18 June, 2009
Since the IMF Congress in 2005, metalworkers and the whole trade union movement have been confronted with an increasingly hostile political, economic and social environment. Corporations have led globalisation to maximise the global reach and profits of their operations with the support of governments and international institutions by promoting neo-liberal policies, which feature deregulation of capital and labour markets, privatization of public services and assets, a reduction in employment growth in many regions, an erosion of social security systems and the frequent denial of worker and human rights. Even today, a large proportion of the world's metalworkers do not enjoy the fundamental right to have a union.
While the world economy has grown and created vast amounts of wealth, the divide between rich and poor has widened. Ever more workers have been faced with deteriorating working and living conditions, job insecurity and an erosion of their rights. Capital has gained huge profits, while the purchasing power of most workers has fallen or at best stagnated.