CFTUI 5th Congress

WSM India partner, the Confederation of Free Trade Unions India (CFTUI) celebrated tripling its membership to 1,6 million workers and its new affiliation to ITUC and ITUC-A during its 5th Congress on 10 and 11th of September 2017 in Visakhapatnam, Andra Pradesh, India. Besides passing resolutions regarding the economic, political and social situation and planning CFTUIs participation in October’s General Strike, the reports from the various states shared some impressive achievements:

• Including 150.000 domestic workers through the recently joined unions;
• Combatting 10 Special Economic Zones and providing 3.000 acres of government land to landless farmers;
• Ensuring social security for informal workers, such as pension and dearness allowances for the home guards in Tripura;
• Nearly doubling the minimum wage for informal economy workers in Delhi through the Shops and Establishment Union.

The 365 delegates and participants representing 14 sectors and 21 states also decided during this 5th Congress to accommodate this growth by enlarging the Executive Bureau of CFTUI, one of the few non-political trade union in India, from 34 to 50 members and unanimously re-elected M Kanaka Rao as President and M Neeraj Chauby as General Secretary for another four years.

WSM Asia Coordinator Bruno Deceukelier attended as Chief Guest and South Coordinator Francina Varghese also attended, and gave interviews (link).

After Nepal gets Social Security, New Labour Act

After the Social Security passed, the New Labour Act was adopted last week by the Nepali Parliament. Following are some the reported major features:
1. Proposed law covers entire world of work including domestic workers.
2. This law has been agreed as the basic law; all employees will get wages and benefits as required by this law.
3. All forms of exploitative labour practices including child and forced labour is banned. Employers are restricted to make any agreement banning person from joining unions.
4. Employment structure is categorised as casual work, time-bound work, task based work and regular work. Whatever structure is made in employment contract- there will be no discrimination in terms of wages and benefits.
5. Basic Social protection measures such as gratuity, accidental benefits, sickness benefits, Medicare including workers saving– the provident funds is payable from day one of employment. Trainee and part time workers are also covered.
6. Outsource job is made more responsible, if the non-licensee recruiting agencies supply labour to any workplace; in principle, the employer is responsible to meet all benefits.
7. Making work appraisal transparent.
8. Without valid reasons and fulfilling lawful obligation, no one is to be fired from employment. In case of unlawful firing, the employer can be held accountable .Union leaders are protected during retrenchment.
9. Retiring age increased from 55 to 58 years.
10. Women workers enjoy better protection compared to the previous law:

• Transport facilities are to be provided if women are working in night shift;
• 98 days of maternity protection leave, 60 days paid;
• In case of miscarriage of 7 months and above pregnancy, benefit is provided as of maternity;
• There will be no discrimination based on gender;
• Strong disciplinary action proposed against harassment.

11. Social dialogue

• a. Every two years, the minimum wage is reviewed.
• b. Common bargaining committee in agreement of multi-unions on enterprise level is added besides the right to take part in CBA by the authentic union.
• c. 21 days given for bilateral negotiation and 30 days given for labour office to reconcile collective disputes. In case no agreement is signed during that time, union may call for strike by giving 30 days notice except essential service or state of emergency or dispute in EPZ or parties agreed for arbitration or government refer the case to arbitration. Much emphasis on given to arbitration in labour dispute by providing the right to government to refer the case to arbitration. However, such arbitration award may be challenged within 5 working days.
• d. The collective agreement is valid as equivalent to law for 2 years and remains valid if it is not changed by the next CBA.
• e. Strike action should not be prohibited without providing an alternative mechanism for collective dispute settlement.
• f. There is no agreement on sectoral central bargaining, though Nepal already ratified ILO convention 98.

