unaids.org</a>. On this website you also find HIV/AIDS statistics on your country and contact points. The ILO Code of Practice on HIV/AIDS and the world of work can be downloaded <a href="http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/trav/aids/publ/codelanguage.htm">here</a>, but for workshops and seminars the printed pocket version is more useful. You can get it at ILO offices in your country. <a href="/sites/default/files/migration/icem/ILO%20HIV.AIDS%20Leaflet.pdf">This leaflet</a>, produced by the ILO Office in New Delhi, can serve as a basis for your own leaflet for mass distribution.In April 2011, the ILO Bureau for Workers&#039; Activities (ACTRAV) published toolkits for trade unions on HIV and AIDS. The six toolkits deal with 1. Core Information on HIV and AIDS, 2. Respect for Rights, 3. Workplace Action on HIV and AIDS, 4. Trade Union Education and Training on HIV and AIDS, 5. Mobilizing Resources for Trade Union Action and 6. Project Development and Proposal Writing. They are accompanied by a Guide to the Toolkit which includes learning activities, case studies and references. The seven documents can be accessed <a href="http://www.ilo.org/aids/Publications/lang--en/index.htm">here</a>. The World Bank has produced a generic operations manual (GOM) on its multi-sector HIV/AIDS Program in Africa &ldquo;Turning bureaucrats into warriors&rdquo;, which devotes a chapter to the importance of civil society organisations. The World Bank sees the strength of trade unions in the size of their membership and that they usually have paid staff and some financial management capacity. According to the GOM &ldquo;They represent a greatly underused and promising channel to reach thousands of employees and their families in all sectors and levels of employment&rdquo;. The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group has produced an <a href="http://www.ifc.org/ifcext/aids.nsf/AttachmentsByTitle/HIV_AIDS_Mining_Guide/$FILE/AIDS_Mining_Guide.pdf">HIV/AIDS Guide for the Mining Sector</a>. It provides practical advice and management guidance that will help stakeholders implement intervention strategies. The full document is a 10 MB pdf file but the sections and appendixes can be downloaded separately. Section Two Management Strategies and Section Three Workplace HIV/AIDS Programme are of particular interest. <a href="http://www.theglobalfund.org/en/">The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria</a> publishes an annual report, which gives information on the approved grants and includes some country profiles. It is useful to subscribe to the Global Fund Observer, a free monitoring service at <a href="http://www.aidspan.org">www.aidspan.org</a>.

Overview of useful HIV/AIDS materials

The chemical sector will be under continuous and intense public scrutiny for the foreseeable future, workers' spokesman Fred Higgs told a UN-backed world meeting of unions, employers and governments now in session in Geneva. 
Health, safety and the environment will remain the focus of that public attention, Higgs emphasised. Voluntary initiatives such as the chemical industry's Responsible Care programme could play an important role in meeting the sector's responsibility to ensure the highest possible health, safety and environmental performance. But these initiatives have to be credible - and that means they must fully involve workers and their trade unions. 
 
Fred Higgs is Vice-President of the 20-million-strong International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM). He is the spokesman for the workers' group at the Geneva meeting, which is being held under the auspices of the UN's International Labour Organisation (ILO). Unions, governments and employers meet on equal terms within the ILO, whose Tripartite Meeting On Voluntary Initiatives Affecting Training and Education on Safety, Health and Environment in the Chemical Industries ends tomorrow. 
 
According to Higgs, &quot;Voluntary industry initiatives - in particular the Responsible Care programme - will only be viewed by workers and their trade union representatives as important and legitimate components of industrial policy and strategy if they fully and meaningfully involve workers and their trade union representatives from the plant level through to the international level.&quot; That was why companies must base their voluntary approaches on the development of mutual trust and joint union/management involvement at the workplace. 
 
Both the ICEM and his own union, ICEM British affiliate the TGWU, see these voluntary initiatives as part of their everyday concerns, Higgs said. They &quot;very much hope to agree with employers this week the principles necessary to build the joint commitment and involvement on which the Responsible Care programme ultimately depends for its effectiveness and credibility.&quot; Failure to reach such agreement would inevitably result in a considerable hardening of union attitudes towards the Responsible Care programme in particular, and voluntary initiatives more generally. 
 
