South Africa: Unions meet to build an Africa-Europe network across the Lear supply chain22 June, 2018IndustriALL Global Union affiliates in Germany and South Africa working for Lear Corporation are meeting in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, from 20–22 June to discuss ways to collaborate on improving conditions for workers in Africa and Europe.
African unions condemn global trade in used clothes as it suffocates textile sector7 June, 2018African countries export cotton to Asia where it is spun into yarn and made into fabric from which garments are made and sold to big brands in Europe and the USA. Charity and thrift shops then buy the clothes after they have been worn and discarded. On the bottom of the consumption chain are African countries that import bales of the used clothes, and even underwear, for sale in the thriving informal markets common on the continent.
DRC unions close ranks against Glencore30 May, 2018Four IndustriALL Global Union affiliates in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), OTUC, CSC, TUMEC, and UNTC met at the Immaculata Convent, Kolwezi on 25 May, to discuss how they can build solidarity and work together against Glencore’s trampling of workers’ rights at Mutanda Mine and Kamoto Copper Mine (KCC), and to improve working conditions and win fair wages for the mineworkers.
Namibian union declares dispute over retrenchments of 600 workers at Langer Heinrich Uranium mine30 May, 2018With hundreds of jobs at stake, and the Langer Heinrich Uranium (LHU) mine in Erongo Province – close to Swakopmund and Walvis Bay – negotiating in bad faith, IndustriALL affiliate the Mine Workers Union of Namibia (MUN) has declared a dispute to get fair compensation for workers facing retrenchment.
Organizing the diamond mining industry in Lesotho24 May, 2018Deep inside the mountain kingdom of Lesotho lies untapped treasure that is attracting global diamond mining capital.
Ethiopia: Meeting stirs debate on living wages23 May, 2018A meeting on organizing the international supply chain in the textile and garment sector has kick-started much-needed debate on wages and been met with approval from unions.
South Africa: Zara accused of design theft29 April, 2018The Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (SACTWU), an affiliate of the IndustriALL Global Union, has condemned Zara’s fashion piracy after it emerged that the Spanish-based global brand produced designs with a strong similarity to a local designer’s collection.
eSwatini: Union celebrates court victory28 April, 2018IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Amalgamated Trade Union of Swaziland (ATUSWA) is overjoyed after the Industrial Court in Mbabane, Swaziland - recently renamed eSwatini - confirmed on April 26 that the Swaziland Processing, Refining and Allied Workers Union and the Swaziland Manufacturing and Allied Workers Union merged to form the union.
Sanches urges rethink on African development strategies16 April, 2018IndustriALL Global Union general secretary Valter Sanches has urged affiliates in Sub Saharan Africa to rethink development strategies for the continent, and to engage their governments on sustainable industrialization.
Meeting recommends policies to end women workers’ rights violations in Sub Saharan Africa13 April, 2018During a campaign for maternity protection in Nigeria, Oluchi Okorie, from IndustriALL Global Union affiliate, the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas workers union, was asked by employers: “What is your problem? Are you pregnant?” Similar questions, that made fun of organizers, were common to those championing women workers’ rights at the workplace. They were also even ignored when they tried to speak in meetings at work.