12. Leave facilities and Paid public holidays are increased and May Day and 8 March included.
13. Existing factory inspection system is broadened to labour inspection system.
14. Mechanism such as enforcement of agreement and judgement is included.
15. Few flexible provisions of the Act may invite negative consequences if union became less smart:

• a. Contractual, time-bound categories of employment may escalate, though workers of all categories are entitled to enjoy all benefits and social protection measures.
• b. Period of trainees may extend to 1 year, however with no difference in entitlement.
• c. Retrenchment can be done in consultation of union, here union need to be more responsible.
• d. Everyone is entitled to get minimum facilities as stipulated in the law, but more than minimum can be reduced through CBA- here union needs to be smart
• e. There is fixed list for termination of the workers, however, additions can be made through CBA. If a union plays foul, there will negative consequences.

Nepal Parliament passes Social Security Bill

The Nepal Parliament on Monday ratified the much-awaited Social Security Bill, laying the groundwork for implementation of a provision on ‘no work, no pay’ as envisaged by the new Labour Bill.

The Bill, which will soon be signed into law by President Bidya Devi Bhandari, has paved the way for the government to introduce contributory and non-contributory social security schemes. This means citizens who make financial contribution every month and even those who do not make any contribution will be entitled to certain benefits.

People, who do not make any contribution, for instance, can claim for unemployment allowance, and gain access to basic healthcare services and free education till secondary level. The government will also ensure housing and food security for people who do not make any financial contribution.

The contributory social security schemes, on the other hand, are aimed at all those working in formal and informal sectors.  These schemes will entitle one to unemployment, maternity, health, accident, old age and disability benefits. The contributory social security scheme also extends benefits to those who are denied payments by employers.

Article appearing in the Kathmandu Post here.

AFWA released the documentary “Living Wage Now”

Asia Floor Wage Alliance released a video calling for living wages in the garment sector:

Fatal explosion kills at least 13 at Bangladesh garment factory

Multifabs factory is situated on the outskirts of Dhaka

At least 13 people were killed and up to 50 injured after a boiler exploded at a garment factory in Bangladesh on Monday, Aljazeera reported (link). Dozens of labourers were on site at the facility in an industrial district outside the capital, Dhaka, when a blast tore through the six-storey building, causing its walls and a roof to collapse.

InudstriALL released as statement (link):The explosion at the non-unionized Multifabs factory highlights the urgent need to address boiler safety in garment and textile factories in Bangladesh. As a factory covered under the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety, Multifabs has been inspected by Accord engineers. It had completed fire separation of the boiler room, and all other fire and structural safety renovations, except for installation of sprinklers. The Accord does not cover boiler inspections, which are monitored by the Bangladesh government.

There is still an enormous amount to be done to improve safety in the Bangaldeshi garment industry. This latest tragedy underlines the need for the work by the Bangladesh Accord to continue, and union signatories to the Accord will demand that it be expanded to include boiler safety as soon as possible.
Since the Rana Plaza tragedy of 2013, when over a thousand garment workers were killed, the Accord has completed fire and building safety inspections at 1,800 garment factories supplying more than 200 signatory brands. Accord engineers have identified over 118,000 fire, electrical and structural hazards at these factories. Today, 79 per cent of workplace dangers discovered in the Accord’s original round of inspections have been remediated.

Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh extended

The global union federations IndustriALL and UNI announced here that the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh will be extended with a new agreement. To date, 13 brands and retailers have signed and 8 more committed to sign the new agreement, with many more likely to follow in the weeks ahead.

The Rana Plaza collapse in April 2013 claimed the lives of more than 1,100 workers, injuring 2,500 more. Six weeks later, unions, non-governmental organizations and brands announced the Úrst Bangladesh Accord. Currently, the Accord covers more than 2.5 million workers. The Accord is a groundbreaking building safety agreement based on binding commitments by apparel brands to ensure that hazards in their factories are identified and corrected. The Accord has overseen factory renovations – from installation of fire doors to strengthening of dangerously weak structural columns – that have improved safety for millions of garment workers. The current Accord expires in May 2018.

