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The Working People Trade Union Council (WPTUC) &amp; Simpson and Group Companies Workers &amp; Staff Union (SGCWSU)WPTUC and SGCWSU jointly organized the following activities from October 3-9, 2009 at Chennai:•        Wearing badges during the week by the members of WPTUC &amp; SGCWSU.•        Pasting of wall posters in front of all factories and in industrial areas•        Distribution of leaflets•        Slogan shouting everyday at all factories gates•        A gate meeting was held October 8 in Sembiam (Industrial Area), Chennai.Steel, Metal &amp; Engineering workers' Federation of India (SMEFI) In Maharashtra:•        On October 4 a mammoth demonstration of workers followed by a meeting was held in Darukhana (shipbreaking work site), Mumbai.   •        SMEFI leaders submitted a memorandum to Central Labour Minister and State Labour Minister against Precarious Work and Violation of Labour Rights.In Andhra Pradesh:•        SMEFI -AP affiliate conducted a rally and submitted a memorandum to the Commissioner of Labour, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh.•        On October 9 and 10, 2009 affiliates conducted protest meetings, rallies and demonstrations in Hyderabad and various industrial areas.In Orissa:•        Affiliates conducted rallies, demonstrations and public meetings in various places i.e. Rourkela, Paradeep Port  and port-based industrial areas from October 4 until October 10, 2009.

INDIA

From October 3-9, IMF affiliates Bangladesh Metalworkers' Federation (BMF) and Bangladesh Metalworkers' League (BML) jointly conducted gate meetings, area-wise meetings and rallies in different industries and industrial belts all over Bangladesh. On October 9, BMF and BML held a joint press conference in Dhaka on precarious work. Four TV channels and about 25 journalists were present. The unions read out a joint statement that was broadcast on TV news. The unions also printed posters as part of their actions.

BANGLADESH

THE NETHERLANDS: Greater involvement of trade unions and civil society organisations would enable electronics companies to better address human rights and environmental issues, states a new publication on corporate social responsibility in the global electronics sector. The publication Reset. Corporate social responsibility in the global electronics supply chain was released on October 26 by the Dutch CSR Platform and the GoodElectronics network and is available for download here: <a href="http://goodelectronics.org/publications-en/Publication_3248">http://goodelectronics.org/publications-en/Publication_3248</a>The report analyses the electronics sector's failing effectiveness of corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts and provides a sample of progressive initiatives and recommended steps for companies to enhance their social and environmental performance.Reset describes the impact of the global electronics sector on communities, workers and the environment, reporting on problems such as sourcing from conflict zones, gender discrimination, increasing job insecurity, health risks for workers and local communities, wide scale dumping of waste in developing countries and the occurrence of child labour in waste processing. International coordinator of GoodElectronics, Pauline Overeem: &quot;Among the most pressing issues in the production phase is the non-respect for the freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, disabling workers to address sub-standard working conditions, including long working hours, forced overtime, low wages, and all kinds of discriminatory practices.&quot; GoodElectronics is an international network for contributing to sustainability and human rights. IMF is a founding member and active participant in the GoodElectronics Network, which bring­s together NGOs, trade unions, labour rights groups, environmental organisations, academics, researchers and activists aimed at common goal to contribute to sustainability and human rights in the global electronics sector.The Dutch CSR Platform is a network of Dutch civil society organisations and trade unions that are working together to promote CSR.For hard copies of the report, please contact the Dutch CSR Platform at <a href="mailto:info@mvoplatform.nl">info@mvoplatform.nl</a>.

A new publication reports on the global electronics sector's failure to be socially responsible and calls for greater involvement of trade unions and civil society organisations in the regulation and control of the industry.