Unions representing chemical workers worldwide have every interest in ensuring that the chemical industry is at the forefront when it comes to health, safety and environmental protection, Higgs pointed out. &quot;If this can be achieved by genuinely joint commitment and involvement of both sides of industry in voluntary initiatives such as the Responsible Care programme, then voluntary initiatives will perhaps finally have come of age.&quot; 
 
The ICEM has consistently pressed for the chemical firms' Responsible Care programme to be made credible and verifiable, with full union participation. A 1997 world survey by the ICEM found that workers and their unions were neither widely involved in nor well-informed about Responsible Care. Among those that were, many were sceptical about its real value. 
 
In fact, chemical manufacturers now increasingly accept that unions and others must be better involved in the programme if it is to be credible. 
 
&quot;Dialogue is an imperative if Responsible Care is to succeed,&quot; Bryan Sanderson told the Geneva meeting this week. &quot;Governments and Trade Unions are essential stakeholders in this process of dialogue.&quot; 
 
Sanderson is President of the chemical manufacturers' European council CEFIC and chairs the board of their world council, the ICCA. 
 
In Geneva, he called for the development of verification systems for Responsible Care. He also recognised that the chemical industry still has much to do to improve its workers' and external stakeholders' knowledge of the Responsible Care programme. &quot;But we are committed to improving this,&quot; Sanderson promised.

Chemical Safety: Union Involvement Vital, UN Meeting Told

Tyre and rubber unions from sixteen countries on five continents - all representing workers employed at tyre and rubber multinational Goodyear - today formed a global network of unions &quot;for our mutual defence and advancement.&quot; 
The unions establishing the network met today in Cleveland, USA. They are from Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, Guatemala, Japan, Malaysia, Morocco, Slovenia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and Venezuela. At the global level, they are affiliated to the 20-million-strong International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM). 
 
The unions set up a formal steering committee for the network and elected Richard Davis, Vice President for Administration of the United Steelworkers of America (USWA), as its chairman. 
 
The USWA organises American tyre workers, and Davis is the union's chief negotiator with Goodyear in the United States. 
 
&quot;The creation of this network is an historic first step to build worker solidarity across borders in one multinational corporation,&quot; said Davis. 
 
&quot;When we heard reports about Goodyear operations and labour relations in the different countries, we found we had a lot in common with each other and needed to work together for a common agenda.&quot; 
 
Goodyear has operations in 29 countries. In 1998, Goodyear earned profits of 682.3 million US dollars on revenues of 12.6 billion. 
 
Globally, the company employs approximately 95,000 people. 
 
The company recently concluded a joint venture agreement with Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. which, when it becomes effective, will make Goodyear the largest tyre company in the world. 
 
The unions agreed to make worker health and safety a first priority for the network, following reports of wide discrepancies in conditions at Goodyear facilities in different parts of the world. 
 
&quot;Is a worker's life in Malaysia worth any less than a worker's life in the United States or the United Kingdom?&quot; asked USWA President George Becker, who chaired today's meeting. &quot;Of course, it is not, and we have to work together to ensure that Goodyear adheres to the highest possible standards no matter where it does business.&quot; 
 
Becker chairs the ICEM's rubber industry section. 
 
The unions agreed to create a database on Goodyear's operations and working conditions. They will assist each other during collective bargaining negotiations and disputes with Goodyear when they arise, and will support efforts to organise the company's non-union facilities.

Goodyear Unions Set Up Global Network

Chemical sector unions and companies are to cooperate worldwide on the continuous improvement of health, safety and environmental protection. 
Agreement on this was reached following talks in Geneva last week between worker representatives coordinated by the 20-million-strong International Confederation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Unions (ICEM) and employers grouped within the International Council of Chemical Associations (ICCA). 
 
Specifically, the joint efforts will focus on the chemical industry's Responsible Care programme. This voluntary initiative aims at continuous improvement of health, safety and environmental standards. It stresses the need to communicate the results to stakeholders and the public. 
 
Governments were also represented at the Geneva meeting, which was organised by the UN's International Labour Organisation (ILO). 
 
The meeting's conclusions emphasise that &quot;there is a dialogue in progress which will be formalised and continued on the meaningful involvement of workers and their representatives on the subject of Responsible Care between ICCA and ICEM.&quot; 
 
Similarly, &quot;employers should involve fully the workers and their representatives in local Responsible Care activities and brief them and their representatives at the national level in matters such as the status of implementation.&quot; 
 
Responsible Care has had &quot;positive results&quot; and &quot;there is potential, with greater involvement of stakeholders, to go further.&quot; Its goals &quot;should be embraced by all chemical firms and by all those working in the industry.&quot; 
 
But Responsible Care must not just deliver. It must be seen to deliver. &quot;Performance indicators and verification procedures&quot; are therefore &quot;critical for the credibility of the initiative.&quot; 
 
Crucially, the companies, governments and unions recognised that Responsible Care is no substitute for regulation. Rather, &quot;the regulatory framework and voluntary initiatives should be mutually supportive.&quot; 
 
Regulation should ensure that &quot;minimum standards are set and met.&quot; This entails &quot;legally authorised inspections&quot;, coupled with &quot;support programmes&quot; and &quot;sanctions&quot;. But the less prescriptive &quot;goal-setting&quot; regulations also require &quot;suitable government oversight&quot;. 
 
Voluntary initiatives, on the other hand, should &quot;in particular aim at achieving higher levels of performance than those possible through legislation alone.&quot; They should &quot;provide encouragement and mechanisms for bringing all plants and firms up to acceptable performance levels&quot;, and their goals &quot;should not be static but should be based on the principle of continuous improvement.&quot; 
 
The emphasis is on the &quot;development and diffusion of best practices&quot; both between companies and within each corporation. Notably, multinationals should apply their corporate health, safety and environment standards worldwide. There should also be &quot;provision of expertise to chemical industries in developing and transitional countries&quot;, including via the ILO and other UN agencies. 
 
The chemical industry's trade associations and the bigger companies in the sector should help small and medium-size businesses to improve their health, safety and environment performance. 
 
&quot;The development and diffusion of best practices will be rendered more effective to the extent that workers and their representatives play an effective role in the voluntary initiatives,&quot; the employers, governments and unions agreed. 
 
&quot;Internationally comparable systems of performance should be developed and maintained to track chemical enterprises' health, safety and environment performance,&quot; they insisted. &quot;Workers and their representatives should be involved in the development and use of such systems.&quot; 
 
Managers and workers alike need training if Responsible Care is to succeed. The Geneva conclusions set out these training requirements in some detail. Again, &quot;workers and their representatives should have a voice and influence in determining the nature and scope of the health, safety and environment-related information and training provided to them in the context of voluntary initiatives.&quot; 
 
Chairing the workers' group in the committee that drew up the conclusions was ICEM Vice-President Fred Higgs (for a summary of his and the employers' comments, see ICEM UPDATE 9-1999). 
 
Robert Wages, Vice-President of the ICEM-affiliated American industrial union PACE, chaired the workers' group on the resolutions committee. Coordinating the workers' representatives throughout the week-long meeting were the ICEM's Deputy General Secretary Peter Michalzik and Health, Safety and Environment Officer Reg Green. 
 
Global union-employer cooperation on Responsible Care is now set to move forward rapidly. Within the next two months, the ICEM will be addressing the governing bodies both of the ICCA and of the European-level chemical producers' federation CEFIC on this issue.

