News

Regional Secretary: Rodolfo Benítez No. 63 – NOVEMBER – 2008



PANAMA: GENDER IN NATIONAL STATISTICS

Within the framework of the commemoration of the International Day for the Eradication of Violence against Women, UNI-Americas Women attended the event titled “Gender in National Statistics”—one of the multiple activities undertaken by the Ministry of Social Development (MIDES) and the National Women’s Bureau (DINAMU) of the Republic of Panama for the purpose of giving visibility to the 16-day global action campaign. The objective is to provide information on updated statistical indicators using a gender-based approach. The information provided by these indicators makes it possible to have a better understanding of the real situation of each gender and quantify the gap or differences between men and women. Ultimately, this should lead to the formulation of public policies that provide equal opportunities and programs that help women exercise their rights.

Contact: briceida.gonzalez@uniglobalunion.org



PANAMA: SPATE OF KILLINGS OF PRIVATE SECURITY GUARDS CONTINUES

Over the last 10 months of 2008, more than twenty private security guards have been killed in Panama. This dramatic situation is described in a press release issued by the National Union of Security Agency Workers (UNTAS), which UNI-Americas brings to its readers, asking for their solidarity in the face of such serious events. (Click on this news headline)

Contact: alberto.barrow@uniglobalunion.org



GLOBAL CRISIS: TRADE UNIONS AND THE G-20 SUMMIT

Given its importance, we invite you to read the joint TUAC/ITUC Evaluation of the Outcome of the G-20 Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy, Washington D.C., November 18, 2008.

English version

Contact: jose.molina@uniglobalunion.org



REPORTED LAYOFFS AS A RESULT OF MODERNIZATION PLAN IN POLLA CHILENA DE BENEFICENCIA

Trade union leaders of Polla Chilena de Beneficencia (state lottery) went to the Mint House to deliver a letter addressed to the President of the Republic, Mrs. Michelle Bachelet, requesting that she intercede on behalf of the workers and help end the atmosphere of job insecurity created as a result of downsizing and wage reduction by the incumbent management as part of the company’s modernization plan.

Source: El Mostrador newspaper www.elmostrador.cl

Contact: alberto.barrow@uniglobalunion.org



MOVISTAR PROJECT SEMINAR: REAFFIRMING OUR COMMITMENTS

The Evaluation Seminar of the first year of execution of the UNI-SASK Project “Organizing and Coordination of MOVISTAR Workers” was carried out on November 16 and 17. The seminar was attended by trade union representatives from Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua. Marcus Courtney, Head of UNI Telecom, also participated in the seminar.

Contact: cenise.monteiro@uniglobalunion.org

INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE ERADICATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

The International Day for the Eradication of Violence against Women is commemorated all over the world on November 25. Our editorial department has received several commemorative messages, which can be accessed below by clicking on the relevant title. Our newsletter fervently supports this well-deserved acknowledgement and tribute to our sisters.

Saludo del Comité Regional de UNI-Américas Mujeres. (Message from the UNI-Americas Regional Women’s Committee)

Saludo de las Trabajadoras de la Confederación Nacional Gráfica de Chile, CONAGRA. (Message from the Women Workers of the National Graphical Confederation of Chile CONAGRA)

Saludo de la Comisión para la Igualdad de Oportunidades de FATIDA, Argentina. (Message from FATIDA’s Equal Opportunities Committee, Argentina)

Contact: briceida.gonzalez@uniglobalunion.org



CHILEAN HEALTH CARE WORKERS WIN WAGE BATTLE

As a clear example of the Latin American trade union struggle to effectively recover the true value of wages for Chilean workers, Chilean public sector trade unions organized demonstrations and strikes for the first four days of this week and two days of the previous week. Their actions ended in the evening of November 20, after the top Chilean authorities granted a 10% wage increase to all employees of the Chilean civil service. As an active player in this process, our health care sector affiliate, the National Confederation of Health Workers’ Associations (FENATS-UNITARIA), issued a public statement thanking those who supported the Confederation and informing of the achievements made in this tough battle.

Contact: jose.molina@uniglobalunion.org



COLOMBIA: EVALUATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROMOTED BY FNV-MOONDIAL

UNI was present at the annual Meeting of FNV-Moondial partners held in Medellín, Colombia, on November 12 and 13, 2008. The event was organized by the Medellín-based National Trade Union School. In attendance were some non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and Trade Union Centers of South and Central America along with other Global Union Federations (GUFs) such as the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI), the Public Services International (PSI), the Chemical Workers’ International (ICEM) and the Food Workers’ International (IUF).

