From toiling the soil to leading the union - CFTUI, India

Marisa Naresh, 38 years, born in the village of RAJAM in Andhra Pradesh: "My family survived on a mere 3 acres of agricultural land, toiling under the sun. We were laborers, our livelihood tied to the earth.

As a young man, I looked up to Mr. N. Satyanarayana—the towering figure behind the District Agricultural Union. At 17, I stepped into the world of union activities. Our affiliation with CFTUI in 2007 opened doors. Thematic knowledge, organizing skills, and public speaking—these became my tools.

Through WSM-supported activities, I learned about labour standards, participated in sectoral conferences, several basic and advanced training which boosted my knowledge on labour rights.  I now lead struggles, especially concerning MGNREGA wages. The ageing leaders pass the torch to me, and I’ve become a role model for youth in the agricultural sector."

Call for action: support the demand for an HRDD instrument from the EU Commission: A law to protect workers, people, and planet from bad business

The European Commission is finally ready to consider a new law to hold businesses accountable for their impact on people and the planet. These rules on mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence should require all companies, from fossil fuel giants and agribusiness to fashion retailers and electronics makers, to establish effective policies to make sure human rights and the environment are not being harmed in their global operations and supply chains.

The EU Commission announced last year that they would come with a proposal on mandatory Human Rights Due Diligence (HRDD), including corporate liability, access to remedy for victims etc. We feel the EU can and must use its power to set ambitious standards in the fight to hold business accountable for things like union busting, forced labor, land grabbing or toxic waste dumping.

The proposal would be published around June 2021 and until 8th of February, the Commission runs a consultation to collect the input from citizens and stakeholders. INSP!R Asia and its members also contributed since the consultation is open to people across the world that are affected by problems in the global value chains. Since the official submission for an EU consultation is often quite complex (find it here), a coalition of organisations (ETUC, Friends of the Earth, ECCJ etc.) have developed a ‘citizen tool’, to join the consultation by signing their submission here. 

What is “human rights and environmental due diligence”?

It is generally understood as the process for businesses to identify, prevent, reduce and account for the negative impacts of their activities or relationships, which often involve subsidiaries, subcontractors, suppliers and other economic transactions.

Migrant, garment workers and social security - Indonesia in 2019

Yusi Candi is a migrant worker who worked in Saudi Arabia. She was struck by disaster while working abroad but now her condition has improved. Currently Yusi works as an honorary teacher in a kindergarten in Karawang district, where she previously had worked as a migrant worker. Yusi didn’t not know all of her rights and obligations as a migrant worker until she had an accident. In Indonesia she was assisted by SPMI and she learned why for prospective migrant workers it is important to be recruited through legal channels. She now passes on the information to other migrant workers , whom plan to go working abroad.Yusi also played an active role in her area helping with the handling of cases of abused migrant workers for SPMI. She’s also thinking of becoming an organizer for SPMI in her living area, aside from her job as a teacher. That way Yusi hopes she can contribute to the trainings of SPMI in this area, so she can provide a better understanding and training to migrant workers before they go abroad on how to migrate in a legal way, and what are the legal rights of Indonesian migrant workers going abroad. Because in Yusi’s living area there are still many illegal departures.

Political, economic and social context
Presidential elections were held on 17 April 2019. Incumbent president Joko Widodo won 55,5 % of all votes, while his opponent Prabowo Subianto lost the election with 44,5% of the votes. However, as in 2014, Subianto was not ready to accept the result and petitioned the Constitutional Court to cancel the results of the election, bringing fraud allegations against Widodo. This created a lot of political tension, with protesters rioting in the streets of Jakarta. In the end the Court ruled against the petition of electoral fraud and upheld Widodo’s victory. In October President Widodo surprisingly appointed Subianto as Defense Minister in his new government. The new cabinet introduced a draconian package of economic reforms, also known as the ‘OMNIBUS – law’. The Indonesian government says the goal of the package is to create jobs and to increase competitiveness through simplification of existing laws, making it easier for businesses to invest. However, partner organization KSBSI says that the ‘OMNIBUS – law’  (which is actually a cluster of 74 different laws, divided over 11 policy areas) will substantially remove the existing protection mechanisms for workers that have been created over a period of 20 years, not in the least the Labour Law of 2003 and the Law concerning Trade Unions of 2000. Together with two other trade union confederations KSPI and KSPSI, KSBSI has reactivated the union platform MPBI, to lobby against the enactment of the OMNIBUS – law.

