| Bienvenido | El Congreso | Norrköping | Documentos | Prensa | Sobre la FITTVC |
|
|
|
For The Press
Tuesday June 20, 2000 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Says ITGLWF General Secretary Neil Kearney: "You don't need a degree in Business Adminstration to understand why globalisation has spread so rapidly. You just have to look at situation around the world: "In Sweden, average hourly wages amount to about 12US$. In Burma, workers at one garment factory had to strike for two weeks, knowing they risked imprisonment and torture, before their demands for higher wages were met. The increase brought their wages up to 4.75 US$ a month. Yes, workers in Sweden earn twice as much in an hour as Burmese workers earn in a month. "In Sweden, 98% of workers are unionised. In the Dominican Republic, one young woman who tried to form a union at her garment factory had her arm broken by thugs with baseball bats hired by her employer. "In Sweden, workers work eight hours a day. In Bangladesh, children as young as eight or nine sometimes have to work around the clock to complete urgent orders. "In Sweden, ocupational health and safety conditions are strictly regulated. In Vietnam, workers at one footwear company were found to be exposed to toxic solvents and adhesives, with noise levels as as high as 104.5 dB and temperatures of more than 40°C. Eighty-six percent of workers tested were suffering from nose and throat illnesses. Says Kearney: "Globalisation is inevitable in a modern world. But while globalisation holds great potential for improving the lives of workers, in reality they see mainly the exploitation and insecurity it brings. "Trade unions have long argued that the best way to correct this inequality is to link trade and worker rights. This would require all exporting countries to respect certain fundamental rights, which are the right to organise and bargain collectively, the prohibition of child labour, forced labour and discrimination. The idea is that these standards would be enforced through the same procedures that govern all of international trade, through the World Trade Organisation. "The aim is not to exclude goods produced at low wages", stresses Kearney, "unless those wages are kept low by systematically denying workers the right to organise and bargain collectively, or by the use of child labour, forced labour or discrimination". The trade union proposal has provoked controversy, particularly from some of the most oppressive regimes around the world, but also genuine concern at the possibility of prtectionism. The session 'Can Globalisation Work for Workers?' will bring together representatives of the South African garment workers union, the Swedish Employers' Association, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to examine what mechanisms are needed to ensure that worker rights are applied globally. The session 'Can Globalisation Work for Workers' will be held on Tuesday June 27 starting at 14:00 at the Louis De Geer Congress Centre in Norrköping, Sweden. Congress sessions are open to the press. Further information on the ITGLWF 8th World Congress is available at www.itglwf.org. For more information, contact: Neil Kearney (ITGLWF, Brussels) at 32/2/512.2606 or 32/75932487 or 32/75932487 (cell)
|
|
Bienvenido | El Congreso | Norrköping | Documentos | Prensa | Sobre la FITTVC |