Global electronics sector failing to be socially responsible

The global economy is in the throes of a unique crisis. The ideology that unbridled greed for profits is the driving force behind human progress has been discredited. What we need is a new approach where politics and economics serve the development of society and quality employment. The current crisis is not only the result of misjudgements and misguided developments in the market, or the result of overheating financial markets. It is entirely the result of the ideology of an unrestrained market and economic and political policies directed at maximising  short term profits.  On a positive note however, while undoubtedly the next four years of the International Metalworkers´Federation work will be tough and difficult, the current economic situation also provides us with a real opportunity to create a new international development model that rivals that of neoliberalism and is based on regulation, fairness, equality, sustainability and decent trade union and labour rights.Therefore, the fundamental mission of the trade union movement is more than ever to improve workers' wages, working and living conditions, and to ensure that workers and workers' rights are respected. The mission of the IMF is to work towards the achievement of these goals in metal­working and related industries by working with its  affiliates and on the global level.Today, corporate-led globalisation is still massively infringing on the rights of workers. The policies promoted by employers, most governments and the international institutions they dominate have resulted in increased economic inequality, precarious employment and a reduction in the bargaining power of working people around the world. Recognizing that union building/organising and collective bargaining are at the heart of our work, metalworker unions must organise and mobilise union members to challenge the neo-liberal agenda of corporations and most governments, and ensure working people have a fair share in the wealth generated through economic growth. The goal of the IMF is to support, coordinate and strengthen the activities of its affiliates to:<ul><li>Improve workers' wages, working and living conditions;</li><li>Organise new members into democratic workers' unions throughout the world;</li><li>Build and strengthen national metalworking unions;</li><li>Ensure that internationally recognized Core Labour Standards are applied in every country and that national laws are changed to reflect these standards; </li><li>Defend and protect workers' rights; </li><li>Fight for safe and healthy working conditions;</li><li>Make women's rights, interests, and representation one of the highest priorities;</li><li>Struggle for sustainable economic growth that protects the environment and improves social conditions; </li><li>Strengthen the power and unity of trade unions to build a counterweight to the power of transnational corporations (TNCs), including their power over the allocation of employment and investment; </li><li>Struggle for fair trade, social justice and the elimination of poverty; and</li><li>Support and build solidarity with countries and governments who promote progressive policies aimed at delivering fairness, equality and social sustainability.</li></ul>It is clear that trade unions cannot achieve these goals only at the national level.  National initiatives must be complemented with international action in order to be successful For this reason the role of the IMF is to:<ul><li>Unite national metalworking trade unions in a global union structure capable of mobilising its membership in solidarity at all levels wherever and whenever required;</li><li>Bring unions together to share information, overcome conflicts of interest and build common strategies;</li><li>Coordinate solidarity and support for affiliates during major disputes or when fundamental workers' rights are infringed;</li><li>Provide information on developments that affect the activities of metalworker unions; </li><li>Actively voice the concerns and interests of metalworkers in effective and innovative ways that involve and mobilise trade union members and bring the IMF into the daily activities of affiliate unions; </li><li>Direct resources and solidarity support towards building strong national unions in countries where unions are weak or non-existent;</li><li>Support trade union education that tackles core trade union activities such as organising, collective bargaining, defending workers' rights and international solidarity;</li><li>Coordinate an international strategy for building unionism in TNCs and their suppliers at the sectoral and enterprise levels.  Challenge the power of TNCs by developing the capacity to bargain collectively at the international level - based on a case by case mandate from the affiliates and by such means as sharing information and experiences among affiliates  and building on the work of negotiating, implementing and monitoring International Framework Agreements (IFAs);</li><li>Expose and challenge governments that violate fundamental trade union rights or interfere in the functioning of independent trade union bodies;</li><li>Represent the interests of metalworkers in international bodies which take decisions affecting jobs and employment conditions, such as the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), International Monetary Fund, World Bank and the World Trade Organization (WTO);</li><li>Work with other Global Union Federations (GUFs), the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and the Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC) to the OECD to pursue closer cooperation and action in the interests of affiliates; and</li><li>Build, whenever possible, dialogue, alliances and joint actions with appropriate political and social organisations. </li><li>Affiliates of the IMF will make significant contributions to the attainment of our goals by:</li><li>Strengthening their political influence, capacities, and resources through organising and collective bargaining at the national level;</li><li>Sharing information and actively communicating with the IMF and other affiliates at the national, regional, and international level;</li><li>Engaging in the regional and global structures of the IMF;</li><li>Supporting each other during disputes or when fundamental workers' rights are violated;</li><li>Participating in international actions and international networks organised through the IMF; and</li><li>Giving visibility to international trade union action by incorporating IMF co-ordinated activities in day-to-day trade union work. </li></ul>Ultimately, to achieve our goals, the IMF must go beyond simple coordination and become a truly global trade union organization that is able to counteract social and economic challenges and is based on the principles of independence and democracy following the mandates given by the decision-making bodies.