Chemical Safety: World&#039;s Firms And Unions To Cooperate

Contents: 
 
1. 2005 Nobel Peace Prize 
2. ICEM Africa Regional Women's Meeting 
3. Collective Bargaining Training in Chile 
4. ICEM Colombia Women's Meeting 
5. Diagnosis in Costa Rica 
6. UK - T&amp;G Women's School 
7. Negotiations in Spain 

 
1. Nobel Peace Prize 
 
The names of nine Nepali women, included in a list of 1000 women worldwide to be nominated as a single entity for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize, were made public on 29 June. The list includes among others Binda Pandey, GEFONT Nepal and Vice-President of ICEM. The 1000 women have been collectively nominated as a single candidate for the prestigious prize. Of the 1000 women nominees, 157 have been nominated from South Asia, the most of any region. The project aims to make women's efforts visible to counter injustice, discrimination, oppression and violence. 
 
 
2. ICEM Africa Regional Women's Meeting 
 
A meeting was held on 2 June 2005 in Johannesburg before the ICEM Africa Regional Committee meeting to formally establish the Africa Regional Women's Committee and to review activities in the region. 
 
Information was provided on ICEM global programs on HIV/AIDS and contract and agency labor. It was agreed that in both issues women are disproportionately affected, and special attention needs to be paid to impacts on women. The Shop Steward Development Program in Africa has a potential for developing teams of women at national level, and ICEM is asked to increase the scope and level of activity targeted at women within this project. 
 
Monitoring the recruitment and development of women in unions is difficult if there are no women's structures; without women's structures we act individually. Without a commitment to funding, however, it is difficult to initiate activities in the region for women. Thought should be given to developing a fund for women's activities in the region, and any ideas should be passed on to Vida Brewu at vbrewu@yahoo.co.uk. 
 
The ICEM Africa Women's Committee was established and made up of one representative each from Ghana, Botswana, DRC, Nigeria and South Africa. The committee will meet annually before the African regional committee. 
 
 
3. Collective Bargaining Training in Chile 
 
Erica Hidalgo Barrahona, ICEM women's committee, held a two-day training course for women in collective bargaining together with the Chilean oil workers' union FENATRAPECH. It was the last event scheduled in the FNV/SASK Equal Opportunities Project in Latin America. It was attended by 24 women. 
 
The topics included were labor relations and collective bargaining, changes in the company and their impact on collective bargaining, new and old contents of collective bargaining, gender issues and negotiations. Power relations were also discussed. Simulations were done. Public speaking was practiced. Cooperation with other organizations was also arranged. 
 
 
4. ICEM Colombia women's meeting 
 
ICEM Colombia held two women's meetings, from 30 March to 1 April, and from 1 to 3 June 2005. The themes were women and labor market, changes in women's work, gender division of labor, work, gender and globalization, women's working conditions, and equal opportunities and equal pay between women and men. 
 
These meetings were held in the framework of the FNV/SASK equal opportunities project. 
 
The women analysed their own experiences to understand the changes in their working lives. They analysed what jobs women have done, what the stereotypes are for women's work that have been passed down, and how women's and men's roles have been defined, with women and men doing different jobs and carrying out different functions. 
 
Women and men are assigned different roles, with men assigned to public space and women to the home. Thus the two sexes are segregated, and what they do is valued differently. Work is evaluated on the basis of what it contributes to creating wealth. Globalization has made the sexual division of labor more acute and women's work more precarious, leveling the existing differences downwards. The demands for more qualifications that the economic model requires have not been matched by qualified jobs. Nowadays women are better educated, but they have more precarious jobs with lower pay. The most precarious jobs are in the informal sector, which is mostly covered by women. Equality between men and women is recognized with a lowering of standards for both. 
 
The seminars also provide leadership training with what it means to be a woman leader. An analysis was provided on differences between women's and men's leadership, as well as power relationships. Equal opportunities and equal pay were discussed in connection with collective bargaining and the importance of including gender in negotiations. 
 
 
5. Diagnosis in Costa Rica 
 
On 10 June a seminar was held in Costa Rica to define policies for women and men in collective bargaining. It was attended by 12 women and 8 men. The point was to do mapping and to see where women have been excluded from the oil industry up to now. Up to now women have only been doing certain things. A questionnaire was developed. A diagnosis was also developed of the situation with youth. The young people were asked their aspirations. The demand was to include people under 40 years of age in the trade union induction process. This work will be continued and expanded in the first week of July. 
 