No to contractualization; Yes to a national minimum wage! - Philippines 2019

"I’m Analou Paquera, 27 years old and currently working in the UNI ELEMENTS ENTERPRISES located in Malanday, Valenzuela City (Manila metropole). I was born in Cotabato, Mindanao and I choose to migrate to go in Manila to look for a better job because of lack of opportunities in my province. I am working in UNI ELEMENT since 2015 as part of the production line. I make the chemicals that are necessary to produce liquid soap and bath soap.
In 2015, my salary was 250PHP (4,5 euros) for 12 hours of work. I had no benefits like SSS (social security), PhilHealth or any other social insurance. In the company there are many violations of the labour law by the employer, lack of overtime payment, 13th month pay. The workers are also exposed to the chemicals without protective equipment, which are very harmful. In 2019, I met the organizer of Young Christian Workers (YCW) in Malanday Valenzuela with my fellow workers and we have shared about of all the young workers in the UNI ELEMENTS Factory. We decided to organize my fellow workers to change our reality.
We filed a case in the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) for the violation of the minimum wage regulations, for the non-remittance of our social insurance benefits and to get our underpaid salary of a period of almost 5 years. After negotiating with the employer and the DOLE, we finally got our unpaid salary. My employer paid me 45.000 pesos (800 USD) back pay. He was also forced to increase my daily salary from 250 pesos (4,5 euro) to 700 pesos (12,5 euro).
Our experience in organizing to demand salary increase was not easy. We have faced many challenges in organizing dialogue and negotiations with the employer and the DOLE, because we didn’t know before how to do it. But YCW helped us by sharing their own experience on how to deal with this. As of now, we still need to continue to organize the workers here in UNI ELEMENTS because even though my salary was increased, my job status is still as contractual worker.”

Political, economic and social context of the Philippines
Throughout 2019, the Philippino government continued curtailing the freedom of speech and association of human and labour rights activists, independent journalists and trade unions. With Executive Order 70 the red-tagging of progressive workers’ organizations as communist and terrorist organizations has intensified. The authorities have already used EO70 to target local unions in areas where there are Chinese investments.  At the International Labour Conference in Geneva the ILO decided to schedule a high-level mission to the Philippines for an investigation into the killing of 43 labour activists in the last 3 years, a mission which to date the Philippino authorities has not yet allowed to enter the country. In the meantime, due to the passing of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Act (TRAIN) in 2018 prices of basic goods and services continued to rise in 2019. One study found that the law can create a monthly loss of up to 3.000 pesos (± 53 euro) per family. Last year the Expanded Maternity Leave was adopted, extending maternity leave with full pay from 60 to 105 days. A Universal Health Care Act was also passed, supposedly lowering out-of-pocket health expenses but according to the partner organizations, this law will only contribute to the further commercialization and privatisation of public health care services.

Nepal - COVID-19: Workers getting protection

Both NTUC and GEFONT started out with organizing assistance and hygiene awareness programmes for their members. Since the lock down in Nepal,  more recently they have also provided food relief to their members in need, mostly informal or day workers.

More importantly, both trade unions also advocated for the Government of Nepal to support workers affected by the pandemic. The Government followed their demands and announced a relief package on the 29th of March, including measures such as:

1. Government shall pay 31 percent of basic salary needed to pay to the Social security Fund by employer and employee and employer shall pay remaining amount only to the employees;
2. Employer should not cut salary of employee during the pandemic ensued lockdown;
3. Local government should manage and provide food during the lock-down to all daily waged and informal economy workers;
4. Private school fees for this month may not be paid by workers. 

The government also declared that the treatment for people infected by COVID-19 shall be done free of cost. However, some believe this package to be unclear and implementation to be unsure. M Ajay Kumar, Steering Committee member for Nepal also highlighted the issue of transport workers in an open letter to the Prime Minister.

Video made by GEFONT (in Nepali) to raise awareness among workers regarding the virus

WSM new partner in Nepal, the Social Protection Civil Society Network (SPCSN) has started broadcasting public announcements on the radio (Community Information Network) all over Nepal to increase public awareness for prevention measures. They have also signed a joint appeal regarding specific measures to be taken for children and other vulnerable categories.

ILO overview of COVID-19 measures implemented by governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, and the ILO for Nepal: link

Indonesia and COVID-19: KSBSI facilitates pre-employment card and SPMI assists returning migrant workers

Indonesia has one of the lowest rates of COVID-19 testing, and it is concentrated in greater Jakarta where the country’s best medical facilities are. It is still unclear what containment measures Indonesian authorities will take, beyond social distancing and handwashing, to lower the rate of infections. The Indonesian President, however, has announced to allocate 2,55% of GDP or 15,9% of the APBN (state budget) for COVID-19 mitigation. It’s aimed at keeping Indonesia’s economy afloat during the coming weeks. For the moment, they’re mainly focussing on prevention. “The more individuals in the community learn about the preventive messages, the more chance they have to beat the virus”, said Yurianto, Government’s spokesman for COVID19-related matters.  The Indonesian government will implement a "Large-Scale Social Restriction (PSBB)" starting in Jakarta and surroundings city on 10 April. Every region in Indonesia can ask the Central government for PSBB implementation when it meets the requirements, such as data on increased number of COVID-19, prepared health facilities, quarantine plan, food distribution, cash transfer plan, limitation of public transport, etc.

