14 October, 2008Metalworkers and their trade unions take united action against precarious work around the world.
GLOBAL: From small workplace meetings to large scale national protests, thousands of metalworkers spoke out against precarious work in a series of actions in more than 40 countries around the world in the last couple of weeks.
"Precarious work is rapidly becoming the biggest obstacle to the respect of workers rights. Every day, more and more workers find themselves in precarious jobs where they have no right to join a union, let alone to bargain collectively with their employer," said IMF general secretary Marcello Malentacchi.
"The rise in precarious forms of employment is a direct result of the same policy failures that have led to the current financial crisis the world is facing. These policies must change," said Malentacchi.
"The mass mobilisation of metalworkers around the world is a clear statement that temporary, insecure employment must stop and a greater emphasis should be placed on providing secure and decent jobs," he said.
The International Metalworkers' Federation received reports on actions from affiliates in more than 40 countries around the world. Metalworkers and their unions took part in actions in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, Curacao, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Honduras, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Kosovo, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Actions included holding workplace meetings, seminars, publishing materials, holding public meetings, staging media events, meeting with government and employers' representatives and large scale protests.
For more details and photos of the actions taken go to: www.imfmetal.org/precariousworkactionstaken
Additional reports of actions will be published on this page as the information and photos arrive.