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19 June, 2007June 2007
Contents
1. ICEM Women’s Committee Meets
2. ICEM Workshop on HIV/AIDS and women workers – Sao Paulo
3. ICEM Central European Women’s Committee - Balatonszemes, Hungary
4. Argentina – International Day of Women’s Health Is Celebrated
5. CEDAW – Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
6. Guinea – Report by the Guinea National Coalition for Women’s Rights and Citizenship Focuses on Violence Toward Women During the 2007 Strikes
7. Iraq – Iraqi Woman President of the Electricity Union Visits the United States
8. Paraguay – Civil Society Presents Anti-Discrimination Law
9. Streetnet Calls for Commemorating the World Day Against Child Labour
10. Turkey – International Delegation Visits Novamed Strikers
11. United States – Supreme Court Rules Against Women
12. Resources
1. ICEM Women’s Committee Meets
The ICEM Women’s Committee met on 8 May 2007 in Brussels to debate women in mining, and to make the last preparations for the women’s world conference and Congress scheduled for November. At the ICEM’s Executive Committee meeting in the days following the Women’s Committee meeting, the Fourth Congress slogan was changed to: Global Unity, Global Equality.
ICEM President and President of the South African National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) Senzeni Zokwana made a presentation on women in mining.
The point is to not just provide low-status jobs to women, but also senior positions such as shift overseers and surveyors. In the SAMDA structure, women should also be able to own shares. The challenge is non-professional work, for example drilling, which is dangerous, labour-intensive manual work. Women also have more trouble with heat, although women have gone to work in heat-intensive areas.
Women ought to be groomed to be chief executives. The structures must see to it that women develop. There is a problem of our own members’ attitude to women, as well as employers’ attitude. Employers see pregnancy as a problem. The goal should be to get women as shop stewards and leaders. Women are good in engineering and as drivers. Nevertheless, companies are reluctant because in the past the jobs were done by white men.
Harassment is rampant, even among colleagues. This issue must remain a priority in the union. Women must be employed in the industry and participate equally – no one must undermine them.
Some mines have more maternity protection and leave provisions. Sanitation underground is still a challenge. Childcare should be on site. Companies should cater to all employees in accommodation. Gender-sensitive environment means that as women are allowed into the industry, their presence must be welcome.
Women’s empowerment as workers and investors will contribute to South Africa’s goal to be non-sexist and non-racist. The Minister of Mines and Energy is a woman.
We must be partners to build strong unions. Mineworkers’ children should not enter at the level where their parents did but at the senior level. The goal is within a few years, to have 20% women’s membership in NUM. We could have an NUM president who is a woman based on her ability.
There is a broad acceptance that women are part of the industry. The challenge is to get women to stand for election as shop stewards because then they would be the first level of defense for the younger comrades. In agreements, it is a question of obtaining more maternity leave and to get women in bargaining committees. Moreover, smaller companies that are not in the Chamber of Mines have more problems.
Unions see women as support staff in mines (hospitals, teaching areas, etc.). But mining is the core business. And that is male dominated. Those people need to be trained in leadership skills, and that means women as well. Those jobs are not attractive to women because they do not involve leadership skills.
As far as employment equity is concerned, companies must show what they have done to implement employment equity when they are licensed. This also includes women’s employment. A woman is assigned a mentor directly when she is employed. The point is to change the racist/sexist attitudes of mentoring. We must focus on skills development.
In NUM some women are regional secretaries, some area treasurers. The national education secretary is a woman and is looked on as a leader. The day will come when a woman stands for election and is not seen as a woman.
The Novamed strike in Turkey, which has been ongoing for seven months, can be called a women’s strike. The women earn the lowest salary just for being women.
Women have been organizing family events, sports, markets to boost friendship. But unions are not familiar with these organizing tools. This is women’s way.
Some 160 members joined the bargaining unit. In light of rights abuses, the women said they had joined the union not for wages but for good, humane treatment.
The company has three production lines. Each production line has only certain times when women are allowed to use toilets. The women are not allowed to speak to each other. They must declare when they have their monthly periods. It is only management who allows people to become pregnant; the women are given a turn to become pregnant. The management is paternalistic – they tell the women, “You are women, you cannot understand such things.”