WSM partners provide input on ILO Conference

A few weeks ago, WSM asked its partners to fill in a survey on labour migration in order to prepare common interventions during the International Labour Conference in Geneva, from 4th to 16th June 2017. There was a lot of response!

Thanks to these very valuable inputs, we have been able to deliver a common statement WSM- International Young Christian Workers on this theme on the first day of the committee, on 5th June, which was a great success! These inputs have also helped to feed WSM interventions during the debate of the following days. We had a collective strategy of lobbying with the Belgian Trade Union ACV-CSC and with representative of the continents which brought very valuable field experience to the debates:

• M Ramesh Bhadal (GEFONT) and Ganesh Niroula (NTUC) from Nepal;
• William Charpantier (FEI) from Dominican Republic;
• Samory Ould Beye (CLTM) from Mauritania.

 We were able to bring up some important points highlighted in the surveys, for example :

• The need to ratify Conventions 97 and 143 in order to protect the labour migrants better ;
• The importance to regulate recruitment agencies more strictly;
• The necessity to promote the « inclusive social dialogue » which means that social organizations of labour migrants should be able to dialogue with Trade Unions in order to enrich the official social dialogue structures with their concerns;
• The promotion of fair recruitment;
• To guarantee the access to social protection for everybody: labour migrants should benefit from the same rights as national workers;
• To promote national action plans to regularize undocumented labour migrants in order to allow them to benefit of their social and civic rights

In general, we can say that many of these demands have been included in the general conclusions of the debates. Those conclusions will give the International Labour Office (BIT) some milestones to work on for the following years. This document will also help all our organizations to lobby national governments in order to protect labour migrants better.

Cleanekleren campagne: Made in Cambodia

Wil je onze #cleanekleren campagne mee een stevige boost geven? Via jouw organisatie en jouw persoonlijk netwerk? We hebben heel veel handtekeningen nodig om Belgische sportkledingbedrijven te overtuigen om in de toekomst meer ethisch verantwoorde kleding te produceren.

In april won Wereldsolidariteit de Fair Time Award van Medialaan. Met het prijzengeld konden WS en ACV een indringende tv-spot maken en uitzenden. Een unieke kans om consumenten warm te maken om de #cleanekleren campagne te steunen. Afgelopen weekend ging hij de ether in.




Garment workers in Cambodia work 10 hour shifts, 6 days out of 7, for a very low wage. During a working day a garment worker burns the same amount of calories as a professional runner in 4 hours. "You like to suffer in your sportswear but nobody likes to suffer for your sportswear." Sign the #cleanekleren petition by Wereldsolidariteit and ACV on www.cleanekleren.be!

Made in Cambodja
Reclamebureau Boondoggle werkte het concept voor deze tv-spot uit. In 30 seconden wordt de kern van het verhaal rond #cleanekleren getoond: de fysieke inspanningen van kledingarbeidsters zijn vergelijkbaar met die van topatleten. De clip is gemaakt in Cambodja en de metingen werden uitgevoerd bij een echte kledingarbeidster.

Afzien voor jouw sportkleren
Made in Cambodja dus, net zoals jouw sportkleren. In Cambodja werkt een kledingarbeidster meer dan 10 uur per dag, 6 dagen op 7, voor een hongerloon. Tijdens een werkdag verbrandt ze evenveel calorieën als een sporter die 4 uur hardloopt. Jij ziet graag af in sportkleren, maar niemand ziet graag af voor jouw sportkleren.
Teken de petitie hier.

Also read the recent report from The Guardian here.

“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.”

16 June: International Domestic Workers Day

On 16 June 2011, the world celebrated the adoption of the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (ILO Convention No. 189). Convention No. 189 was an historic  victory that recognized domestic workers as workers like any other. Since then, 70 countries have taken measures to adopt or reform law and policy, including 24 countries that have ratified Convention No. 189.

The sector is yet again on the cusp of major change, as governments prepare to negotiate global compacts on migration and refugees with the objective of developing a framework for comprehensive international cooperation on human mobility and refugee response by July 2018.

