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16 November, 2009
The conclusion of a three-day Indian National Conference on Mining Health and Safety, 28-30 October, ended with a stirring call to action and endorsement of a campaign plan to convince the government of India to finally ratify ILO Convention 176, the Safety and Health in Mines Convention.
In an interview given to Mint, an Indian financial newspaper, BK Das, General Secretary of the Indian National Mineworkers Federation (INMF), stated that national industrial action would be considered if the government continued its stalling tactics. Shri Jibon Roy, Secretary of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), said that miners will lead the way in educating the public to join the campaign.
That campaign was developed by 30 rank-and-file miners from various mining regions of India who spent a day-and-a-half discussing and outlining the plan. (See the Programme of Action here.)
The miners pointed out that India was present at the debates in Geneva when the convention was drawn up in 1995 and the Indian delegation voted in favor of its adoption. But mining laws and regulations remain weak or unenforced in India. A declaration adopted at the conference calls for the five mining federations to reach a consensus on a plan of action and to develop national, company, area, and pit committees to educate miners and the public on the need to improve mine health and safety and the importance of ILO Convention 176.
(See that Declaration here)
The conference was organized with help from the ICEM and financial assistance from ACTRAV, the workers’ wing of the ILO. The Indian government refused the request of the ILO, made in 2008, to sponsor a tripartite regional meeting of governments, trade unions, and employers on ILO Convention 176. The meeting was later moved to Mongolia, and was attended by participants from six Asian countries.
Although the Indian trade unions were present at the meeting in Mongolia, the Indian government and employers were not, and India was the only invited country not to send employer and government representatives.
Despite the failure of the Indian government and employers to engage in tripartite dialogue on ILO Convention 176, the mining trade unions believe ratification can only occur on a tripartite basis, and the campaign is designed to bring this about. Included in the campaign will be petitions to government officials with a special targeting of the Ministry of Labour, company-wide conferences including members of all five mining federations, and demonstrations at Parliament. And the necessity to take possible industrial action.
The Indian unions have been inspired by the successful one-day national strike in 2008 to improve health and safety by ICEM-affiliated National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) in South Africa. The use of contract workers in mining also received major attention at the conference and the news that South Africa may soon outlaw labour brokers.
Also attending the meeting and giving presentations were Joe Drexler, ICEM Director on Industry and Corporate Affairs, Martin Hahn of the ILO, and Stirling Smith, who prepared a manual covering the origins of the convention, its contents, and how best to campaign for ratification of ILO Convention 176. The manual will be revised based on the experience from India.
“We are also insisting that the ILO must take a much more aggressive role in promoting the convention since miners continue to be injured and die on the job due to inadequate laws and regulation,” said Drexler. Maden-İş, the largest mining union in Turkey, has already developed a campaign plan and is moving forward with it. The ICEM is monitoring efforts to promote ratification in Colombia, Russia, Ukraine, Indonesia, and other countries where the convention is badly needed.
The ICEM, and its predecessor organization, the Miners’ International Federation, were the principal force behind the adoption of the convention in 1995.