 
6. UK - T&amp;G National Women's School 
 
A National women's school was held from 12 to 17 June 2005 organised by the Transport and General Workers Union in Eastbourne, UK. The group was divided up into four to cover getting involved in the union, women in the workplace and winning for women. The subjects covered, among others, union structures, branch equality officers, women's health, equal pay and equal pay audits, family friendly policies, work-life balance, and trade union conference procedures. Sisters attended from all levels within the union, from newly elected reps to more experienced colleagues. The women gained more confidence and went out to encourage more women to take their rightful place within the unions. 
 
 
7. Negotiations in Spain 
 
FITEQA CCOO in Spain managed to achieve certain extra payments for families in their 2005 negotiations. 
 
These extra payments are still not widespread, but they cover certain advantages such as scholarships, assistance for children, for education. This is something that has to be analysed more in detail because it has to do with the fact that companies seem to be more willing to pay out limited amounts of money. It may also be due to the fact that some employment structures are getting younger, so that these advantages can be directly relevant to young families. Because of the fact that pay is not equal, these payments are considered to be a form of compensation. These payments do have their merits, but nevertheless, it is wages and salaries that pay for work, and trade unions should still keep their eye on non-discrimination in pay and negotiate on equal pay for work of equal value and the necessary processes of evening out pay.

ICEM Women’s bulletin No. 2 – July 2005

Trade unions representing workers in the world's energy and water utilities want to maintain strong social control over these basic public services. The ongoing revolution in electricity, gas and water sectors is frequently leading to major job losses, higher prices, problems with quality of services, and attacks on union rights. Proper regulation and full involvement of unions and other interest groups in all phases of any reform processes are required to guarantee a socially balanced outcome. 
This was pointed out by union delegates attending the International Labour Organisation (ILO) meeting of workers, employers and governments in session this week in Geneva. 
 
The ILO Tripartite Meeting on Managing the Privatisation and Restructuring of Public Utilities (water, gas, electricity) will exchange views on the impact of these processes on employment, working conditions, human resources development and service delivery. It aims to adopt a series of jointly agreed conclusions and possibly resolutions. 
 
The Workers' Group is coordinated by the Public Services International (PSI) and International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM) whose affiliated unions represent millions of workers in electricity, gas and water utilities around the world. 
 
Contrary to claims by neo-liberal politicians and free market advocates, the unions feel that the experience of rapid changes in the utility sector is so far mainly negative. 
 
&quot;We find that the process of restructuring and privatisation of water and energy has frequently resulted in loss of employment, trade union derecognition, higher prices, problems with quality of services, hidden subsidies and guarantees from public authorities to private, and problems of weak regulation&quot;, pointed out Hans Engelberts, General Secretary of the PSI. 
 
According to Engelberts, &quot;provision of water and energy by public sector operations has clear advantages in accountability, public service obligations, stability of services, and stability of employment.&quot; 
 
Unions feel that there is a fundamental conflict of interest between multinational companies who are increasingly allowed to invest in utilities in search of quick profits, and citizens who need reliable, reasonably priced, high quality public services. 
 
The governments have an important role to play in balancing this conflict of interest. Strong regulation and framework conditions are some of the key tools for maintaining social control. 
 
But also unions have new control tools to offer. PSI is urging multinational water companies to sign up the PSI Code of Conduct on water services which lays down a number of basic conditions for lean and safe drinking water and fair labour practices. 
 
ICEM Deputy General Secretary Peter Michalzik cited ICEM's agreements signed last year with the Norwegian oil and gas group Statoil and the main players in the global chlorine industry. These agreements cover union rights, fair wages and benefits, health and safety standards, the environment and training. 
 
&quot;We need more such enforceable agreements and other similar arrangement to construct a social basis for the new global energy and water sectors&quot;, said Michalzik. 
 
 
 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
Public Services International (PSI) is a global trade union federation representing 20 million public service workers in 500 unions in 150 countries. 
 
International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM) is also a global union organisation with 430 affiliated unions representing 20 million workers in 115 countries. 
 
The UN's International Labour Organisation (ILO) is hosting a Tripartite Meeting on Managing the Privatisation and Restructuring of Public Utilities (water, gas, electricity). 20 representatives each of governments, employers and workers will discuss the issues and attempt to agree on conclusions that provide guidance for future action. The Meeting is taking place on 12-16 April 1999 in Geneva.

Unions Want Social Control, ILO Utilities Meeting Told

Contents: 
	 
	1. Brief Report of ICEM Women&rsquo;s Committee, 9-10 May 2005 
	2. Brief Report of Evaluation of ICEM/FNV/SASK Equal Opportunities Project in Latin America 
	3. Equal Opportunities Agreement at Repsol 
	4. Information from Canada 
	

	1. ICEM Women&rsquo;s Committee, 9-10 May 2005 
	 
	The ICEM Women&rsquo;s Committee decided to prioritise the following issues for work up to the 2007 Congress: 
	 
	a. Women&rsquo;s Communication and Information. This includes a women&rsquo;s website page, the women&rsquo;s network, a women&rsquo;s section in ICEM publications, and gender issues in global agreements. The ICEM website is currently being remodelled. Once this work is finished, there will be a women&rsquo;s section on the website. The main ICEM publication, the twice-yearly GLOBALINFO, will contain a page on women&rsquo;s issues. Gender issues will be given greater priority in global agreements. AND THIS IS THE FIRST ISSUE OF THE ICEM WOMEN&rsquo;S BULLETIN. It was decided to send this bulletin out electronically on the 1st of every month. All of these initiatives will only work, however, if we receive sufficient input from YOU, because without the input from our affiliates, there will not be sufficient information to publish. We therefore call upon each and every one of you to send us information. 
	 
	Binda Pandey, Nepal, ICEM Vice-President, wrote the following suggestions for women to communicate: 
	 
	These can be the content to share among women&rsquo;s network as well as include into the Gender WebPages
<ul>
	<li>
		ICEM&rsquo;S Gender policy, 11-points programs and activities</li>
	<li>
		Women networking/structure under ICEM structure</li>
	<li>
		Gender proportion in participation 
		 
		- Decision making structure of ICEM&nbsp; 
		 
		- Workforce participation in sectoral basis (if possible)&nbsp; 
		 
		- Participation in activities organized by ICEM as sector and regional basis</li>
	<li>
		National Labor Legislation from gender point of view</li>
	<li>
		Information collected from affiliates 
		 
		- Women&rsquo;s participation as member, congress and executive committee&nbsp; 
		 
		- Gender participation in activities on annual basis.&nbsp; 
		 
		- Women&rsquo;s structure, activities and achievement&nbsp; 
		 
		- Major gender agendas at workplace and society, which is being dealt by UNION&nbsp; 
		 
		- Gender demand in CBA process and agreements&nbsp; 
		 
		- Action against HIV/AIDS and women trafficking&nbsp; 
		 
		- Ratification of ILO convention related with gender issues&nbsp; 
		 
		- Gender agenda included into Global Agreements.</li>
</ul>

	b. The ICEM Women&rsquo;s Committee further decided to prioritise equal pay for work of equal value in the pharmaceuticals industry. This will include giving maximum publicity via the website, publications, press releases, a briefing note and leaflets, posters and stickers. Surveys will be done of major companies, and CEO&rsquo;s of multinational companies approached. The policy should be pursued in collective bargaining, with ICEM assistance if required. 
	 
	c. One additional priority will be the offshore oil and gas industry. The ICEM is already involved in the ICEM-ITF Oil and Gas Alliance, a working group with the ITF, the International Transport Workers&rsquo; Federation, and gender issues should be included in future meetings of the working group. 
	 
	d. The women&rsquo;s committee also heard reports about ICEM&rsquo;s work on contract and agency labour as well as HIV/AIDS. Women&rsquo;s involvement in these two areas of work is vital and should be boosted. 
	 
