americas info Electronic Bulletin
Philip Jennings Launches Political Proposal “Breaking Through"
On November 25th, 2009, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in occasion of the Congress of the Argentine Federation of Workers of Commerce and Services (FAECYS), UNI’s General Secretary, colleague Philip Jennings, officially launched the Political Document “Breaking Through”, which approach was received favourably and was adopted by the World Executive Committee. “The initiative is based on values and principles which are a part of UNI’s DNA” expressed colleague Philip Jennings, and they can be summarized in the following concepts:
· Because we provide a human face to globalisation.
· Because we work under the concept of “justice for everybody”.
· Because of the development of unions in the services’ sector.
· Because of our evident compromise with human and union rights throughout the nations and on the part of all the companies.
· For our promotion of solidarity for everybody in need for it or struggling for it.
· For the equality of rights and opportunities for everybody: in unions, in companies, in society.
· For education, food, housing and health for everybody.
UNI global union
Integration of the Electricity Sector in Chile
At an Integration Meeting of the Electricity Sector in Chile summoned by the National Confederation of Federations and Unions of Electricity Workers of Chile, CONFETECH, taken place in the city of Talca, the most important union leaders had the opportunity of sharing, among other things, the programme and challenges of UNI for that Sector in Chile. It was the right moment to invite the President of the company Colbún and the President of the Federation of Unions of Electricity Workers and related activities of Chile (FENTECH), organisation to which the unions of Chilquinta, Saesa, Frontel, Companies of Distribution and Edelmag Punta Arenas, are affiliated.
Contact: fernando.mcmaster@uniglobalunion.org
Postal workers of Panama go on strike
Since the new national government’s assumption of power, workers of all services at the State’s public administration are being subject to massive dismissals, and the Service of Postal and Telegraphic Workers, COTEL, has been no exception. These workers have themselves been going through a growing wave of dismissals. Although UNI Americas carried out a solidarity campaign some time ago in a call for stop to dismissals, it was clearly unsuccessful, because the company again started the massive discharge of their employees. Supported on decrees issued from November 11th, the President of the Republic has dismissed near 200 workers, and these figures can be increased to 400 at a national level, that is, near 50% of the COTEL staff. Under these circumstances, the quality of attention of the Panamanian postal services will show a serious deterioration which the population will perceive when making use of this relevant service. Facing this situation, the workers throughout the country went on a two-hour warning strike on December 2nd, going out in the streets to express their disapproval.
Contact: cenise.monteiro@uniglobalunion.org
When the media fails to inform
So far in 2009, 28 union leaders have been murdered in Colombia. The last cases: on October 1st, a union lawyer and a union leader were shot. Of the murdered union leaders, 12 were Nestlé workers, according the report of the International Trade Union Confederation. Many questions unanswered in this regard. A couple of weeks ago, Colombian media informed about the murder of six members of a black community between the municipality of Junín and Barbacoas, an area with presence of the guerrillas and paramilitary forces. According to what has been denounced by members of the attacked population, the military presence of the Army there, does not guaranty protection for the civil population. After these murders, the intention of illegal armed groups was to force the country people to cultivate the coca plant.
The previous statement is part of a document elaborated by the Colombian writer and reporter Xavier Caño Tamayo, who denounces mass media for not informing with veracity and professional criteria, about events involving human rights and discriminatory acts which take place in Colombian society.
Source: http://alainet.org/active/34565
Contact: uni-americas@uniglobalunion.org
Social Protection in the Americas, permanent Union struggle
In the framework of the project UNI-FES, the Seminar called “Social Security with a component of social protection. What is happening today in the Americas?” took place in Bogota, Colombia. Unions from 11 countries attended the meeting in order to revise, debate and agree upon actions to be carried out as regards the situation of Social Security an its impact on Social Protection. A complete revision on the main aspects affecting specifically social protection was made, but also the focus was directed towards a detailed examination on how social protection was indispensable to achieve Decent Work in the Americas, and that this could not be possible without an effective and permanent development of a social dialogue.
This meeting had the peculiarity of trying to explain the existing relationship between: effective Social Dialogue (recognition, respect and implementation of the fundamental labour standards); Social protection/social security; union reinforcement and Decent Work. It must be pointed out that for the first time a direct link was traced to the Gender component of the social security, and a debate was held on the union self-reform.