Preface

3. GLOBAL SOLIDARITY IN ACTION

3.3 Defend and protect workers rights

1. OUR MISSION

2. THE WORLD TODAY

2.1 Profits over people

2.2 Unemployment and job insecurity

2.3 Unions under attack

2.4 Fundamental workers´ rights denied

2.5 Spreading influence of Transnational Corporations

2.6 World trade system in disarray

2.7 An unsustainable future

2.8 Alliances, resistance and opportunities

3.1 Build strong national trade unions

3.1.1 Organise the unorganised

3.1.2 Strive for trade union unity at the national level

3.1.3 Build unions through education, training and effective exchange of information

3.2 Strengthening collective bargaining

3.3.1 Fight for trade union rights

3.3.2 Fight for Equal Rights

3.3.3 Fight for safe workplaces

3.4 Build a counterweight to the power of transnational corporations

3.4.1 Strengthening union solidarity and cooperation across sectors and TNCs

3.4.2 Advance fundamental rights through International Framework Agreements

In the process of developing a new Action Programme we see the strengths of the International Metalworkers' Federation. We find that the things that unite us are much greater than the things that divide us.  In the borderless world of today, we share common experiences, challenges and an analysis of the situation facing workers globally. This common ground helps the IMF family to decide upon the direction we will take in order to tackle the problems metalworkers confront every day. The fact that this Action Programme was adopted in the midst of a global economic crisis is not insignificant. But we didn't need the global crisis to understand that the neoliberal model that used to dominate the world was destructive to workers' rights and social development. This IMF Action Programme adopted at the 32nd World Congress puts increased emphasis on concrete action and what IMF affiliates can accomplish together through global solidarity. In order to maximise our influence we need to mobilise the forces of the whole IMF family.We have to invest more resources in organising everywhere.  We will systematically target transnational companies that are reluctant to allow workers to exercise their fundamental rights.The campaign against precarious employment becomes solidified in this document.  The Programme recognises that we need to say and do more on the question of sustainable development and combating global warming. Building trade union networks in transnational companies offers a possibility for exchange of information and joint action to make sure that enterprises behave well wherever they operate.  Union building programmes help us strengthen trade unions where they are weak.This Action Programme contains exciting and challenging new commitments for IMF affiliates to respond with real and effective action to build stronger unions and when workers' rights are violated.  If we work together to implement this Action Programme, we can achieve our mission. In solidarity,Jyrki Raina, IMF General SecretaryJune 2009

PREFACE

GENEVA: Union Roadshow: Organisning EPZ workers in Indonesia hit the big screen this year at the third annual Geneva Labour Film Shorts Festival. The film, produced by the International Metalworkers' Federation, was one of fourteen films selected to be shown.&quot;It has always been extremely difficult for unions to organise EPZ workers, with employers and even governments crushing unionisation attempts,&quot; said Jenny Holdcroft, IMF's Director of Equal Rights and EPZs and one of the film's producers. &quot;But in Indonesia, unions are helping workers to move from temporary contracts to permanent employment. Wages are increasing and so is union membership.&quot;The video showcases the successful organising strategies that Indonesian unions are using to organise EPZ workers. The IMF is hoping that the lessons learned in Indonesia may inspire unions in other parts of the world to intensify their efforts to organise EPZ workers.Other films screened at the festival include a Bollywood meets 1970s horror flick health and safety training video for Indian mine workers; a satire on U.S. immigration policy; the story of Palestinian migrant workers living in an abandoned mall outside of Tel Aviv; and the festival's winner for Best Labour Film Short, Abandoned, not forgotten: the plight of Burma's migrant fishers which exposes the brutal treatment of migrants working in Thailand's billion dollar export fishing industry. The event took place on June 16 and was hosted by all global union federations, the ITUC and TUAC. For more information visit the festival website at: <a href="http://www.labourfilmshorts.org/">http://www.labourfilmshorts.org/</a>.Union Roadshow can be viewed online here.<object></object>

