29 September, 2010Union communicators meet and take steps to increase the visibility of trade unions and the International Metalworkers' Federation in the CIS countries.
UKRAINE: Seeking to increase trade union influence and visibility, communicators of trade union organisations in the CIS countries agreed on September 28 to step up efforts to report on union actions in the region.
The unions committed to working closely with the IMF Regional Office in Moscow to regularly gather and report on union actions and issues taking place in the region.
The IMF CIS Communicators' Forum brought together communications professionals and union leadership to look at how to improve union communications, particularly in the context of building international solidarity.
The meeting included a review on the role of communications in the respective affiliated organisations, an outline of IMF communications work, a workshop on writing news for the internet and information about internet tools available to trade unions for strengthening communications capacity.
Representatives of SPM and REPAM from Belarus, FNSM from Moldova, Profavia, MMWU, EWU and ITUA from Russia, and TUAB, AAMWU, Mashmetal, MMIWU, TUDIW and REMWU from Ukraine participated in the meeting with IMF head office and CIS regional office representatives.
The presentations given at the meeting are published here on the IMF website.
The meeting was the second regional communicators' forum held by the IMF this year, following an earlier meeting in South Asia, and is part of a strategy to strengthen IMF and union communications working closely with affiliates and building a Communicators' Network.