WSM partner, the trade union KSBSI negotiated with management to set up hygiene and safety measures in the companies and factories to protect workers from the virus.  MPBI (KSPI, KSPSI and KSBSI) provides disinfectant spraying for the general public and distributes hands sanitizers to people in need.

KSBSI is also socializing and assisting members to collect data on workers lay-offs so that they can be registered for pre-employment benefits card, which has a cash transfer of 1 million IDR per month (around 80 Euro), for the next 4 months due to COVID-19.

WSM other partner in Indonesia, SPMI (previously SBMI) was involved to collect data from and assist at least 3.000 migrant workers that returned to Indonesia. They also had to pressure management for the payment of outstanding salaries for workers who had to leave.

ILO overview of COVID-19 measures implemented by governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, and the ILO for Indonesia: link

Cambodia - COVID-19: Garment orders cancelled and factories closed

Kong Athit

On the 25th of March the Cambodian Prime Minister announced that Cambodia enters a state of emergency. So far, there are no official cases in the garment sector, but there are also no tests done. According to Kong Athit, Vice President of the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers’ Democratic Union (CCAWDU), brands like Indytex and C&A are discontinuing their orders and not even collecting their produced orders. All the unions therefore have a public statement towards the government and will write a letter to the Brands, in which they request them to contribute to a suspension fund.

The garment sector is different than other sectors in Cambodia, since they will face massive suspension due to the drop of orders from the EU and the USA. That’s why IndustriALL is working on a global strategy between brands and suppliers, with 3 points in particular:

• Ask brands to pay for completed orders;
• Establish an emergency relief fund by the brands;
• Urge the Cambodian government to strengthen the social protection system to support the garment workers.

Moreover, the lock-down is unclear for other sectors in Cambodia. Beginning of April, 91 garment factories closed, meaning that there are over 3.000 workers without income. More than 400 hotels closed and some hotels are paying 50% salaries to the workers, but in most hotels without unions, the workers just have to take unpaid leave. Also in the construction sector, there’s little specific information on the lock-down. Cement factories are still working for example and no measures are announced. Therefore, BWTUC wrote a letter to the Government requesting similar measures as for the garment sector workers.

The next challenge will be lack of food and money to pay rent. “Unions will need support for awareness and Protective Personal Equipment materials. Union must use this opportunity to organise and to support the workers. Even if we lose members, we need to show that the unions are looking out for them”, said Athit. They will increase their communication with members in suspended companies and monitor the situation. There’s also a need for a national dialogue on the contributions from employers, government and brands according to Athit.

Bangladesh: NGWF demands six months maternity leave

In light of the International Women’s Day 2020 on 8th of March, National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) has demanded 6 months maternity leave in private sectors, including for the garment workers. The rally was held on Friday 6th of March 2020, in Dhaka, Bangladesh. M Amirul Haque Amin, President of NGWF, said that the government already declared 6 months maternity leave for the public sector, but the country’s private sector, including the garment industry, still has only 4 months maternity leave. NGWF also demanded the government of Bangladesh to ratify ILO Convention 190 to stop all types of violence and harassment against women. More than two hundred women joined the procession in front of National Press Club, carrying banners and festoons with demands of 6 months maternity leave and ratification of ILO Convention 190. The rally started in front of National Press Club and went to the High Court, Palton Circle including some other street and ended at Topkhana road.

35 people from WSM and its partners in the world take part in the ILO Global week on social protection in Geneva

Four days of high-level conference on universal social protection (# USP2030) allowed to share a lot of key information and to network. Many high-level personalities talked about the importance of social protection and how it will be achieved by 2030. So many changes await us: climate - demography - globalization - growing inequalities – changing labor markets. A transition is needed and social protection must be part of this transition! You can find the outcome document here.

Currently, social protection as a human right is far from being a reality.
Barely 29% of the world's population has access to comprehensive social protection systems, 55% are totally deprived, while the global economy is worth over $ 100 billion. This means there is enough money to send all the children of the world to school, to provide everyone in the world with quality health care, to ensure that everyone in the world has adequate social protection. But, here is the catch: “there are 2.000 billionaires!”, says economist Jeffrey Sachs: “There is enough, it is just not distributed properly." So don’t point your finger at low-income countries, but blame the Donald Trumps, Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerbergs.

For social protection to be possible for all, for it to be affordable, that it is not perceived as a cost but as an investment depends on political priorities. Over and again, the same messages came back during the Global Social Protection Week in Geneva. The International Labor Organization (ILO) brought together over 600 people from governments, private companies and social movements to chart the way to universal social protection. It invites us to accelerate to increase the likelihood of reaching the goal by 2030. That being said, there is still a lot to do!

"It exists on paper, but practice is different!"

The goal of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically number 1.3, is to put in place social protection systems that protect everyone, including the poorest and most vulnerable sections of the population. Social protection starts with social dialogue, a necessary exchange between employees, employers and government. Many social protection systems are based on the labour relationship and their legal status (employed or self-employed). These systems must evolve to adapt to changing contexts around the world.

"There is already a social protection system in the Dominican Republic - at least on paper - the practice is somewhat different, since more than half of the working population is employed in the informal sector, they are not entitled to benefits when they become ill". Altagracia Jimenez, representative of our union partner AMUSSOL, immediately tackles one of the many problems. Setting up an official social protection system is one thing, covering the whole population is another.

Moreover, it should not be forgotten that there is no single universally applicable social protection system, it needs to be adapted to the realities of each country. Therefore, social protection should be seen by states as a global investment and not a cost. Investing in social protection contributes to peace, more equality and more democracy, it is a public investment in social justice. And, when rolled out, it shows a clear multiplier effect for many of the other Sustainable Development Goals.
However, let us not forget that there is a financial gap, namely that the poorest countries alone can’t fund it. Solidarity is therefore needed from richer countries, as well as from the rich, towards the poorest countries. According to experts, "comprehensive social protection" is needed, and goes well beyond the "safety nets" that many countries rely on. The best systems are "universal"!

Will we solve this problem simply by organizing an International Conference?
In the end, it seems difficult to formulate a global answer while each continent, each country, each region has its own realities. According to Koen Detavernier, Advocacy Officer at WSM, such a conference is still relevant: "A conference like this can reinforce the belief that it is possible. If a country like Mexico in one year is able to provide pensions in one year and thus make a great leap for universal social protection, other countries will be convinced that they, too, can make it happen. This conference really encourages countries to invest in social protection and prioritize it in their international cooperation."

The network supported by WSM
WSM was very present at this Social Protection Week in Geneva. Our delegation of 35 people was mainly composed of representatives of our many partner organizations from Africa, Asia and Latin America. According to Koen Detavernier, there are two main reasons for being here. "On the one hand, we are here to learn more about the topic: experts present their points of view, explain future strategies, give concrete examples and share the results of their research." But the idea is also to do and achieve things. "We are looking for new collaborations, for example, to work on very concrete aspects of social protection on the ground, through informal conversations, meetings in the corridors, etc. Being seen and heard in this conference makes a difference and helps get things moving."

India passes two of the four proposed and controversial labour codes, with dire consequences for workers, especially informal

From the Working Peoples Charter:
On July 4, the Economic Survey argued that a higher national minimum wage is central to addressing inequality and widespread poverty in the country. A couple of weeks later, the government of India trashed its own analysis by proposing a “starvation wage” of Rs. 178 a day. The Central government hit the nadir with a minimum wage hike of Rs. 2! Experts allege that it is a precursor of what is in store for millions of workers as the cabinet passed two of the four proposed labour codes – Code on Wages as well as the Code on Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions.

 Working people are a national asset - undermining their well-being is the biggest anti-national act. Need based Minimum Wage should be guided by Supreme Court jurisprudence laid down in Raptacos case, which is based on principles and test laid down by judiciary, and if any committee, any advisory board decided below this, has to give reason and recommendation.

The two codes were tabled for discussion yesterday by Sri. Santosh Gangwar, Minister of Labour and Employment. With this the Parliament has struck the proverbial hammer on the fate of millions of workers, robbing them of the possibility of decent work and wages, omitting the principles of determining minimum wages, an equal workplace and avenues for access to justice. Primarily driven by the interests of the industry, this predatory piece of legislation is all set to alter the labour protection landscape in India beyond repair and reclaim. It clearly shows that there is a clear drive to `informalise the formal` or `levelling down` which has been central to the overall architecture of the emerging labour regime.

This predatory piece of legislation is all set to alter the labour protection landscape in India beyond repair and reclaim.  With this the Parliament strikes the proverbial hammer on the fate of millions of workers, robbing them of the possibility of decent work and wages, an equal workplace and all avenues for access to justice.

Putting an end to contractualization in Philippines

Contractualization, while in most cases illegal, is a commonly used practice in Philippino companies to give workers temporary employment for just less than 6 months preventing them to be regularized. Short-term contract workers do not have the same benefits as regularized workers, such as social security, health insurance (Philhealth), unpaid leaves, a 13th month bonus. Moreover, contractual workers will be less eager to become a union member as they risk not having their contract renewed. While the Philippino president had vowed to phase out contractualization and has signed an executive order to that end, in reality the practices of labour-only contracting and job contracting are still omnipresent in Philippino companies. 

KMU decided to focus their campaign against contractualization on mass filings for regularization, which appeared to be much more effective than individual legal aid to the workers. Contractual workers would file a document to the Department of Labour and Employment that they want their company to be investigated on compliance with the regulations on contractual work and security of tenure and that they want to be regularized as permanent workers. The lists that were filed contained some 2.900 to 3.000 companies with 300.000 workers which could be up for regularization. In some cases (Coca Cola, Magnolia), several hundreds of workers managed to become permanent workers, while others were not granted such status.