Even if the union did not engage in collective bargaining, the women would be happy if the company stopped such inhumane practices. Petrol-Is has been passing on information on the abuses. International solidarity has been important. EMCEF and IGBCE went to Antalya to meet the management and the strikers. This gave the strikers moral support. The strikers would welcome a delegation from the ICEM women’s committee. Please let Carol Bruce ([email protected]) know if you would be able to join a delegation, which will probably be organized the last week of September on the first anniversary of the strike.
One of the conclusions of the debate is that ICEM should adopt one dispute to focus each year on 8 March. It could be a negative or a positive example.
In connection with the women’s conference which is scheduled to be held together with the ICEM Congress on 17 and 18 November in Bangkok, the themes will be peace, equal pay and work-life balance. The first theme block, peace, will have presentations by participants from Colombia, Nepal, Palestine, Iraq and Burma.
ICEM will provide a publication on maternity protection. Maternity rights are a permanent issue. The choice is either to stay at home and bring up children, or lag behind in a career. Men perceive women to be second-rate citizens after the birth of children. Maternity must be a cost borne by society and not a reason to cut jobs. In the United States, the choice is to put the job at risk or to care for a child, to lose jobs for absenteeism. Moreover, regardless of whether they are mothers or not, women are disadvantaged at work.
The element of HIV/AIDS children without parents must be included as well as adoption to provide for laws covering adoption.
In connection with Congress, proposals were made for a women’s resolution which included:
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If a region has more than one vice-president, gender balance must be aimed at
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Gender aspects must be included in industrial reports to the executive committee as well as in regional conferences
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Regional executives should strengthen regional women’s committees – the women must push their leaders to support them.
2. ICEM Workshop on HIV/AIDS and women workers – Sao paulo
A workshop to plan activities on HIV/AIDS with special focus on gender issues was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on 30-31 May 2007. The meeting opened by identifying the prejudices in connection with HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS has to get beyond the private sphere. It is easier to tackle if it goes out in public, to unions. It will then go beyond the powerlessness. Women have to stop being victims. When people are encouraged to talk, it will be less of a personal problem.
In the Caribbean, the region which is currently most affected by HIV after Africa, the Oil Workers Trade Union (OWTU) of Trinidad and Tobago has been working with the ILO. There is still a stigma about HIV and fear of disclosure and discrimination. With the different sources of infection, the marginalized populations do not want to be identified. It is difficult to negotiate with small employers, but the union is currently negotiating on a policy with the state-owned oil company Petrotrin.
They have special programs for youth. Deaths have gone down since anti-retrovirals have become more affordable. Still, more women are getting sick than men.
A presentation was made on the correct use of condoms, and especially the female condom. The suggestion was made that ICEM should campaign with governments and international organizations for the female condom to be made available at more reasonable cost. In addition, Maria Luisa from FEQUIMFAR told about her experiences being HIV positive in a very moving speech.
The conclusions for unions to take the work forward varied greatly. The work has not started at all in Costa Rica, for example. The union there proposed creating awareness on the board level and calling a conference that could be scheduled in October, where men and women should be invited. The theme should be taken up at health and safety week by the health and safety committee. International AIDS Day, 1 December, should provide for union-company campaigns. The situation was similar for Uruguay and Colombia.
The CNQ-CUT union, Brazil, proposed developing new clauses which would eliminate testing for hiring purposes, and guarantee medicines for those at work. HIV/AIDS should be included in health courses and the FORMAQUIMULHER women’s training courses. The gender and health committees should work in partnership. Train the trainers’ programs should include collective bargaining on HIV/AIDS.
Women should replicate the training. A campaign on HIV prevention should be launched in the media. Campaigns should be launched together with the federal government. Overall, in the region, for the time being, the unions should make the most of friendly governments and seek partnerships. The ABC chemical union proposes creating a play on HIV/AIDS similar to the play they do on bullying.
The SNQ-FS union, Brazil, suggested continuing the Summer Without AIDS program all year, a programme that has been successful since 1995. The programme seeks to check where testing is done and include HIV tests in preventive treatment. The use of the female condom should be encouraged.
In Chile, women want to check all clauses to see if HIV/AIDS is contemplated. They want to consult the company’s medical services to see what the company has been doing. They would analyse the company’s position and propose common platforms on HIV/AIDS. They would check the laws to see about cases of illness, discrimination, firing, etc, and find out what insurance coverage entails.
