6 October, 2005ICEM News release No. 22/2005
In the 1990s, the ICEM led the global labour movement by innovative use of the early Internet for instant and effective solidarity. The Wall Street Journal, in a front page 1999 article, said the ICEM “is changing the face of traditional labor protests by moving strikes, pickets and other union actions into cyberspace.” A mining house spokesman admitted in the same article it was the advent of labour activists “trying to globalize via the Internet.”
The 20-million-member Global Union Federation launched a new and improved website this past weekend, effectively and seamlessly tying together countless struggles, issues, and worker-related facts on all things relevant in the ICEM’s six major industrial sectors as well as the world of labour with a new website that replaces the global labour movement’s initial, trend-setting static website.
The new site maintains the same address as the old: http://www.icem.org, and visitors are welcome to explore the ICEM’s topical website.
The site provides information in ICEM’s seven statutory languages—English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, Swedish and Russian.
“We are proud to present our affiliates, firstly, with a practical and useful website as an aid to built strong trade union structures,” said ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs. “The new website takes full advantage of the most modern communication technologies to support and advance our work with our affiliates.”
The ICEM website contains a wealth of materials and documents on current ICEM projects and campaigns such as Contract and Agency Labour, HIV/AIDS relief, Gender Issues, Health/Safety and Sustainable Development, Global Framework Agreements and Global Union Networks. In easily accessible archives are all ICEM News Releases, InBrief newsletters, Circulars (direct action calls), and other ICEM documents and information from past events. All materials are indexed by ICEM regions and major industrial sectors, and by individual country as well.
ICEM sectors: Energy including Oil, Gas and Nuclear; Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals; Mining/Diamonds and Gems; Pulp and Paper; Rubber; and Materials, which includes Glass, Ceramics and Cement.
ICEM’s website design is compatible with the many and varied web browsers available. This means the site can also be read on small-screen and mobile information technology. Conversely, the website has been deliberately designed to allow easy access and easy download for the many workers of the world in regions where only slow internet service exists.
The ICEM, based in Brussels, has 420 affiliated trade unions in 125 countries.