The third annual Geneva Labour Film Shorts Festival debuted fourteen films made by, for and about unions.

IMF&#039;s Union Roadshow screened at film festival

A key role of the IMF is to build effective solidarity and cooperation among affiliated unions present in metalworking TNCs to ensure an equal playing field for workers, which goes far beyond minimum standards. To achieve this, the IMF and its affiliates must actively engage workers in TNCs and their supply chains and give them an opportunity to actively participate in day-to-day trade union work and cross-border activities. Building relationships and strengthening solidarity on an ongoing basis with trade union representatives from different countries enhances the affiliates' ability to act jointly in crises, such as when the rights of workers are violated, during collective bargaining negotiations, when mass layoffs are carried out, or in the event of restructuring to prevent workers being played off against each other. The IMF uses global union networks and the IMF world company councils to build greater capacity for working together in defence of workers' interests across national boundaries. Whenever a TNC announces redundancies or a decrease in working conditions in a given country and the workers and their unions directly affected are actively resisting these changes, the IMF will coordinate solidarity actions involving all countries where that TNC operates. Solidarity actions will include among other initiatives: information campaigns targeting workers and the society at large; the commitment by all unions not to accept the transfer of production from the country in conflict to another one; protest demonstrations in the different countries of operation of the TNC, and wherever possible interruption of production and/or of supplies. In those solidarity campaigns a decisive role will be played by the home country trade unionThis is particularly important to build solidarity with workers in countries like China, where they strive for workers' rights and independent and democratic unions.  In this context, it is also important to engage with non-IMF organisations such as the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) and its metal industry-organisations.  Another step is to institutionalise networks and IMF-world company councils in order to create representative, functioning, financially viable and organised global structures of workers' representation. In this respect, the IMF will resort to the experience made with company-related international cooperation in all regions.The IMF continues to seek to establish IMF world company councils in TNCs.  Whenever possible,   financing of such councils will be negotiated with TNC management without compromising union inclusion and control. Management should play a role in these councils through regular meetings and providing information about the company's situation, policy and investment.These IMF-world company councils shall be underpinned by union networks made up of the responsible trade union coordinators from different countries and / or local areas in which plants of the TNC are located. These networks shall assure that all unions can be part of the information exchange process.At companies such as Volkswagen, Daimler, SKF and Rolls Royce world employee representations/world works councils have already been established, which consist of employee representatives. They were negotiated with and are funded by the respective company.  Trade unions may be involved through an agreement or supportive trade union networks. IMF affiliates seek to engage with those councils to pursue IMF policies.The most important benefit of this company-related, national, regional and international cooperation is the fact that trade union representatives from the company level can exchange information and reach agreed positions.  In so doing, activities of national or local workers' representations may be coordinated internationally. Thus, the networks, world works councils and IMF-world company councils are a way of building solidarity and overcoming competition between workers in different plants of the same company.  The IMF will support and organise training measures that equip union representatives at company level and union officers in charge of TNC with international and intercultural competences. Here, the goal is to efficiently foster cooperation at the company level. The communication between company union representatives and their national trade union must be organised according to the practices in the respective country (e.g. by union officers in charge of certain sectors or companies).Trade union networks, world employee councils/world works councils and IMF world company councils have the potential to develop into negotiating bodies.  The IMF can support this where there is sufficient trade union strength and provided that it is mandated by the trade unions and trade unions are involved and clear IMF guidelines are adhered to.  