ILO Regional Seminar on Strengthening Governance in EPZs/ GSCs through promoting GFA and other instruments, 29-31 May 2017, Jakarta – Indonesia

The ILO Bureau for Workers' Activities organized a Regional Seminar on Strengthening Governance in Export Processing Zones/ Global Supply Chain through promoting Global Framework Agreements and other instruments, from 29-31 May 2017 in Jakarta, Indonesia. The Seminar is a follow up to the Resolution and Conclusions of the 105th Session of the ILC on Decent Work in Global Supply Chain, as well as to the Bali Declaration of the APRM. The Seminar will provide input for the ILO Governing Body Decision in November 2017 to follow up the Resolution concerning the ILO Program of Action 2017-2021 on Decent Work in Global Supply Chains, especially to identify possible actions to promote decent work and protection of fundamental principles and rights at work for workers in export processing zones (EPZs) through organizing and collective Bargaining.   According to the ILO, the number of people employed in global supply chain (GSC) related jobs increased over the past decade from 296 million in 1995 to 453 million in 2013 in 40 advanced and emerging economies.

Indonesia civil society meet with European Parliamentarians regarding economic partnership

KSBSI was invited to participate in the Civil Society Organizations meeting with 6 Members of the European Parliament belonging to the International Trade Committee (INTA) on 23 May 2017 at the European building in Jakarta, Indonesia to hear the position of CSO regarding EU-Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

The meeting was organized around 2 questions:

1. Domestic perspectives on achievements, challenges and opportunities for the development of sustainable Palm Oil production (or other critical sectors) in Indonesia: social, economic, environment (deforestation, GH emissions, biodiversity, POME) and governance;
2. International synergies, how it will be discussed, policy dialogue and EU capacities best support to such developments in a 2020-2030 perspective.

Andre Kiekens, the SG of WSM talks about OHS in Nepal

Andre Kiekens, General Secretary of World Solidarity visited Nepal and the partners there. On the 28th of April, during the International Occupation Health and Safety Day, he made the following speech at meetings of NTUC and GEFONT.

It’s an honor for me to participate in this event regarding Occupational Safety and Health in Kathmandu. It is the first time that I have the opportunity to be in your nice country and this happening of your trade unions.
World Solidarity is the NGO of the Workers’ movement in Belgium and is proud to support the work of our Nepali friends on this important issue, through our partnership with these strong social movements.
That is also the reason why we give attention to this topic within the synergy programme of your organizations. Health and safety at work is really important everywhere in the world, which is why today, it is the International Day on Occupational Safety and Health. But in the context of Nepal, it is particularly needed, because there are a lot of challenges linked to this issue.
As you know, World Solidarity focuses on the issue of the “Right to Social Protection” and Social Protection has many dimensions. But a good social protection starts with good working conditions. Work is the base for a better life and cannot be the cause of diseases or illness. 

A few days ago we also remembered the catastrophe of Rana Plaza, which highlighted the working conditions of the garment sector in Bangladesh. This catastrophe shocked the world and raised awareness about the importance of safety and health as a real problem in the supply chain in Asia. Today, we can also refer to the same problems in working conditions in Qatar and the labour migrants.  In Europe, we are organizing campaigns to tackle these problems together with you.
I take this opportunity to congratulate your union for the very important role you are playing in the construction for a better, more equal, safe and democratic society in Nepal.
Trade unions have taken their responsibilities in the new constitution drafting, now, the draft labour law and the universal social security bill are on the agenda.
After that, implementation of these legislations will also be demanding and a tough and long process, which will require the involvement of all sectors and their companies. This is really an amazing structural route. We admire that the unions try to do this in unity. This synergy is making our voice so much stronger!
It is a good strategy for everywhere but it is even more important in a country where recently, political and social conflicts were so present.  You as actors of social dialogue and social protection are actors of peace. That’s also why WSM is ready to support your work with a new programme of collaboration for the next five years. This is not only about funding, but is also a commitment for exchanging ideas and capacity building based on shared values.
That’s also why a few months ago, we invited the leaders of the 3 ITUC affiliates (GEFONT, NTUC and ANTUF) to Brussels in November 2016 to share experiences. So our guests had the opportunity to share ideas and strategies and to learn from each other and the Belgian unions. As you can see, we are brothers in the same fight. And as your slogan, we should remember the victims together and fight for the living!
Solidarity greetings from the workers in Belgium and lots of courage and good luck with your important mission.
Namaste!