The PowerPoint presentations from the workshop are all available in their original languages.
3. ICEM Central European Women’s Committee - Balatonszemes, Hungary
This was the first time women met in the region in connection with the regional conference. One of the aims of the meeting was to elect women’s representatives to the ICEM Executive Committee. The women elected were from Romania and Bosnia Herzegovina, Elena Petrovic and Kata Iveljic, respectively as well as substitutes from the Slovak Republic and Serbia.
The debate at the meeting focused on the fact that the problems of employed women have worsened in the last few years. Nevertheless, there is a potential of educated women that we neglect at our peril. In general, it still is the case that women are generally the first to be dismissed, which affects family budgets. Problems are particularly acute for women over 40 who lose their jobs, and women with young children. Women often have problems with self-esteem – although many are well educated, they are reluctant to demand what they are worth.
Priority Number One in the region was to join the EU. Laws have to be changed to harmonise legislation. Unions had an interest in not forgetting about the social dimension of the changes. New laws were passed on anti-discrimination, primarily concerning women, but also minorities.
The region does have differences among countries which makes it difficult to define common points. Some are EU members, and some are striving to join the EU. Now the contest is to see who will be the first to introduce the EU’s monetary currency, the Euro. Social budgets will have to be cut in order to meet the criteria, and this affects family budgets and thus women.
Women’s trends seem to be regressive in the region with the exception of Romania, where women’s participation is increasing. At the recent Petrom Congress, the proposal was to open up work offshore to women. It has been prohibited up to now.
4. Argentina – International Day of Women’s Health Is Celebrated
28 May was celebrated as the International Day of Women’s Health. In Argentina, it was celebrated by activities all over the country to legalize abortion. The slogan was Not One More Death From Backstreet Abortions.
Legalising abortion is based on public health reasons, since 37% of pregnancies in the country are terminated by abortion. At the same time, this is the primary cause of death for pregnant women. In Argentina each year, 400,000 abortions are estimated to be performed, and many women die from the infections caused by botched procedures. Most of the victims are poor women who cannot afford to have safe abortions.
In Brazil, the figure is likely to be 800,000. The government there is going to subsidize birth control pills, even after it already supplies about 254 million condoms every year. About 1.2 million women were hospitalized in the last five years for abortion-related complications.
From our Readers:
Carol Fraser writes that in Ontario, Canada, the first week of June has been declared Sexual Harassment Awareness Week. Awareness has to be raised on this type of humiliation, and the victims’ memories must be honored.
5. CEDAW – Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) met in New York from 14 May to 1 June. The ITUC published a report focusing on Mozambique and Pakistan. Trafficking was a major part of the report concerning Pakistan. Women are being trafficked from neighboring countries into Pakistan for prostitution and labour.
Women were being penalized through forced marriages, forced labour and prostitution and the ones responsible for such crimes are not being punished. Pakistani law is not clear in terms of punishing the perpetrator instead of the victim, and the government committed itself to looking into the situation. In Pakistan, women primarily work in home-based jobs, and they are the preferred labour supply. The situation with controls and inspection is not straightforward.
The committee focused also on harmful traditional practices in connection with other countries such as Mauritania.
6. Guinea – Report by the Guinea National Coalition for Women’s Rights and Citizenship Focuses on Violence Toward Women During the 2007 Strikes
Civilians in Guinea went on strike early in 2007 due to corruption and the huge fortunes amassed by the few. Average people had practically no more purchasing power. The popular uprising took place from 9-27 February 2007. The strikes were largely followed by the entire population. The armed forces repressed the demonstrations and caused more than 160 casualties and hundreds of injured, as well as destruction of property.
The killings were done in the capital Conakry, as well as in most of the other areas in the country. Young people and innocent children were shot. People were killed during the state of siege. Women were raped, humiliated, and made to suffer degrading treatment.
At the markets, women’s goods were burned and stolen. When young men were killed, their wives were widowed and their families left without support. Service stations were burned. Most of the workers at service stations were women and girls, and their families were also therefore left without any means of survival.
The following recommendations were made:
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To set up psychotherapy for traumatized children and girl rape victims;
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To insist on the enquiry and identify the guilty in the army;
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To provide for assistance to the widows and orphans;
After these upheavals, negotiations and permanent dialogue must take the place of the wild repression that had taken over the country. The rule of law must be reinstated and the respect of citizens’ rights must be reinstituted so that Guinea may return to peace.