Contact: marvin.largaespada@uniglobalunion.org





COLLECTIVE BARGAINING SEMINAR IN MEDELLÍN

On November 14 and 15, 2008, a seminar on Collective Bargaining for trade union leaders of the Colombian Paste and Cardboard Workers’ Union (SINTRAPULCAR) was held in Medellín for the Medellin and Barbosa regions. Also present were trade union leaders of fraternal unions such as the Food Workers’ Union, the Chemical Workers’ Union, and the Tobacco Workers’ Union. The President of this last union, Bro. Guillermo León Álvarez, addressed the economic aspects of collective bargaining. Tjalling Postma and Miriam Berlak, FNV-Moondial coordinator and consultant, respectively, also attended the seminar. FNV-Moondial is the cooperating organization that sponsors the Collective Bargaining Project that is being carried out by UNI-Americas Graphical in the region.

Contact: marvin.largaespada@uniglobalunion.org



3RD UNI-AMERICAS TELECOM REGIONAL CONFERENCE OFFICIALLY OPENED

With 34 delegates, 5 observers, and 24 guests in attendance, the Third UNI-Americas Telecom Regional Conference was officially opened on November 18, 2008, in Panama City, Republic of Panama. The Conference was chaired by Bro. Francisco Hernández Juárez from STRM, Mexico. Among the international attendees was the Head of the UNI Telecom Department, Bro. Marcus Courtney. In addition to Juárez and Courtney, Sis. Denia de Powell, General Secretary of SINTCAWIPSA of Panama, and Rodolfo Benítez, UNI-Americas Regional Secretary, addressed the audience.

Contact: cenise.monteiro@uniglobalunion.org





6th MEETING OF THE UNI-AMERICAS YOUTH REGIONAL COMMITTEE

Last November 13 and 14, the members of the UNI-Americas Youth Regional Committee held their 6th annual meeting in Panama City, Panama, at which they reviewed the activities set forth in their Action Plan. After examining the achievements made, new coordinators were assigned to the topics to be addressed by the Committee, namely: HIV, Child Labor, Organizing Young Workers, Decent Work, Outsourcing in general, Lack of Education, Occupational Health, and Harassment at Work. After hearing the report on activities, the tasks and roles of the Committee members were redistributed. This was also a good opportunity for UNI-Americas to publicly recognize the work of sister Malaka Parker, Vice-president of the Committee and member of the Antigua and Barbuda Workers’ Union, who was recently elected Senator to the Parliament of this Caribbean country.

Contact: marcio.monzane@uniglobalunion.org





MEXICO: TRADE UNION ELECTIONS IN SITAG’S SECTION 17

Last November 8, the new Executive Committee of Section 17 of the Industrial Union of Graphic Arts Workers of Mexico (SITAG), based in San Luis Potosí, took oath. This section is now headed by Bro. José Antonio Segura Conchas as General Secretary. On behalf of SITAG’s General Secretary Eligio Valencia Roque, Organizing Secretary Porfirio Cruz Silva conveyed the greetings of the National Executive Committee and stated the unconditional support of all the members of this section to the newly elected members, who are faced with the challenge of fighting for the rights of women and youth in the labor market.

Contact: marvin.largaespada@uniglobalunion.org





CONFLICT IN THE ELECTRICITY SECTOR IN GUATEMALA

The Trade Union Federation of the Electricity Sector of Guatemala (FESTRAEESAG) extends its solidarity to the unions SITRADEORSA and SITRAEDEOCSA, which represent Unión FENOSA workers in Guatemala, who are currently undergoing a very difficult situation as a result of the closure of commercial offices. The spokesman of the company Héctor Salvatierra has told the Quezalteco newspaper that the company respects job security and is not planning to lay off workers. If this is true, the union says, then it should stop closing down offices. As the Spanish-owned multinational continues to dismiss workers, FESTRAEESAG has taken up the problem faced by DEOCSA and DEORSA workers. Indeed, InstalCobra, a Unión FENOSA company, dismissed 33 workers simply because they joined a union.

Contact: fernando.mcmaster@uniglobalunion.org

STRENGTHENING GRAPHICAL AND PACKAGING UNIONS IN COLOMBIA

A Seminar for the Development of a Network of Trade Union Instructors Specialized in Collective Bargaining was carried out on November 8 and 9, 2008 at the headquarters of SINTRATHOMAS, the union of Thomas Greg & Son Company. In attendance were several trade union leaders who expressed their views and concerns: “We need to be trained in order to cope with the current problems and the consequences of the global crisis that will also affect workers in Colombia,” said Jorge Luis Agudelo, President of Sintracarcol-Sintrapulcar (Cardboard Workers’ Union of Colombia).