Due to the attention that was given to the campaign against contractualization, the All Workers’ Unity (an alliance of labour centers advocating for a national minimum wage and for an end to contractualization), could not make substantial progress on the demand for higher minimum wages. 

Act against the privatization of public hospitals in the Philippines

Political, economic and social context

In 2018, the political situation in the Philippines still deteriorated in comparison to the previous year, as the Philippino government, under the guise of an all-out war against drug lords and terrorists, continued its crackdown on civil society organisations, human and labour rights activists and indigenous people. The martial law which was imposed in Mindanao in 2017 was extended to the whole region of Visayas and to Bicol (as the so-called ‘State of Lawlessness’), raising concerns that soon it will cover the whole of the Philippino territory. Heavy military operations have also been expanding, while military officials have been placed in key government positions. 

Social activism, mobilization and organising of workers becomes increasingly difficult and dangerous, due to a climate of indiscriminate violence and extrajudicial killings. The administration passed the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Act (TRAIN), which sparked a lot of protest from progressive labour and pro-poor organisations, as the excise tax on oil products contributed to the rise of inflation in 2018 (up to 6,7% in October 2018). The tax reform and subsequent sharp rise in the price of basic commodities affected mostly poor workers who have to get by on a daily minimum wage (in Manila) of 512 pesos (±8,2 euro).

Medical staff in Manila hospital

"My name is Rose Ann. I have been employed as a laboratory technician grade 1 for four years now but by training am a medical technologist. While I was applying for a better suited and paid position of medical technologist 2, I was charged with a case to pay 35.000PHP (600€) for some spilled reagent. The Alliance of Health Workers’ union in our hospital met with the head of the laboratory and found out that the chief of the department wanted to give the position I was applying for to his niece, who was still had to pass her final exams. It seems he didn’t want to give me, the current laboratory technician, the position but he wanted to wait for his niece to pass the board exam and give it to her.AHW filed a complaint and notified the director of this potential abuse, and four of us health workers got promoted to medical technologist grade 2. The hospital also acquitted me of the 35.000PHP, determining the real cause was a malfunctioning of the machine indicator, while I had correctly followed the Standard Operating Procedure."

Act against the privatization of public hospitals, health facilities and health services

In three hospitals, AHW could negotiate an ‘end-of-the-year-incentive’ of 25.000 pesos (±430 euro). In two other hospitals, 475 health workers – nurses as well as administrative staff – could be regularized.

Health workers and their organizations, among which the Alliance of Health Workers, obtained a (small) success in the House of Representatives with the passing of the ‘Act prohibiting the privatization and corporatization of public hospitals, public health facilities and public health services’ which states that “the State has to ensure the protection and promotion of the right to health of the people and to make essential goods, health and other services available to all people at affordable cost”. No public hospital, health facility or health service shall be privatized and 90% of total bed capacity in public hospitals has to be allocated to indigent/poor patients. However, the law can only be enacted when a similar bill is being introduced and passed in the Senate.

Negotiating wages in Indonesia

South Sumatra is one of the regions where the development of KSBSI is quite strong, with 5 federations who have a total of 15.210 members. The monthly provincial minimum wage in South Sumatra in 2018 was 2.600.000 Rupiah (± 165 euro) and increased to 2.800.000 Rupiah ((± 176 euro)  in January 2019. In Indonesia, the majority of workers receive wages that are composed of the provincial minimum wage and a fixed allowance. This means that there is no difference in wages between workers who have a work experience of less than one year and wages of workers who have a tenure of more than one year. To increase the income of workers in South Sumatra, KSBSI is very serious in advocating for increases in provincial minimum wages. With the existence of a wage scale structure, it is expected that there will be an increase in wages and there will be rewards for workers who work more than one year. This year there are 12 companies that have handed over the structure of the wage scale to the South Sumatra labour agency.

Mr. Ali Hanafiah was born in Palembang, on 8 July 1969. He graduated from STIH Sumpah Pemuda University in 2010. He is the regional coordinator of KSBSI in South Sumatra. Before he was the chairperson of KSBSI at plant level for 2 years and chairperson of the branch board of NIKEUBA (KSBSI’s service sector federation) for 12 years.  Currently he is a member of the provincial wage council and vice chairperson of the tripartite social dialogue at province level as a representative for the workers.

Political, economic and social context
In 2018 Indonesia’s economic growth tended to be stable at about 5%. Increasing religious sentiment, abused by Islamic fundamentalists, stirred up fears that conservative parties would claim victory in the regional elections, thus also influencing the national elections in April 2019. Identity and religious politics risk to divert attention from the agenda of economic development, prosperity and social welfare that is being promoted by the current Indonesian administration under President Joko Widodo. On 28 September an earthquake and tsunami hit Palu and Donggala in Central Sulawesi, killing 2.113 and injuring 4.612 people. Both KSBSI and SBMI provided immediate assistance to their members in the area and the families who became victim of the tsunami.