7. Iraq – Iraqi Woman President of the Electricity Union Visits the United States
Hashmeya Muhsin Hussein is currently on a tour of the United States, organized by US Labour Against the War. She has been telling of the workers’ struggles in Iraq. After Saddam’s fall, workers rushed to join unions. She reported that many labour leaders and activists have been killed, imprisoned or sacked.
Nevertheless, workers continue to organise. Unemployment is now at 60% in Iraq, and it is mostly women and young men who are victims. Hashmeya Muhsin Hussein is also head of the Women Workers’ Bureau and a leader of the Iraqi Women’s Association. The trade unions in Iraq are against the proposed oil law and against privatization. They would also like the US occupation to end and withdraw all forces from Iraq. Her union, the Electricity Workers’ Union, has been the first Iraqi trade union to affiliate with the ICEM.
8. Paraguay – Civil Society Presents Anti-Discrimination Law
Representatives of civil society in Paraguay recently presented draft legislation against all forms of discrimination, and for the promotion of diversity. Civil society groups have set up networks and have the support of the United Nations. The draft was drawn up over two years in a participative and pluralistic process, and was passed over to the Senate Committee on Equity, Gender, and Social Development.
9. Streetnet Calls for Commemorating the World Day Against Child Labour
World Day Against Child Labour occurred on 12 June. Streetnet calls upon all governments to ratify ILO Convention 182 against the worst forms of child labour. ILO Convention 182 was adopted in 1999 and includes, as the worst forms of child labour, trafficking and domestic work.
In 2007, the ILO focus its World Day Against Child Labour on agriculture. A full 70% of children working in the world do so in agriculture. It is up to governments to provide childcare and schools for children less than 14 years of age. The way to eliminate child labour is by providing income for parents and guaranteeing decent work, as defined by the ILO.
10. Turkey – International Delegation Visits Novamed Strikers
On 19 May, an international delegation made up of representatives of the Russian Oil and Gas Workers’ Union (ROGWU), Oil and Gas Workers of Azerbaijan, Oil and Gas Workers Union of Kazakhstan, Chemical and Energy Workers Union of Moldova, Oil and Gas Workers Union of Belorussia, Chemical, Mining and Oil Workers Union of Belorussia, and Interregional Oil and Gas Workers Confederation visited the Novamed strikers, who have been on strike since 26 September 2006 in the Antalya Free Trade Zone. The delegation was welcomed by the strikers and Petrol-Is officials.
11. United States – Supreme Court Rules Against Women
A jury had originally granted Lilly Ledbetter, a female supervisor at Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. in Alabama, some US$3.5 million because it found likely sex discrimination during her 19-year career. The jury found that she was paid much less than men in similar jobs.
This verdict was overturned on appeal, with the justification that the suit should have been filed within 180 days after the unlawful practice occurred. The Supreme Court upheld the appeal. The US Congress now must try to reverse the decision and find a way to provide protection against wage and salary discrimination.
12. Resources
The ILO Global Report, "Equality at Work: Tackling the Challenge," provides a global picture of job-related discrimination, citing both progress and failures in the struggle to fight discrimination ranging from traditional forms such as sex, race, or religion, to newer forms based on age, sexual orientation, HIV/AIDS status and disability.
Women and Men in OECD Countries available at: http://www.oecd.org/document/32/0,2340,en_21
571361_38039199_38167008_1_1_1_1,00.html
One in 13 mothers worldwide die from pregnancy-related causes. See the ranking of how women and children fare in the annual report of Save the Children, at: http://www.savethechildren.org.
For perspectives from Asia see: http://www.kyotojournal.org/gender/links.shtml.
Because I am a Girl: The State of the World’s Girls, report on the rights of girls, available at http://www.plan-uk.org/newsroom/latestnews/girlsreport/.
Governments are undermining the rule of law and human rights, feeding racism and xenophobia, dividing communities, intensifying inequalities and sowing the seeds for more violence and conflict. Amnesty International Report 2007. The State of the World’s Human Rights. See: http://www.amnesty.org/ailib/aireport/index.html.
A study released in May by Physicians for Human Rights shows that women are the key to Africa’s AIDS crisis. See: http://physiciansforhumanrights.org/library/report-2007-05-25.html.