Contact: marvin.largaespada@uniglobalunion.org



CAMPAIGN IN FAVOR OF SECURITY GUARDS IN THE REGION

UNI-Americas Property Services—one of the fastest growing sectors in the organization—has been carrying out a campaign under the slogan “We are human beings… We are workers…We have rights.” This is a concerted effort planned between the Regional Office and several trade union organizations representing private security workers in Paraguay, Chile, and Panama. The campaign seeks to highlight the main demands of more than 100,000 men and women who work in the industry of money, securities, and life protection in these countries while increasing union organizing and membership.

Contact: alberto.barrow@uniglobalunion.org





CHILEAN POSTAL WORKERS: WHAT WE WANT... NOW!

The Board of the National Workers’ Union of Empresa de Correos de Chile (SINTECH) has publicly denounced the indiscriminate dismissal of numerous employees from the postal administration on grounds of an alleged business economic crisis that, undoubtedly, will seriously affect the entire Chilean working class. In light of this situation, the union has engaged in a relentless fight in defense of the jobs of its members. To this end, it has sent a letter to the President of the Republic and the Ministers of Labor and of Communications requesting that they “urgently see to it that bipartite audits be conducted in companies and unions in order to bring to light what is known to be dubious management of fiscal funds both in state-owned and private companies, which use workers’ pension funds to their benefit.”

Source: SINTECH sintech1@tie.cl





BARAK OBAMA CHANGED HISTORY

On November 4, 2008, a young Afro-descendant politician radically changed the political history of the United States of America. For the first time ever, an individual with characteristics quite different from the nation’s political tradition won the presidential elections in an overwhelming victory. This unique event gives rise to a new era of politics not only in the United States but also around the world, and, in particular, in the Americas. The message conveyed by President-Elect Barack Obama throughout his campaign not only captured the attention of all the members of the Democratic Party but also brought an impressive number of youths and voters—including the Latin community whose vote was a determining factor—to the ballot. The American trade union movement played a major role during the campaign and succeeded in obtaining the President-elect’s commitment to an agenda that will change working conditions and labor laws for the benefit of the workers who lost their rights under the preceding Republican administrations. God bless America.

Contact: rodolfo.benitez@uniglobalunion.org



BRAZIL: BANK MERGER GIVES RISE TO THE LARGEST BANK OF THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE

Itaúsa—the holding group of Brazil’s Banco Itaú—and the Unibanco Group have announced today that they will merge their financial operations giving rise to the largest bank “in Brazil” and the “largest Financial Group of the Southern Hemisphere,” as described by the management of both Banks. This transaction will also position the new financial conglomerate among the 20 largest in the world, enabling the bank not only to strengthen its internal activities but also to compete on an international scale with major global banks. Under the merger agreement, Unibanco and Itaúsa shareholders will migrate to the new company called Itaú Unibanco Holding Financiera.

Contact: marcio.monzane@uniglobalunion.org



UNI-AMERICAS EXTENDS ITS SOLIDARITY TO DOMINICAN CASINO WORKERS

Bro. Alberto Barrow, Regional Director of the Gaming Sector, travelled to Higuey, Dominican Republic, on behalf of UNI-Americas to extend UNI’s unconditional solidarity to the recently created Dominicus Casino Workers’ Union, which has become the target of a fierce anti-union attack by the company. In fact, the company’s management dismissed three union leaders immediately after the union obtained legal recognition from authorities. In addition, the company illegally suspended its activities for 90 days claiming an alleged precarious financial situation. Thus, more than 150 workers, now facing economic uncertainty, have been rendered jobless and unable to support their families. UNI Global Union will do everything in its power at the international level to demand that the right to organize of these workers be respected.

Contact: alberto.barrow@uniglobalunion.org



AES CORP AND ENDESA TRADE UNION ALLIANCES COORDINATION WORKSHOP

An AES Corp and ENDESA Trade Union Alliances Coordination Workshop was held from October 28 to 30, 2008 in Santiago, Chile. Nineteen trade union representatives from seven countries of the region attended. Juan Diego Gómez, Secretary of the Public Services International (PSI) for the Andean Region, was an active participant. The agenda included the following topics: diagnosis of the situation of ENDESA and AES Corp workers, advances and objectives met by the project, analysis of the financial crisis and its repercussions on social security systems, review and update of the “Declaration – Commitment of the Electricity Sector to the Future of UNI-Americas,” and Future Action Plan – Objectives and Challenges.

Contact: fernando.mcmaster@uniglobalunion.org



CONTRIBUTIONS

We encourage our readers to send their comments, suggestions and contributions to the editor of UNI-Info, via e-mail mario.sanchez@uniglobalunion.org; Fax (507) 317-0170, or by mail to Apartado Postal 0819-06290, El Dorado, Panama, Republic of Panama.