Firefighters’ Union Takes Ax to Giuliani’s 9/11 Acclaim
By Rachel Kapochunas, CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY
July 12, 2007


Rudolph Giuliani’s status as a top-tier candidate for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination is based largely on renown he accrued for his handling, as mayor of New York City, of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center towers.

But a major national union representing firefighters — the first responders who suffered devastating losses on 9/11 — views Giuliani’s behavior very differently and is now going all out to rebut his stalwart reputation.

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) released a video Wednesday evening portraying what the union characterizes as leadership “failures” allegedly committed by Giuliani before, during and after the attack that claimed the lives of 343 firefighters.

“Rudy Giuliani has used a horrible event, Sept. 11, 2001, to create a carefully crafted persona,” IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger stated in the film’s introduction. “But the fact is, what Rudy portrays is not a full picture of the decisions made that led, in our view, to the unnecessary deaths of our FDNY members and the attempt to stop the dignified recovery of those lost.”

The resentment harbored by the union and a number of its members has been simmering for years, and there have been a few smaller skirmishes since Giuliani launched his presidential bid late last year. But the potential for political damage from this all-out attack by the union was evident in the rapid response from the Giuliani camp — which, among other things, characterized the criticism as an effort to undermine his campaign by a group with strong ties to the Democratic Party.

The 13-minute film, entitled “Rudy Giuliani: Urban Legend,” features interviews with firefighters and their families who fault Giuliani for problems with communications equipment that they say resulted in many firefighters being trapped in the collapsing towers, and for instituting a cleanup process at “Ground Zero” they deemed disrespectful to the victims. The film was intended for distribution to the union’s 280,000 members and is being made available to the public.

The film’s narrator and interview subjects claim that radio communication problems prevented firefighters in the North Tower from receiving evacuation commands, which they say were received and followed by the police officers in the building.

“While all police officers left the building,” the film’s narrator states, regarding the North Tower, “121 firefighters never made it out.”

The union also takes issue with what they feel is Giuliani’s use of the firefighters’ deaths for personal and political gain.

“On the heroic memory of 343 dead firefighters, he wants to run for president of the United States,” firefighter Steve Cassidy stated in the video. “It’s a disgrace.” Cassidy is president of the New York IAFF chapter.

As news reports of the video surfaced Tuesday evening, Giuliani’s campaign distributed a list of initiatives and funding steered toward the city’s firefighters in a release entitled: “Mayor Giuliani’s Record of Support for New York’s Bravest.” The campaign cited funding Giuliani secured for bunker gear, thermal cameras, personal alarms and other items, as well as measures to improve the fire department’s operational capacity and infrastructure.

Giuliani’s campaign also dubbed the organization the “International Association of Partisan Politics” in a message Wednesday.

“It’s unfortunate, but not surprising, that the IAFF union bosses have once again taken the low road in a move clearly out of step with their membership,” retired firefighter and Giuliani supporter Lee Ielpi said in a statement posted by the campaign. Ielpi’s son, also a firefighter, was killed in the attack on the World Trade Center.

Ielpi continued, “In 2008, I expect these same union bosses to endorse Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama or John Edwards, so today’s comments are just a first step in that process. Fortunately, rank-and-file firefighters know the difference between politics and leadership.”

The IAFF endorsed Massachusetts Democratic Sen. John Kerry in his 2004 challenge to President George W. Bush, and Schaitberger conceded in an interview with C-SPAN in March that the organization had never endorsed a Republican for president. Schaitberger, however, defended the IAFF as a bipartisan organization, and noted the union has supported successful Republican candidates for governor, including Florida’s Charlie Crist and Vermont’s Jim Douglas, as well as GOP candidates for U.S. Senate and House.

The local New York City chapter of the IAFF twice endorsed Giuliani for mayor and bucked the national union by endorsing Bush’s 2004 presidential re-election campaign.

The IAFF invited candidates from both parties to attend its 2008 presidential candidate forum in March, but Giuliani did not attend, citing scheduling problems. Others believed Giuliani declined the invitation after the leaking of a scathing letter penned by the union’s leader, which contained sharp criticism of Giuliani’s relationship with firefighters and his record. At that time, IAFF leaders said the letter was never sent to Giuliani and was not intended for publication, but also declared that the union and its political action committee would not support Giuliani for president.

Giuliani’s role after the Sept. 11 attacks made him Time Magazine’s choice for 2001 Person of the Year, with a cover that labeled him “Tower of Strength.” This reputation undergirds Giuliani’s appeals to voters on both sides of the aisle as he positions himself as the best choice to lead the nation during a time of war.

Giuliani has for months held first place in virtually all national Republican voter preference polls on the 2008 nomination, which in turn has greatly helped his fundraising: He has taken in roughly $35 million in campaign receipts and is expected to report more than $18 million cash on hand in his filing for the year’s second quarter that is due to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Sunday.

Yet Giuliani’s hold on front-runner status is fragile, in large part because his relatively liberal record on social issues such as abortion, gay rights and gun control differ from the conservative views held by much of the Republican Party’s conservative base. So which side gets the better of the dispute between Giuliani and the firefighters’ union over 9/11 could have major implications for his ongoing campaign.

http://www.nytimes.com

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Pensions victory

UNISON's relentless campaigning to preserve a vital retirement protection has paid off.

In an announcement to parliament today, local government minister Phil Woolas promised to consult on extending the full 'rule of 85' protection when the new local government pension scheme is rolled out next year.

The government had initially planned to dump the rule - which allows workers to retire on an unreduced pension if their combined age and years of service total 85 or over - in 2016.

Now, however, there is another chance for the union to argue it should be retained until 2020, which would bring workers in the LGPS in England and Wales into line with their colleagues in Scotland.

UNISON is welcoming the move as a major breakthrough, claiming “the constant lobbying and pressure has paid off”.

Regional secretary Gill Hale said: "Our campaign has delivered many improvements to the new pension scheme… attributable to delivering effective industrial action, hard work and successful campaigning of our branches and negotiators for over two years.”

UNISON's annual local government conference opens in Brighton this Sunday, when delegates will meet to consider the LGPS and its provisions.

UNISON news.
http://www.unison.org.uk/index.asp

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UNISON gears up for equality duty

Gender equality is about improving the working lives of both men and women, delegates were reminded yesterday.

The gender equality duty, introduced in April , places a statutory duty on all public authorities to eliminate sex discrimination and promote equality.

Crucially, the code of practice on the duty refers to consultation with, and involvement of trade unions – identifying 13 employment priorities that are longstanding items on the equality bargaining agenda.

UNISON is in an ideal position to influence its implementation, since the union’s members can participate in the consultation process both as service users and service providers.

Sharon Foster of the national women’s conference told delegates: “You can use this duty to change your working lives for the better.”

Conference called on the NEC and other relevant bodies to:

  • ensure that all branches and service groups are aware of the potential of the duty;
  • make sure tall branches make use of the guidance and training available on taking part in the consultation process;
  • work with regions to share best practice;
  • lobby the government to ensure proper funding for the monitoring and enforcement of the duty.


The NEC’s June Nelson spoke of the breadth of the gender equality duty.

“It is not just about providing crèches and greater maternity leave, but issues that affect all members, both male and female,” she said.

“It could be used to open up job opportunities for both men and women, that will encourage more men into caring professions and more women into senior posts. It is about flexibility arrangements for men who are tired of the 24:7 culture, and a new opportunity to put in place strategies to close the gender pay gap.”

UNISON news.
http://www.unison.org.uk/index.asp

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International voice

UNISON has proven to be a powerful voice for workers not only for Britain but all over the world, conference heard today.

"When you speak, governments listen," said this afternoon's guest speaker, Annie Geron, general secretary of PSLink, UNISON's sister union in the Philippines.

She praised the union for its condemnation of the corrupt political regime in her country which has let extra-judicial killings go unpunished.

"Every week someone is killed," she said. "Every day, the government treats it as business as usual."

Appealing to the union to continue to speak up for the ordinary people of the Philippines, Ms Geron said: "You are the largest union of the public sector; you have power and influence in this country - please continue creating the pressure on the Arroyo government to take decisive action to stop the killings and to respect human rights.

"Please don't underestimate what these petition letters can do," she urged. "They do save lives."

In the Philippines, as in the UK, trade unions are waging war against the privatisation of public services. But in a country where corruption is already rife, privatisation only opens the door wider to corruption, Ms Geron said.

"And when corruption is pervasive, public services suffer."

Ms Geron also thanked the union for championing the rights of migrant workers, and hailed its contribution to the development of an ethical recruitment framework.

Education and health were suffering because of an exodus of teachers and healthworkers from the Philippines, she said. "The Philippines is the number one exporter of nurses in the world," and the past four years have seen a 61% decrease in the number of doctors.

All over the country, hospitals are closing because of a lack of skilled health professionals, she said, blaming "relentless and unethical recruitment by developed countries" who were poaching skilled professionals without offering any compensation.

"Keep migrant workers on the union agenda," she urged.

"Finally, I thank UNISON for your invaluable contribution to empowering workers in developing countries. Together, let's wage war against poverty, against rights violations, and let's win the fight to keep public services in public hands."

UNISON news.
http://www.unison.org.uk/news/news_view.asp?did=3415

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Racism embedded in British institutions

Racism remains “embedded” in Britain’s institutions and daily life. Baroness Howells told conference today.

The Labour peer, who has worked tirelessly for race equality, addressed delegates immediately after they voted to continue the union’s campaign against the BNP.

A descendant of an enslaved African, Baroness Howells spoke about the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade by the UK parliament. She commented that “Britain was very, very good at slavery, just as it was great at colonialism.”

There had been many positive steps forward in the past 200 years, she said, including the Race Relations Act and the current government’s commitment to community cohesion and social inclusion.

“But I would argue that emotions retain their depth and strength, because the racism that flourished then, lingers on, remaining embedded in our institutions and daily life.”

The fact that the killers of Stephen Lawrence were known, but still free, was one terrible example of that fact, she said. The baroness is a trustee of the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust.

She told conference that, to mark the bicentenary, she would like to see an institute founded that would reflect on the lessons learned from that part of Britain’s history.

“I would also like there to be a symbolic legacy – a statue of the unknown slave, just as we have a tomb of the unknown warrior in Westminster Abbey,” she said.

“We do not worship that warrior, rather we revere him for his sacrifice. Similarly with the statue we would recognise the humanity of the slave, and recoil in horror at his transformation into disposable property.”

UNISON news.
http://www.unison.org.uk/news/news_view.asp?did=3443

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UNISON pledges support for Palestine

UNISON delegates today agreed to support a campaign of sustained pressure to end Israel’s occupation of Palestine.

The union was discussing its position after a turbulent few weeks for the Palestinians, which have involved intense fighting between factions, the sacking of the Hamas prime minister and resumption of US and EC diplomatic ties.

Proposing the motion, Tracy Morgan of Wolverhampton General branch said that Palestinians were “living on tenterhooks” and that a renewed campaign would give them “a sense of hope”.

Some delegates were concerned that the move was too extreme and would penalise Israelis.

But Ms Morgan assured them that the intention was not to discriminate against the Israeli people themselves.

“The occupation needs to end so that everyone can live together. And I believe that Israelis and Palestinians do want to live together.”

The motion urges Israel to respect the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and to establish a state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip with its capital in Jerusalem.

Conference called on the NEC to:

  • continue to work with the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and others, as appropriate;
  • continue to develop capacity building projects with the Palestine General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU);
  • call upon the UK government to end the arms trade with Israel;
  • produce UNISON material on Palestine to build knowledge among members;
  • consider inviting a PGFTU delegation to the regions.
UNISON news.
http://www.unison.org.uk/news/news_view.asp?did=3414

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Government faces united fight on pay.

The prospect of nurses, dinner ladies, teachers, police and posties all sharing a picket line moved a step closer today.

Delegates at the union’s national conference in Brighton this morning voted unanimously for a motion demanding the government abandon its 2% public sector pay freeze.

The move commits UNISON to mounting a vigorous campaign for fair pay across the public sector, which could involve lawful strike action.

Action will be coordinated with other public sector unions.

“Our members have been insulted,” said NEC member Jane Carolan, introducing the debate. “If this government truly wants 21st century public services, then it will have to pay 21st century pay rates.

“But unions cannot fight these battles alone,” she added. “This composite commits us to a united front, to work with the PCS, the GMB, NUT, UCU, CWU, Unite and other trade unions.”

The government had not treated workers with respect, said UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis, stressing that it is important to unite to co-ordinate the fight back.

“This year, the government and the employers have miscalculated,” he said. “They have rewarded the delivery of first-class public services with a kick in the teeth.

“We won’t have it. We will work with our sister unions. We are prepared to fight. We are prepared to strike. We will coordinate action locally and nationally, and we will win.”

Merv Butler, for South Tyneside local government branch, said branches would gain strength in seeing us coordinate action across other unions.

Public-sector workers were angry, conference said. A united campaign would harness that anger. “This provides us with an opportunity to unite on a scale that we have not seen for years. Grab that opportunity.”

“This motion is absolutely crucial,” said Northern region rep Claire Williams. “It’s about what we put into action in our branches when we go away from here. Let’s be clear, regions have a key role to play in organising action, bringing health and local government workers together with police workers and through other trade unions. This is about defending our pay but also our public services.”

Jane Carolan stressed delegates should return to their branches and talk to members to prepare for a ballot on strike action. “You are this union’s leaders – take the lead,” she urged them. “Go back to your branches and prepare them for the battle ahead.

“It’s time to use our trade union principles: educate, agitate, organise and mobilise. Our cause is just, we can win.”

UNISON news.
http://www.unison.org.uk/news/news_view.asp?did=3440

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Trade Union : An introduction

What is a trade union?

A trade union is an organized group of workers. Its main objective is to look after and advance the interests of its members.

A union often discusses agreements with company on reimburse and conditions. It may also offer legal and financial advice, illness remuneration and education facilities to its members.

Trade union appreciation

Employers which recognize any union, will discuss with those union(s) over members' pay and conditions.

Many acknowledgment agreements are reached voluntarily. If agreement can't be reached and the organization employs more than 20 people, a union may apply for statutory recognition. To do so, it must first ask for recognition from the manager in writing.

Collective negotiation.

If a union is formally recognized by an employer, it can negotiate with the employer over terms and conditions. This is known as 'collective bargaining'.

For collective negotiation to work, unions and employers need to agree on how the arrangement is to operate. They might, for example, make agreements providing for the deduction of union subscriptions from members' wages, who is to represent workers in negotiations and how often meetings will take place.

Both these agreements on procedure and agreements between employers and unions changing the terms applying to workers (for example, a pay increase) are called 'collective agreements'. Your contract of employment will probably set out which collective agreements cover you. It's possible that a union may negotiate on your behalf even if you're not a member.

Joining a trade union

Why join a union?

Some workers join a trade union because they believe that a union can:

  • negotiate better pay
  • negotiate better working conditions, such as more holidays or improved health and safety
  • provide training for new skills
  • give general advice and support

Union members have the right to be attended to a discipline or grievance hearing by a trade union representative (although trade unions are not compelled to provide this). All employees, in spite of whether they are union members or not, are entitled to be accompanied by a work colleague.

Recognized unions also have rights to consultation where redundancies or a transfer of business are proposed.

There is a regular donation cost for union membership. Different rates may apply to trainees and part-timers. Unions will not normally help with problems which pre-date membership.

How to join

If you want to join a recognized union in your workplace, you could approach a representative for information, for example, the shop steward. Otherwise, contact the TUC to find out which union is relevant to you.

Trade union-related rights

The law gives you the right to join a trade union wherever you work. This right applies whether a union has been renowned or not.

You're protected from being disadvantaged for being a union member. Specifically trade union membership is an unlawful reason for:

  • reject you employment
  • dismissing you
  • selecting you for redundancy

The law gives you the right not to join a trade union. The same protection applies to you as it does to union members. In particular, employers are no longer permitted to operate a 'closed shop' (that is, make all workers join the employer's preferred union).

An employer can't deduct payments from you, for example, to a union or charity, in lieu of union association exclusive of your permission.

Trade union activities

When a union is recognized by an employer, members have the right to time off at an appropriate time to take part in trade union activities. These may include:

  • voting in ballots on industrial action
  • voting in union elections
  • meeting to discuss urgent matters
  • attending the annual conference

You don’t have the right to be paid for any time spent taking industrial action.

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Don't make workers wait too long for extra holiday, says TUC

Several million of the UK's hard-working employees should soon be enjoying more leisure time with their family and friends thanks to Government plans to increase the legal minimum holiday entitlement for all UK workers, says the TUC today (Wednesday).

But in its submission to a Government consultation on increasing the UK's minimum annual leave entitlement, the TUC is urging ministers not to bow to the business lobby and make employees wait until next autumn before they can get the extra time off work.

Under existing law, it is will be perfectly legal for employees unfortunate enough to work for mean employers to be forced to take this Good Friday and Easter Monday from their four weeks' statutory minimum leave entitlement.

This means that when this weekend's two bank holidays and this year's other six are taken into account, some full time employees could be left with just 12 days holiday, and some part-time staff could find themselves using up almost all their annual leave just on public holidays, says the TUC. The Government's proposals will prevent employers from doing this, by granting employees a minimum of 5.6 weeks leave a year - 28 days for a full-time worker.

In its submission, the TUC says that ministers should ignore the cries from some employers that bringing in the extra leave all in one go will be unaffordable. The TUC argues that UK workers should not have to wait another 18 months before getting the extra holiday as the economy is performing well enough to absorb the full change from this October.

The TUC's submission says that all previous increases in annual leave and any new bank holidays have come into effect with no detrimental effect on the economy, jobs, productivity or competitiveness. And most UK employees would be unaffected by the change because they already enjoy more holiday than the legal minimum (the average being 25 days plus eight bank holidays).

The TUC would also like to see tough proactive enforcement of the new rules to make sure that all employees are able to take all the holiday to which they are entitled.

TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: 'Over-worked, stressed out, holiday- poor employees are not going to be a firm's best asset. On the other hand, those staff who are able to book time off work, return refreshed with their batteries recharged, and are much more productive.

'The extra leave on offer to employees will make a real difference to the lives of millions of working people. The Government must ignore those carping employers who say that the new holiday leave should not come in all at once. Workers should be able to take the extra holiday from this autumn and not be forced to wait another year to get their holiday in full.'

NOTES TO EDITORS:

- In its manifesto for the 2005 General Election the Labour Party proposed to extend the four weeks' minimum paid holiday guaranteed by the Working Time Regulations (1998). The Government proposes to add 1.6 weeks to the existing minimum statutory annual leave entitlement, thus increasing the entitlement for full-time workers by eight days, with a pro-rata increase for part-time workers.

The DTI intends to implement the increase to leave rights in two parts:

· 1 October 2007 - increase to 4.8 weeks

· 1 October 2008 - increase to 5.6 weeks

- The TUC submission 'Increasing the holiday entitlement: a further consultation' can be found at http://www.tuc.org.uk/extras/holidayentitlement.pdf

- All TUC press releases can be found at www.tuc.org.uk

- Register for the TUC's press extranet : a service exclusive to journalists wanting to access pre-embargo releases and reports from the TUC. Visit www.tuc.org.uk/pressextranet

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WTO must assess employment impacts

GENEVA: As the December WTO Ministerial Conference approaches, the IMF joins the trade union movement in reiterating its demand that effects on development and employment must be assessed before further trade liberalisation occurs.

“Promises about the potential of trade liberalisation have failed to materialise in terms of more and better jobs for developing and industrialised countries,” writes IMF general secretary Marcello Malentacchi in his latest opinion column.

“A race to the bottom with cheaper labour and worsening working conditions is undermining decent work for the sake of maximising company profits,” he writes.

Concerns about the direction of the current Doha round of trade negotiations were reinforced by recently released World Bank projections on the gains of the new WTO round. The World Bank projections suggest:

  • 70 per cent of the gains would go to developed countries;
  • Developing country gains are likely to be less than a penny-a-day per capita; and
  • Poverty impacts are very small, with projected reductions of less than one per cent in the number of people living in poverty.

In a recently issued statement on the market access negotiations a group of developing countries called for the continued right to manage adjustment of tariffs in sensitive sectors so as to minimise social disruption caused by job losses and closure of enterprises.

“We demand that any further negotiations on trade liberalisation be dependent on the outcome of an evaluation of their repercussions on sustainable development and employment, especially in developing and least developed countries,” Malentacchi writes.

This demand is also included in the Summary of Trade Union Proposals to WTO trade negotiations, which was prepared by the Global Unions Group and is available at the following web address: http://www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991223003&Language=EN

The more comprehensive Trade Union Statement on the WTO negotiations, prepared earlier in the year by the same group, is available at the following web address: http://www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991221675&Language=EN

A copy of Malentacchi’s opinion column is published on the IMF website.

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International Trade Union Bodies Meet With UN Secretary General in Davos

At a meeting with Kofi Annan at the World Economic Forum in Davos on 25 January, ICFTU General Secretary Guy Ryder said the global trade union movement had reached “good understandings” with the United Nations Secretary General on a series of key international issues. The trade union representatives welcomed the signs of growing commitment within the UN system, promoted by the union movement and the International Labour Organization, to tackle the global employment crisis, through the creation of decent jobs for the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who are struggling to survive in conditions of poverty.

The increasing engagement of the UN on the issue of international migration was a major feature of the talks, with a common recognition of the need for a strong UN role in pushing for effective international action on rights for migrant workers and the need for economic development and job creation in so-called “sending countries”, as central planks of a cohesive and balanced global approach on the issue.