	 
	2. Brief Report of Evaluation of ICEM/FNV/SASK Equal Opportunities Project in Latin America 
	 
	The evaluation seminar was held from 24 to 26 May in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The main results of the 3-year project were as follows:
<ul>
	<li>
		Significant rise in women&rsquo;s participation in trade unions, including in leadership. For example, six women union presidents attended the seminar, five of whom were elected as a direct result of the project work.</li>
	<li>
		Progress in collective bargaining proposals, especially in Chile and Brazil. 70% of the unions involved presented new gender-related proposals in their demands. In Nicaragua the sisters realised that it was a great achievement already having women present in negotiations.</li>
</ul>

	Special highlights were the creation of a permanent parity commission in Sao Paulo to discuss equal opportunities in the pharmaceuticals industry, where a major conference was held in 2004 to discuss gender and bullying at work, attended by 120 employers. The parity commission is a direct result of this conference. A second conference will be proposed to discuss women&rsquo;s health, with particular emphasis on RSI, repetitive strain injury, which is an epidemic in Brazil. 
	 
	CNQ-CUT, the Brazilian chemical confederation, has been training 30 women a year with its own resources in the FORMAQUIM program. 
	 
	In Santa Catarina, the FETIESC federation organised a public hearing on RSI, which was attended by 600 people. 
	 
	It is important to stress the fact that the experiences in the different countries in Latin America differ greatly due to the political, social and economic contexts. In many countries, negotiations have not even taken place for some time. Of all countries in Latin America, Brazil has the most advanced process of collective bargaining, due to its size, socio-economic situation and the history of the trade union movement. 
	 
	Work will continue on the oil industry, pharmaceuticals, collective bargaining, health issues such as RSI and HIV/AIDS, contract work and violence against women. 
	 
	 
	3. Equal Opportunities Agreement at Repsol 
	 
	On 17 May 2005 the Spanish energy company Repsol YPF concluded an agreement on equal opportunities with the Spanish trade unions FIA-UGT and FITEQA-CCOO. The main objective of the agreement is to improve women&rsquo;s working position on the job and in their career in the Group&rsquo;s companies. This will be achieved by:
<ul>
	<li>
		Increasing the number of women working in each of the Group&rsquo;s companies,</li>
	<li>
		Diversifying the jobs done and functions performed by women,</li>
	<li>
		Promoting women workers&rsquo; participation in job training,</li>
	<li>
		Re-evaluating women workers&rsquo; skills and abilities to guarantee equal pay for work of equal value,</li>
	<li>
		Making work more compatible with family responsibilities, both for women and men.</li>
</ul>

	The Repsol YPF group will strengthen its role as a Group by committing and advancing equal opportunities policies as part of its strategic plan, which will contribute to its future viability by making the objectives of competitivity and employment more compatible. This will be achieved by:
<ul>
	<li>
		Managing human resources to avoid discrimination and to provide real equal opportunities, backed up by permanent social dialogue,</li>
	<li>
		Committing to the adoption of positive action programs, backed by efficient instruments and adequate funding,</li>
	<li>
		Promoting changes in attitude detrimental to the achievement of this objective,</li>
	<li>
		Projecting an image inside and outside of a company committed to equality.</li>
</ul>

	4. Information from Canada 
	 
	Carol Fraser, CEP Canada, communicated the following website <a href="http://www.gov.on.ca/lab/pec/index.html">www.gov.on.ca/lab/pec/index.html</a>, which contains information on pay equity in Canada. 
	 
	For further information on these topics, do not hesitate to contact ICEM. 
	 
	 
	To add a colleague or a friend to this distribution list, send her or his e-mail address to carol.bruce@icem.org, mentioning &quot;Add to ICEM women&#039;s news list&quot; in the subject line.

ICEM Women&#039;s bulletin No. 1 - June 2005

Archive

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Chemical Safety: World's Firms And Unions To Cooperate

ICEM Women’s bulletin No. 2 – July 2005

Unions Want Social Control, ILO Utilities Meeting Told

ICEM Women's bulletin No. 1 - June 2005

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