Building on previous experiences and debates, guidelines for the work of company networks need to be discussed and defined by the IMF. Consideration should be given to focusing resources and efforts in a number of key companies balanced across different sectors and countries.Trade union networks, world works councils and IMF world company councils work within the broader context of IMF sectoral activities and must take into account the varying structures of production chains, and competition in the metal industries. Sectoral work brings together workers from companies that compete with one another to discuss developments and seek shared positions and joint strategies. These strategies should address management attempts to create competition between workers in the sector. The IMF's regional sector-based meetings improve coordination by combining company and sector-level forums for workers, in support of global level activities. Developing sectoral and regional work around consistent responses to  the challenges  facing the industry's workers  will be facilitated when it is done in concert with strengthening trade union links at the enterprise-level, based on an evaluation of the work done already. In some countries, potential leverage to engage TNCs is available to unions through workers' capital in the form of pension and retirement funds. IMF affiliates, particularly those in TNC home countries also have a variety of national means to influence corporate governance. These tools can be used to promote and protect worker and trade union rights across global production chains, to fight corporate corruption, and to push for greater social accountability by corporations.Global campaigns against TNCs that consistently violate worker and trade unions rights are essential to furthering the interests of workers. This requires the support of IMF affiliates, world councils, actions groups and networks, and making use of possible workers' capital and communication strategies.To achieve strengthened union solidarity and cooperation across sectors and TNCs the IMF will:<ul><li>Pressure TNCs to take responsibility for working conditions in their operations and in their supply chains and to remove barriers to freedom of association;</li><li>Build mutual understanding among affiliated unions present in metalworking TNCs to ensure an equal and level playing field for workers that goes far beyond minimum standards;</li><li>Develop a TNC network strategy, working methods and tools, based on a critical analysis of the current networks, councils and available resources in each of the major TNCs. The strategy will include guidelines, to be developed by the Executive Committee, for the work of company networks. These will cover the roles of home country unions, IMF and other affiliates, avoiding co-optation by the companies, building the role of national unions, and tools/protocols for communication and action. The strategy will focus resources and efforts on a number of key companies that are distributed across different sectors and countries;</li><li>Assist affiliates to form and coordinate global union networks at TNCs and/or the sectoral level through which employee representatives from the plant level and national unions can engage in a cross-border exchange of information and consultation on a regular basis;</li><li>Coordinate activities and develop training and information material to build mutual trust and solidarity under the motto &quot;United we stand - divided we fall!&quot;;</li><li>Develop networks for information exchange and action that aim to be efficient, timely, accurate and accessible;</li><li>Gather, analyse and distribute information on the metalworking industries, with particular focus on companies and industrial sectors where workers and members are concentrated, covering collective bargaining, technological changes, innovations on how production is organised, working time, pay and classification systems, and industrial actions;</li><li>Work through TUAC and the ITUC to further strengthen mechanisms to influence corporate governance and socially responsible investment plans of pensions and retirement funds; and</li><li>Work jointly with other GUFs, the ITUC, and TUAC to have structures of union representation in companies at the global level, together with rights to consultation and information, explicitly recognised by the ILO and in international laws and regulations. </li></ul>IMF affiliates will:<ul><li>Provide technical and political support to build and strengthen networks and for successful international coordination of information coming from the national and regional levels; and</li><li>Engage members at the national level to build mutual trust and solidarity to ensure an international approach towards worker and trade union rights when confronting corporate strategies including during transnational restructuring processes.</li></ul>

TNCs, in their pursuit of profits, exert enormous pressure on workers with little regard for democratic, labour and social rights. Employers, supported by many governments and institutions of international governance, seek to shift business risks onto workers and reduce their social, economic, and environmental obligations.To date trade unions have struggled to act as a counterweight to the enormous economic power and sophistication of TNCs. Cost reductions sought by TNCs frequently include a shift from secure to insecure forms of employment, fragmentation of collective bargaining, corporate restructuring, and abuse of human and workers' rights. This serves to heighten competition between workers and communities within and across nations and triggers a race to the bottom in standards.There is an urgent need for more effective international solidarity and cooperation among metalworkers in TNC and along the TNC supply chains to reverse these trends. The IMF has considerable scope to challenge this situation and a range of experiences to draw on, including strategies and activities to strengthen the solidarity between workers across sectors and TNCs. Nevertheless, better tools, a better exchange of information, and more mutual trust between workers need to be promoted by the IMF and its affiliates. This must be built on a critical analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of union organisation and corresponding networks, councils, and the resources available in each of the major TNCs. This analysis will be undertaken by the IMF Executive Committee, informed by the IMF regional and sectoral structures.