Minimum wages, wage scale structure and social security
Since presidential regulation 2015/n°78 was adopted, yearly minimum wages in Indonesia (set at provincial or district level) can only be increased by inflation and growth of gross domestic product. Based on those two criteria the growth of the provincial minimum wage for 2019 was fixed at 8,03%. While KSBSI is not in favour of Regulation 2015/78, as it prevents the trade unions from fully freely negotiating minimum wages such as foreseen by the ILO Minimum Wage Convention, it does not believe that in the current political constellation the regulation can be overturned in the short term. Currently KSBSI focuses in its training for local union leaders, activists and members on the implementation of the wage scale structure, as October 2017 was the deadline for companies to register their wage structure at the Labour Department. However, most Indonesian employers are still not aware about their obligation to determine a structure and scale of wages in the company taking into account the class, position, period of employment, education level and competence of the employees. Seen the limitations that have been imposed to the regular minimum wage negotiations, the trade unions see the wage scale structure regulation as a way to differentiate wages at company level, so that at least at plant level it will be possible to still negotiate higher wages. The workers should be informed of the wage scale structure in their company.

Though OHS in Bangladesh improved, wages did not (NGWF)

 Ms. Sufia is 27 years old and works as a sewing Operator at Jamuna Apparels in Dhaka since 2014. Over the four years she worked with honesty and dedication. In July 2018, her Manager threatened and insulted her, and forced her to sign a blank sheet of paper. She was dismissed without respecting the legal procedure. Ms. Sufia was devastated and at a loss as to how to continue providing for her family. As she was a member of NGWF, she asked help to get her job back or at least compensation. NGWF sent a legal notice to the factory management which didn’t receive any reply. NGWF filed with Ms. Sufia a case at the Labour Court and end of September 2018, a settlement was reached which entitled Sufia to several benefits, including for her termination, amounting to a total amount of around 1.000€. She used this to buy a cow and her husband opened a tea shop, providing her family with alternative income.

Though the health and safety aspects have improved in Bangladesh, the general working conditions haven’t improved, on the contrary. After five years, the minimum wage for garment workers was increased from 45€ to 70€, way below the requested 150€ and largely insufficient because it doesn’t even cover inflation and lower than neighboring countries like China with 150€. Hence, the National Garment Workers Federation (NGWF) keeps organizing: membership went up with 21%, 74 new unions were registered at factory level in recent years and NGWF managed to obtain over 150.000€ for garment workers through arbitration. No meagre task as NGWF thus accounts for over 60% of the total compensations paid.

Social Security Coverage for all Nepali workers

Another major issue we have been working on with WSM support is social protection, where we were able to draft a position paper on behalf of all the trade unions, which was used as the main tool while bargaining with the employers and the government, and that I think led to a milestone for social security in Nepal.  Ramesh Badal, GEFONT and Steering Committee member for Nepal.

New historic social security legislation was passed in July 2017, after 18 years of lobbying by the trade unions, WSM partners. A universal social security bill was passed which has paved the way for the government to four main social security schemes. For the very first time, all those working in formal and informal sectors will be covered by unemployment, maternity, health, accident, old age and disability benefits. Workers will contribute 11%, while employers 20% and the government will ensure the management of the system. The 27th of November was declared National Social Security Day, to be celebrated yearly and offering an opportunity to yearly remind the government of its now very public commitment. And of course, WSM partners as trade unions gathered many of their members across the country to celebrate and inform workers of these new rights, and they'll be there to help ensure the government rolls out all these schemes and doesn't just stop at these four basic schemes.

100-year-old ILO prepares for the future

Geneva, January 22, 2019 - The International Labor Organization (ILO) officially launched its centenary with the presentation of the final report of the Global Commission on the Future of Work. As the name suggests, this Commission focused on the Future of Work. Former World Solidarity Chairman and until recently, chairman of the Board of Directors of the ILO, Luc Cortebeeck, also participated in this Committee.

The ILO, when blowing its 100th candle, aims to do 2 things. On the one hand, it looks back on the past as the only tripartite organization in the UN system, where governments, trade unions and employers jointly set out guidelines for social policies worldwide. On the other hand, it wants to look ahead: what challenges do we face in the world of work and what answer can the ILO offer? The Global Commission has focused on this key question since October 2017. Its analysis and recommendations can be found in the report 'Work for a brighter future'.

Bangladesh Labour amendment bill passed

The Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Bill, 2018 was passed in Parliament on 24th of October 2018 aiming to give more facilities to workers and reducing the workers' threshold to 20 percent from the existing 30 percent for forming trade unions. State Minister for Labour and Employment (Independent Charge) Md Mujibul Haque Chunnu moved the Bill in the House and it was passed by voice vote.The bill was prepared and updated following the observations of the International Labour Organization (ILO) which will be a labour-friendly one.