Contact: jose.molina@uniglobalunion.org
UNI Network - CENCOSUD holds meeting in Chile
On December 4th in Santiago de Chile, the members of the Network UNI Cencosud got together in the framework of the project UNI-LO/TCO – COLPE, with the aim of defining next year’s strategy. During the first half of the meeting, the Group’s Human Resources Corporative Manager discussed with the union movement, the importance of Social Dialogue and the construction of a minimum understanding on the company’s policy in the different countries. “ It is necessary to move forward in the discussion of points of social relevance, thinking on a medium and long term basis, and for this reason we must establish with UNI and with the present unions a set of minimum principles on how CENCOSUD will act in the different countries and therefore progress towards questions that really matter to workers” stated Alvarez. Moreover, a proposal of an internet site was discussed, and a system of exchange of information and communication among the workers, as well as an Action Plan to be developed during 2010.
Contact: marcio.monzane@uniglobalunion.org
UNI americas present at the Human Rights Day
On December 10th, UNI Americas affiliates carried out different activities related to the celebration of the Day of Human Rights throughout the world.
Contact: uni-americas@uniglobalunion.org
NO to impunity for crimes in Guinea, sign the petition!
UNI is asking its members to sign a petition that will be sent to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to demand that the perpetrators of the crimes in Conakry are brought to justice. On September 28, 2009, security forces from the military government led by Captain Moussa Dadis Camara attacked tens of thousands of peaceful pro-democracy supporters who had assembled at the main sports stadium in Conakry to protest against the military regime and Camara’s presumed candidacy in the upcoming presidential elections. They killed more than 150 people and also gang raped and sexually assaulted in broad daylight, scores of girls and women who were at the stadium, often with such extreme brutality that their victims died from the wounds inflicted. In addition to the rapes committed at the stadium, many women described how they were taken to private residences where they endured days and nights of brutal gang rape. Please sign the petition and ask your union members to sign it as well. The more signatures we have, the more powerful our message will be. Let’s stop the use of women as weapons of war! Let’s break the circle of violence against women!
Sign the petition!
UNI global union
UNI americas Women’s Network created in El Salvador and Costa Rica
Female workers of Central America keep moving on, now with the conformation of the Women’s Networks of El Salvador and Costa Rica; they move one step forward in their struggle to gain spaces. UNI Americas continues promoting the female colleagues to actively participate in union life. “With the creation of women’s networks, women will have a tool for their fight against exclusion and to break the circle of fear, to assert their rights and to organise themselves in unions” assured José Santos García, General Secretary of SIES in El Salvador, who apart from supporting the work of UNI Americas Women, encouraged the colleagues to take the utmost advantage of these space now opening for them. Likewise, in Costa Rica, female and male colleagues of different affiliated organisations gathered at the headquarters of SITET were they were hosted by their colleague General Secretary Sergio Saborío, who expressed his satisfaction for the impulse UNI Americas is giving to the work of the female colleagues at the region. “There is still much to be done as regards youth and women, and now with the creation of the networks, we will be able to move forward on a real basis”, assured Saborío.
Contact: briceida.gonzalez@uniglobalunion.org
CSACC Conference: Reinforcement of the Union Movement
As a part of the project of Integration and Union reinforcement of Central America and the Caribbean - PROINFOS, more than 40 union leaders from 7 countries of Central America and the Caribbean and 19 union organisations, some of them affiliated to UNI Americas, got together in San José, Costa Rica, to participate at the Ordinary Conference of the Union Coordination for Central America and the Caribbean, CSACC. The conference debated over strategies to reinforce the union movement in the region, and to strengthen the mechanisms to start social dialogue. With the adopted decisions of the 19 associations integrating the CSACC, the birth of a new unitary organisation took place. The new organisation and the CCT will assume the process of political leadership until the constitution of the new sub regional articulation.
Contact: briceida.gonzalez@uniglobalunion.org
Solidarity with the workers of DHL Belgium.
