25 May, 2009IMF Working Group on China calls on IMF Congress delegates to revive their commitment to engage with Chinese workers in multinational companies.
The IMF Working Group on China delivered its report to the IMF World Congress calling on delegates to revive their commitment to engage with Chinese workers in multinational companies on trade union and human rights.
Goran Johnsson, former Svenska Metal President, addressed the Congress urging the IMF to increase engagement with Chinese workers and unions at the local level. "Chinese workers deserve good conditions, Chinese workers deserve democratic trade unions," Johnsson said, adding "...if we want to achieve our objectives, we must develop new activities." Johnsson also called on the IMF and its affiliates to push for China to adopt and ratify all core ILO Conventions.
The working group reported that despite the economic downturn throughout the world, China´s economy continues to grow at a steady rate of eight per cent, noting that this figure will increase once world economies recover.
In April 2009 the IMF held a seminar in Shanghai, China to discuss issues such as collective bargaining at the national level and trade union responses to the economic crisis. IMF affiliates from five countries participated in the seminar as did local and national union leaders of the All China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU).