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Georgia: Borjomi strike ends

Statement from the Trade Union of Agriculture, Trade and Industry

After 22 days of strike, on June 21, an agreement was reached between the trade unions, the employees of the Borjomi factory and the management of IDS Borjomi Georgia.

All the main demands, which were voiced by Giorgi Diasamidze, Chairman of the Trade Union of Agriculture, Trade and Industry, together with the employees during the strike period, have been met.

The factory workers who were illegally fired were reinstated in their jobs, and in addition to the workers receiving compensation, a number of issues were resolved in their favor.

In particular, as a result of the agreement between the parties:

• 2021 contracts will be automatically returned by January 1, 2023, in case no better contract is offered by that time.

• Employees with three-, six- and one-year term contracts will sign permanent contracts

• Employees fired two or three months ago due to expiration of a fixed-term contract will be reinstated in their jobs

• All employees who expressed a desire to leave the job by September 2022 will receive 6 months compensation

• IDS Borjomi Georgia undertakes to allocate a room in the factory for trade union activities

• The employer undertakes not to terminate contracts with trailer drivers who express solidarity with the strikers without unequivocal confirmation of the strike.

• The employer makes a commitment and pays the strike days at the forced deley rate

• The employer undertakes to provide employees with transport from June 2022 as before the pandemic.

• The trade union undertakes to withdraw all court sues under this agreement.

The workers at the Borjomi factory are satisfied with the results achieved and believe that justice has been restored to them.

“The agreement we signed is temporary, we will start working on a new agreement in November. If the company does not offer better terms and it is not acceptable to us, we have to go back to the contract reached after the 2021 strike, I mean a fixed salary. As of today, we are happy with what we have agreed on, though it does not end there. We will continue to work. I would like to thank the trade unions and in particular Giorgi Diasamidze, if not for this person, we would not have achieved all this. He put a lot of work and energy into the people employed in Borjomi. “Thanks to him, we have won for the second time,” said Marina Dvalashvili, an employee of the Borjomi factory.

Enforcement and control of the terms of the agreement will be carried out by the Labor Inspection Service of Georgia.

The employees were represented by the chairman of the trade union of agriculture, trade and industry and the lawyer of the union. The other side who ware involved in the negotiation process: a representative of the Georgian government, the Labor Inspection Service and the State Representative in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region.

Pakistani factory producing for int’l brands in Canada ‘illegally’ fires workers 

Naeem Impex laid off 49 workers without any notice or payments

By LabourStart correspondent

A factory in Karachi, Pakistan which produces textiles and apparels for international brands, such as Batman, Featherhead Baby and Fisher-Price, in Canada has ‘illegally’ fired more than two dozen workers without clearing their dues, National Trade Union Federation (NTUF) Pakistan’s general secretary Nasir Mansoor said. 

On Monday, the sacked employees along with the representatives of the NTUF staged a demonstration outside the factory, Naeem Impex, located in the SITE area of the city, demanding reinstatement. 

Workers protest outside Naeem Impex, factory in Karachi, Pakistan producing textile and apparel for international brands in Canada. PHOTO: Zehra Khan

“The factory management said to the workers that they were fired over violation of the discipline. On the other hand, when we [NTUF] approached the management, they said that the workers were laid off owing to financial crunches and there could be more retrenchments in the coming days,” Mansoor said.

He added that the workers were laid off in retaliation for demanding better working conditions, ending workplace harassment and violence. He said that most of the workers were without any contract and earned less than the already insufficient minimum wage.

He said that the NTUF had filed a complaint with the Department of Labour, Government of Sindh, on behalf of the sacked employees. He stressed that the workers were in need of solidarity from trade unions in the North. 

Workers showing the labels they produced for:

In a video of the protest seen by LabourStart, a woman worker complained that her supervisor tried to slap her and then pushed her outside the factory. She added that she was then asked to write an apology if she wanted her job back. 

Another woman said that the management had an abusive attitude towards workers and whoever raised voice against it was threatened to be fired from the job. She added that the management made them work even on Sundays with a warning that those who abstained would be allowed on the premises on Mondays. 

Their male colleague said that he was blackmailed into writing a resignation and despite that he was not paid his full salary and overtime. The workers at the demonstration said that the factory ran two production units and from them a total of 49 workers were laid off. They added the sacked workers were awaiting a bonus from the factory for upcoming Eid holidays. 

Statement of Russian union federation FNPR

Original text is in Russian here. This translation to English was done automatically.

ABOUT THE PEACEKEEPING OPERATION

Communiqué of the press service of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia

The Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia supports the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin to carry out an operation to denazify Ukraine. The future of the country should be determined by its people, but gangs of Bandera, nationalists and accomplices of the Nazis should not put pressure on their will. We sympathize with those who were forced to evacuate to Russian territory by regular shelling and the death of loved ones. Trade unions of Russia provide them with all possible assistance. We believe that peace will return to Ukraine, and Ukraine will become a democratic, peaceful, neutral state.

Hitlers and Zelenskys come and go, but international worker solidarity remains.

Peace to the nations! War on the Nazis!

Ukrainian unions urgent message: Russia attacked and started the invasion into Ukraine

Statement of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine

On 24 of February, at 5 a.m (Kyiv time) Russia cowardly attacked and started the invasion into Ukraine.

The main Ukrainian cities Odesa, Mariupol, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts are under attack. The airports near Kyiv were attacked too. The Ukrainian army and people are defending their land.

Today we have to fight for our freedom, democracy, and peace.

The Confederation of Free trade Unions of Ukraine calls all global trade union organizations, brothers and sisters from t trade unions in different countries for solidarity.

The KVPU calls to continue and strengthen international diplomatic and economic pressure on the Russian Federation and provide all possible measures to stop war and force withdraw her forces from the territory of Ukraine. An effective package of sanctions must be imposed immediately against the Russian Federation.  We call to provide all possible assistance to Ukraine.
We must unite to stop the war and ensure peace in Ukraine, in Europe, and the whole world.

As we informed before, the President of RF V.Putin by his decree of February 21, recognized the self-proclaimed  Luhansk and Donetsk Republics as sovereign and independent states. Besides, on February 21, RF started the official bringing of Russian troops into the occupied territory of the Luhansk and Donetsk Regions of Ukraine.

Thus, according to international humanitarian law, Russia has admitted to being a party to an international armed conflict.

We want to emphasize again  Ukraine observed the ceasefire regime and respected agreements, didn’t conduct military or unlawful actions in the occupied territories. It was Russia that started aggression in 2014. It was russian forces that have been shelled the cities of the Donetsk and Luhansk region this week.  Also, we call not to believe Russian propaganda.

Not only the independence of Ukraine but also the security of entire Europe and the future of the world depend on our joint response and solidarity.  

In unity is our strength!

The Chairperson of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine 

Mykhailo Volynets 

p.s. The leadership of the KVPU and workers of the central office of the KVPU are in Kyiv.  We hope that there will be a the internet and mobile connection in Kyiv and we’ll inform you about the situation/

Ukrainians are resisting!  

Kind regards,   

International Department    

Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine (KVPU)

International-dep@kvpu.org.ua

Tel 380 44 284 33 05

Str. Saksaganskogo, 38 B, office 8,

Kyiv, 01033, Ukraine

kvpu.org.ua