AMRC: Let’s push the governments and relevant organizations for the collection of reliable OSH data for sustainable action

International Workers' Memorial Day takes place annually around the world on April 28 as a day of remembrance and action for workers killed, disabled, injured or made unwell by their work.

According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), across the world:
- Each year, more than two million men and women die as a result of work-related accidents and diseases
- Workers suffer approximately 270 million accidents each year, and fall victim to some 160 million incidents of work-related illnesses
- Hazardous substances kill 440,000 workers annually – asbestos claims 100,000 lives
- One worker dies every 15 seconds worldwide. 6,000 workers die every day. More people die whilst at work than those fighting wars.
 However, the above-mentioned data are years old and not being updated on a regular basis due to challenges associated with occupational safety and health (OSH) data collection in many countries of the world particularly in the Asia and Pacific region.

NGWF: 4th Anniversary of Rana Plaza: ‘Zero Tolerance’ regarding workers safety

Leaders of National Garment Workers Federation have vowed saying, “We will not let occur anymore tragic accident like Rana Plaza in Bangladesh. We will follow ‘Zero Tolerance’ policy regarding Garment workers safety. There will be no compromise in this matter.”National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) leaders said this at ‘A lighting of 50 beacons of life by 50 orphans’ program organized to mark the 4th anniversary of Rana Plaza tragedy in front of the National Press Club in Dhaka city.

The 50 orphans have lighted equal number of lamps; they lost their parents in Rana Plaza accident that took place on April 24, 2013. They lightened the lamps at 9:15am on the occasion. The 8-story Rana Plaza located at Savar, about 30 kilometers away from the capital Dhaka, at about 9:00am on the fateful day when more than 5000 workers were working in 5 Garment factories inside the building. About 1138 workers, mostly women, lost their lives in the accident, which injured over 2500 workers. This tragedy is treated globally as the biggest industrial accident in the world in 100 years.

President of NGWF Amirul Haque Amin presided over the program. At the beginning of the program, the participants paid rich tribute & respect to the martyrs & victim and mourn their tragedy. They prayed for the departed souls and injured workers of Rana Plaza. President of the ceremony paid gratitude to the Garment workers of Bangladesh, Garment Trade Unions, International Trade Unions and Workers’ rights organizations for extending support for realizing compensation for the dead & injured victims of the tragedy and their family.

The program was addressed by, among others, NGWF General Secretary Mrs Arifa Akhtar & Central committee leaders Md. Faruq Khan, Mrs Aleya Begum, Kabir Hossain, Rafiqul Islam Rafique, Foridul Islam, Humayun Kabir, Mrs Sweety Sultana, H Robiul Chowdhury, Miss Esrat Jahan Ela, Bacchu Mia, Mrs Parvin Akhter, Md. Kasem.

While  delivering  presidential  speech  NGWF  President  Amirul  Haque  Amin appealed to the Government, Trade union bodies, BGMEA-BKMEA, Brands (ACCORD & Alliance) to undertake joint initiatives to prevent a repetition of tragedies like Rana Plaza and Tazreen Tragedies and to compensate the victim workers as per ‘Loss of earnings’(& 500.000Taka for ‘Pain & sufferings as per ILO Convention 121), as well as providing and short and long term medical support.

Amin also urged all concerned to provide long-term advanced and free Medicare support to the injured workers of both Rana Plaza and Tazreen.