UNI Africa leads charge on multinationals
UNI Africa’s 3rd Regional Conference entered its second day with debates over better labour practices and the freedom of African governments from multinational corporations.
The convention of more than 300 delegates from over 30 African countries adopted its first motion “UNI Africa Rising Up for Better Labour Practices and Freedom of African Governments from Multinational Companies,” as delegates agreed to campaign for companies to respect new standards of social responsibility and aim to influence African governments on labour issues.
Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, was next in the spotlight because of its anti-union stance and gross violations of labour rights. The U.S. giant has been accused of driving down wages, reducing permanent workers, and restricting workers from voicing their opinions. It is also known for its foreign product sourcing and squeezing product suppliers by dictating product prices.
The delegates adopted a statement after hearing of the actions of UNI’s Walmart Global Alliance. SACCAWU Deputy General Secretary, Mduduzi Mbongwe said, “The alliance was built to allow Walmart workers everywhere to take joint action on issues, to organise regular actions for workers, to demonstrate solidarity, for cross-alliance collective bargaining with the aim of working towards a global agreement between UNI and Walmart.”
Delegates later signed a banner with the message “Walmart! Respect local communities, respect workers’ rights.”
Joe Kokela of South Africa’s SASBO union had earlier warned of a new scramble for Africa coming from multinationals from China and the West.
“After colonisation, we saw the scramble for Africa. We see it coming from the East and West. It is very serious. If we don’t stand up, come together, fight against the multinationals, if we don’t go to our governments and tell them what we want, by the time we open our eyes, Africa will be left with nothing.”
Globalisation, communications and IT are transforming African economies and creating a new-look labour market, delegates heard, as the conference moved into the afternoon session.
Delegates discussed the challenge of bringing the union message to a new and changing service sector workforce and how to grow unions to attract more youth, women and professionals.
Deputy General Secretary Christy Hoffman outlined the power UNI’s global agreements could offer to workers in the Africa, “A global agreement is about amplifying your voice at the worksite, by aggregating the power of all of us so that we maximize our ability to influence what happens on the ground,” she said.
Hoffman said workers the world over would benefit from joining a union but are afraid of being fired, losing pay or upsetting managers. Concerns also exist about the strength of unions to negotiate with employers.
“Global agreements are about restoring some balance to this decision. We want to reduce the fear at the workplace and establish some standing and respect for the unions. Union representatives should be able to talk to workers at work, and workers should be able to decide about a union without being afraid. The union should have the status that it takes to inspire confidence.”