Hundreds of colleagues are being affected by the “re-location” plan of DHL Company, which moves workers like chess pieces from one place to another. It only took 17minutes for the DHL management to inform our colleagues who had been loyal to the company for many years, that they had lost their jobs and that their lives would change for ever. For us, this represents a complete lack of respect to the workers. As a result, how can we trust the Deutsche Post DHL promoting “respect” as one of their fundamental values? We stand by the full recognition of the unions inside Deutsche Post DHL throughout the world. Besides, we expect an open dialogue with the Belgian unions on alternatives for this closure, and social solutions for the workers affected and their families. This is what the letter from UNI Post & Logistics expresses to the Management of DHL. We encourage our affiliates in the world to send similar solidarity messages as regards the Belgian workers of this multinational.
UNI global union
Mexico: Global Framework Agreements’ Campaign in the Electricity Sector
Following the objectives traced as regards the improvement of the knowledge on the part of the workers as regards Global Framework Agreements, a meeting was held in Mexico City with representatives and workers affiliated to the Unique Union of Electricity Workers of the Mexican Republic, SUTERM. It was the right moment to emphasise the importance of this instrument for the workers, to whom training material was handed out.
Contact: fernando.mcmaster@uniglobalunion.org
Colombia BBVA conflict comes to an end
Workers of the Bank BBVA in Colombia are no longer under the threat of losing their Collective Agreement and the right to be represented by their union. After the attempt of the Bank to promote a “Collective Pact”, which individually each worker should sign accepting proposals of salary renewal and work conditions, the National Union of Bank Employees, UNEB, in order to prevent this ploy, organised a successful action plan to be applied at a national and international level, for which UNI Americas Finance granted its support. That was how on December 16th, the new Collective Agreement was signed, proving that unity and organisation in union action, are the clue elements for success in our affiliate’s demands and struggle to defend their rights. Even though the conditions were not the ones initially stated, UNEB has succeeded in keeping its right of representation of workers and reinforced its bond with them, which will increase its capacity of unionisation and strength for future actions.
Contact: marcio.monzane@uniglobalunion.org
UNI Americas at the 9th National Conference of Security Guards in Brazil
On December 11th and 12th , in San Salvador, State of Bahía, the 9th National Conference of Security Guards of Brazil, CNTV-CUT took place, with the presence of near 100 delegates representing more then 25 union organisations in the country. The event is an annual meeting in which a balance is drawn on the salary scales negotiated during the ongoing year for the category, making an analysis of the socio political scenario, as well as the national and international environment, with the aim of establishing guidelines for the forthcoming year’s negotiations.
Contact: alberto.barrow@uniglobalunion.org
Canada: More protection for temporary workers
This past November a new legislation was approved in Canada, guaranteeing more protection for temporary workers of Ontario’s Agencies, due to provincial legislation. With the new legislation coming into force, most temporary workers have the right for termination notice and unemployment compensation. Work agencies will no longer be allowed to prevent a company from hiring a temporary worker or giving a reference. The agencies will only charge fees to a company for hiring one worker for the first six months at the company. In Ontario, around 640.000 people are temporary workers. There almost 1000 agencies of temporary work, according to the Ministry of Provincial Work.
UNI global union
Greetings from FOECYT to argentine telepostal workers
The Federation of Workers of Post and Telecommunications, FOECYT, delivers through our site, a greeting to all the telepostal family in Argentina, expressing their represented workers, that they will never surrender in their will to continue the struggle for new and better benefits, and they send every worker their best wishes for Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Source: foecytargentina@
Greetings from UNI Americas
In the end of the present year, the Regional Secretary and all the workers integrating the staff of UNI Americas, wish to express our faithful readers and collaborators, as well as the whole family of UNI in the Americas, our best wishes for happiness and prosperity for this Christmas and New Year’s Eve, reaffirming our commitment to be at your service giving ourselves to our work more and more, hoping that the work we carry out with such dedication and love, should benefit all workers, men and women of this dark-skinned America, and the workers in the whole world. An embrace of solidarity.
uni-americas@uniglobalunion.org
Contributions
Please, send your comments, suggestions, and contributions to the editor of Americas info via e-mail: mario.sanchez@uniglobalunion.org; via Fax (507) 317-0170; and by traditional post to P.O. Box 0819-06290, El Dorado, Panama, Republic of Panama.