Under the new law:

1. the percentage of workers' participation required for forming trade unions at factories will be reduced to 20 percent from the existing 30 percent;
2. no child will be allowed to work in factories. If anybody employs child workers, then he or she will have to pay a fine of Tk 5,000;
3. the punishment of workers for violating laws has been reduced by 50 percent while new facilities included for them;
4. the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishment has been upgraded to the level of Directorate;
5. The post of the chief inspector of the department is now inspector general, while deputy director general is additional inspector general, and the post of labour director has been upgraded to the rank of director general;
6. Mentally and physically-challenged labourers cannot be employed in any risky works;
7. According to section 47 of the Bill, if any female worker gives birth to a baby before informing the authorities, she will get an eight-week leave within three days after informing the authorities. If the factory authorities do not allow her to go on leave, they will be fined Tk 25,000. 
8. Besides, if any worker does his or her duty during festival, he or she will get a one-day leave and wage for two days after the festival. 
9. Both owners and workers will be sentenced to one-year jail with a fine of Tk 10,000 for misconduct, which was two years in the previous law. 
10. Section 195 of the law will be applicable for factory owners and section 196 for labourers and workers. 
11. In case of natural death, the family of the worker concerned will get Tk 2 lakh as compensation, which was Tk 1 lakh in the previous law, and in the case of injury, they will get Tk 2.50 lakh, which is now Tk 1.25 lakh. 
12. if the owner is forced to sign or accept anything applying force, issuing threat, confinement, torture and detaching gas, power and water connections, this will be considered as misconduct.
13. the punishment for enforcing strike illegally has been reduced to six months from one year.
14. the support of 51 percent workers is needed against present two-thirds of total workers to call a strike. Illegal enforcement of strike will also be considered as misconduct. 
15. If anyone is found to be a member of a number of trade unions at the same time, he or she will be sentenced to one month's imprisonment which was six months in the previous law. 
16. According to the ILO convention, the draft law has a scope to form a tripartite advisory council consisting of the government, owners and workers.
17. the Labour Court will have to deliver judgment in a case within 90 days from the date of filing it and if it is not possible to announce the verdict in the stipulated time, the court must deliver its judgment in the next 90 days. In case of appeal petition, the court will have to pass its order within 90 days. 
18. the government will have to give registration to a trade union within 55 days from receiving the application which was in 60 days in the previous law.

Outcome of the ITUC-FES-WSM Financing of social protection seminar

 At the international level, there has been renewed and increasing commitment to extend social protection in recent years, most notably through the adoption of ILO Recommendation 202 (National Social Protection Floors) and Recommendation 204 (Transitioning from the Informal to the Formal Economy). The Agenda 2030 further strengthens this international commitment with references to social protection in 5 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s).

However, the question of how such extensions to social protection should be financed and who should finance them has been relatively under addressed within international debates. It was within this context that the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) and World Solidarity (WSM), decided to host a Global Conference on Financing Social Protection on 17-18 September 2018 in Brussels. The conference brought together over 100 participants from trade unions, civil society, academia, think tanks, international organisations and governments from across the world to identify the challenges to financing social protection and to explore the solutions available both at the national and the international level.

How to pay to extend social protection?

 ITUC, with FES and WSM brought together 140 participants from over 30 trade unions and civil society organisations in the world to look at ways to finance social protection 17-18 September in Brussels. Worldwide, social protection is increasingly recognised as a priority: by the ILO (with Recommendation 202 on social protection floors adopted in 2012), the EU, the World Bank, the IMF and even the G20. As a result, it features very prominently in the Sustainable Development Goals (1.3).

Gijs Justaert from the policy department of WSM: “Though the consensus on the need for social protection grows, the main question remains: how to achieve universal social protection in each country?”. Alison Tate, Director of Economic and Social Policy at ITUC feels that “extending social protection shouldn’t be seen by governments as an increased expense, as many do - in an environment of austerity, but as an investment that pays off in terms of better skills, greater equality and inclusive economic growth.”

Several international organisations (ILO, WB, IMF, EU and OECD) and development partners shared their views on the question of sustainable financing. Bruno Deceukelier, Asia Coordinator for WSM sees “a big difference in approach between some of them. The World Bank and IMF want to assist the extreme poor or crises affected population, whereas Social Protection with a right based approach would ensure universal coverage, which would also gather larger support from all citizens.” The FES Social Protection Index and other research shows that in the short term, 71 countries could achieve social protection floors for all by investing an extra 2% of GDP or less.

Sulistri, from KSBSI

“In South Asia, the informal workers still have to be reached and covered by the newly adopted social security schemes, because they represent over 80% of the population, as well as labour migrants, both in the sending or the destination countries”, says Umesh from GEFONT in Nepal. 