<h3 align="left">Training and Education</h3>Where appropriate, the IMF will cooperate with the ITUC, TUAC, the ILO and union-friendly partner organisations to organise and provide education and training aimed at building strong national unions. The IMF Secretariat, with advice from the Executive Committee and the Regions, will prioritise this work to best meet the Action Programme objectives. Where there is cooperation with donor organisations, the primacy of the IMF objectives and the independence of the IMF will always be maintained.Education and training for union building will include topics such as:<ul><li>Globalisation, the rise of corporate power and challenging neoliberalism;</li><li>Organising;</li><li>Collective bargaining policies and effective collective bargaining skills and structures;</li><li>Health and safety issues; </li><li>Equal rights;</li><li>Introduction of new technologies;</li><li>Skills development and life long learning;</li><li>Internal and external communication strategies;</li><li>Financial union management (including effective collection of membership dues and appropriate and transparent expenditures);</li><li>Implementation, monitoring and enforcement of IFAs; and</li><li>Other trade union topics that are of interest and concern.</li></ul>Consistent with the principles outlined above in sections 3.1.1 and 3.1.2, the IMF will provide resources for union building projects on the condition that they:<ul><li>Build organisations independent of employer and government control;</li><li>Enhance democracy within the organisation and encourage and enable members, particularly youth and women, to take part in the activities of the organisation. Projects should contribute to eliminating political, racial and gender discrimination;</li><li>Increase the capacity of the organisation to carry out its own core union activities, building self-reliance, particularly in the area of education;</li><li>Strengthen solidarity within the organisation, among unions in the country and/or region, and inside the IMF; and</li><li>Support independent trade unions confronting and fighting repressive governments.</li></ul><h3> Information</h3><ul><li>Information on the work of the IMF and its affiliates needs to be more systematically communicated. This information can help affiliates in the different regions to learn from one another and build up their strength.</li></ul><h3> The IMF will:</h3><ul><li>Work towards establishing a more effective internal information system, using the IMF website, newsletters, the quarterly journal and other means of communication. </li></ul><h3> IMF affiliates will:</h3><ul><li>Inform the secretariat about what type of information they are interested in; and,</li><li>Provide the IMF with information about their activities.</li></ul>

In countries where national unions are vulnerable or enterprise unions predominate, the IMF will work with affiliates to promote national unity and strengthened national structures.  This includes developing strategies to prevent workers' organisations from being played off against one another or becoming dependent on management. Using tools such as Country Councils, the IMF will work to avoid competition and encourage co-operation and solidarity between workers. Given that strong national unions are often born out of different historical backgrounds, it is necessary to seek unity of action even when unification into a single national union is not realistic. The IMF will focus its attention on ensuring that the unions we support have the capacity to organise, bargain and prioritise work on a national level, and that different unions within a country work in concert in the interests of all metalworkers.In countries where labour legislation does not permit national unions, the IMF will work with national centres, other global unions, and the ITUC to assist workers and their unions in overturning laws that prevent workers from forming national unions.To assist affiliates in achieving unity at the national level, the IMF will:<ul><li>Utilise IMF Country Council structures to build greater unity and solidarity in action; and</li><li>Focus its union building activities in countries where affiliates are predominantly enterprise-level unions in TNC's on the strengthening of national structures, and on building unity among unions by encouraging changes in union structures.</li></ul>IMF affiliates will:<ul><li>Work with other affiliates at the national level to build common positions and platforms on issues affecting metalworkers, particularly collective bargaining.</li></ul>

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