Sulistri, from KSBSI, and also Steering Committee member for Indonesia of the Asia Network on the Right to Social Protection (ANRSP) echoes this: “As a union we successfully pushed for the inclusion of workers from the informal economy in the law on social security, but it is complicated because the contributions come only from the workers, and have to be paid regularly; if not, they lose their benefits. This seminar looked at eight options to finance Social Protection, and, hopefully with the assistance from ITUC, we can analyse which are most appropriate for us in Indonesia.” 

Prit SoUot from CLC Cambodia, highlights existing gaps: “the NSSF only covers employment injury insurance for the enterprises employing at least 8 workers and that the Cambodian Government’s plan to extend social insurance for disabled, unemployed and retirement needs to be closely monitored.”

Francisca Altagracia Jimenez
AMUSSOL-CASC

Francisca Altagracia Jimenez from AMUSSOL-CASC explained their efforts to cover the informal workers in the Dominican Republic, which wasn’t an evident choice for trade unions, but which has allowed them to increase their membership. “Today, more than 60.000 informal economy workers, 40% of them women, enjoy health care, employment injury insurance and an old age pension.” 

But social protection is not only for the workers, and Drissa Soare from CNTB, Burkina Faso highlights the importance of working together with other actors of civil society, like health cooperatives to help ensure the access to health: “with the support of WSM, we have been working together in a multi-stakeholder network to lobby for better legislation and extend the services and coverage to their members.”

 Drissa Soare from CNTB, Burkina Faso and Alison Tate, ITUC

In short, as Alison Tate, Director of Economic and Social Policy of ITUC says: “Promoting Social protection is part of the core business of trade unions, as it links directly to the fight against inequality.” This seminar allowed trade unionists and civil society representatives from Africa, Latin America, Asia and Europe to share experiences and good practices. Several of them highlighted the need to work together in strategic alliances to address the huge challenges that remain.  Something WSM and its partners already do within their network on the right to social protection. Something ITUC, FES, WSM and several other civil society organisations do within the Global Coalition for Social Protection Floors.

In short, the conference was an excellent opportunity for WSM and its partners to increase their visibility and highlight some of their work, not only to other trade unions, but also to stakeholders like the ILO, potential donors and partners which could support our rights-based approach to promote the right to social protection for all around the world.

ITUC Launches Migrant Worker “Recruitment Adviser” Platform

ITUC Launches Migrant Worker “Recruitment Adviser” Platform

Since many of the members of the Asian Network on the Right to Social Protection, are actively involved in the support for labor migrants' rights, I thought it could be interesting to share this message from ITUC on the launch of the 'Recruitment Adviser'.

Brussels, 4 April 2018 (ITUC OnLine): The ITUC has launched a new web platform to help protect migrant workers from abusive employment practices, by providing them with peer-to-peer reviews about recruitment agencies in their country of origin and destination.

The Recruitment Advisor, developed by the ITUC with support from the ILO Fair Recruitment initiative”, lists thousands of agencies in Nepal, Philippines, Indonesia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and other countries.

The platform allows workers to comment on their experiences, rate the recruitment agencies and learn about their rights. Initially available in English, Indonesian, Nepali and Tagalog, it will be further developed in more languages.

Governments provided the list of licensed agencies and a network of trade unions and civil society organizations in all target countries, ensures the sustainability of the platform by reaching out to workers and speaking to them about their rights.

Public and private recruitment agencies, when appropriately regulated, play an important role in the efficient and equitable functioning of both the migration process and labour markets in countries of destination, by matching the right workers with specific labour needs and labour markets, as well as creating invaluable skills assets for countries and communities of origin when workers return home.

Ultimately Recruitment Advisor will promote recruiters who follow a fair recruitment process based on ILO General Principles and Operational Guidelines for Fair Recruitment and will provide useful feedback to Governments regarding the practices of licensed recruitment agencies, which could be used to complement more traditional monitoring systems.

Recruitment is a critical stage when migrant workers are more vulnerable to abuse. “Unscrupulous recruitment agencies take advantage of the lack of law enforcement by governments or because workers are simply not aware of their rights”, says ITUC General Secretary, Sharan Burrow. “It’s time to put power back into workers’ hands to rate the recruitment agencies and show whether their promises of jobs and wages are delivered.”

“This platform can help migrant workers make critical choices at the time of planning their journey to work in a foreign country. We know that when a worker is recruited fairly the risk of ending in forced labour is drastically reduced,” says ILO technical specialist Alix Nasri. “We strongly encourage workers to share their experiences so others can learn from them. A critical mass of review is needed for the platform to be really helpful for migrants.”

“An organized workforce cannot be enslaved, but when there is a governance failure and no law enforcement, then slavery can flourish. Together we will stop unscrupulous recruitment practices, we will eliminate slavery in the supply chains and we will end modern slavery”, said Burrow.

The ITUC represents 207 million members of 331 affiliates in 163 countries and territories.

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