In discussions over the situation in Iraq, the Secretary General expressed his deep condolences on being informed by the union delegation of the murder that morning of Alaa Issa Khalaf, a member of the Executive Board of the Baghdad branch of the mechanics union, and underlined the positive role of trade unions in economic, social and political development.

Kofi Annan expressed his satisfaction at the forthcoming unification of the international trade union movement, pointing to the many challenges which the new organization will face in light of developments in the global economy. He also welcomed the new initiatives being taken between the trade union movement and the United Nations Environment Programme, and other areas of joint activity in the UN system. Prospects for moving ahead with the process of UN reform were also addressed during the talks.

“Commitment to the role of the United Nations has been a historical feature of the policies and activities of the international trade union movement, and will no doubt be a central plank of the new international trade union confederation which will be founded in Vienna in November this year”, said Ryder.

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China: Facing Reality

On December 6, trade union representatives from 20 countries preparing to travel to Beijing for an OECD meeting on socially responsible investing were informed that their visas had been invalidated and the meeting cancelled. The government gave "inappropriate and inconvenient" timing as the reason for the cancellation. The meeting was to have discussed the application in China of the OECD's Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises.

Trade unionists turned away from the meeting understandably expressed outrage over the abrupt cancellation and its unmistakable political message that international labour standards for Chinese workers are not on the government's current agenda. The incident, however, should be viewed in its larger context. Consider, for example, the following:

On November 16, five former employees of a shoe factory in Guangdong Province owned by the Taiwan-based Stella Corporation were sentenced to up to three years in prison. Their "crime" was participation in protests against low wages, wage arrears and a brutal reduction in overtime pay by over 4,000 workers at the plant. According to China Labour Bulletin, two of the five were below the minimum legal working age when they began work at the factory.

On November 28, fire and an explosion at a coalmine in Shaanxi Province resulted in the death of at least 166 miners. The miners knew there was a fire underground but descended into the pit out of fear that their wages would be docked if they refused to work. Three days later, an explosion in a Guizhou Province coalmine killed another 13 miners. China leads the world in mining accidents and fatalities. Over four thousand miners have died at work in the first nine months of this year. Chinese miners are formally members of the official All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), a state body which is organizationally and constitutionally tied to the ruling Party. Relatives of the Shaanxi miners who approached the ACFTU for help were rebuffed.

On November 22, WalMart China announced that it would not oppose efforts by the ACFTU to represent workers at its 40 Chinese stores "should associates [i.e. workers - ed.] request formation of a union." The following day, an appeals court in Saskatchewan, Canada upheld a ruling by the provincial labour relations board instructing the company to hand over evidence of the union-busting tactics it used to oppose the UFCW's successful effort to organize workers at a WalMart in Weyburn, Saskatchewan. Some weeks earlier, the company publicly threatened to close a store in Ontario where workers had won union representation.

These events are all closely related. China would not account for over three-quarters of global coalmining accidents if workers were represented by genuine trade unions, independent of the Party and the employers. Had there been a union at the Stella plant, changes to overtime would be negotiated, not imposed by decree, and workers would not be imprisoned for the "crime" of demonstrating against a brutal reduction in their already low pay.

WalMart does not have one policy for China (union "recognition") and another for the rest of the world. The company has a single policy of global hostility to unions. In North America they call in the union-busters when workers seek to organize. In China, the ACFTU will get the call if political circumstances require it. The ACFTU is hemorrhaging members as the state sector is sold off, bringing with it a serious loss of control over the workforce and a further erosion of credibility and legitimacy. The ACFTU's move into the private sector should under no circumstances be confused with union organizing and "recognition" by employers. It is essentially a police operation. Union organizing and union recognition by employers are impossible as long as the right of workers to organize is repressed and the ACFTU remains the sole legal "union" in China. Recognition of a union by employers acknowledges the fact that workers have attained a degree of power through organizing themselves into a collective force.

Implementing the OECD Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises in China is impossible for the same reason. The Guidelines call for respecting ILO Conventions on the right of workers to organize and bargain collectively. The ACFTU rejects these Conventions, and refuses to defend working class victims of state repression like the Stella workers. Many things have changed in China; the ACFTU has not. It remains an integral component of the apparatus of power.

The Chinese authorities' crudely transparent cancellation of the OECD meeting should become the occasion for renewed reflection on how the international labour movement can effectively support Chinese workers in their struggle for independent trade unions. A key element in this reflection must be separating marketing hype and the creeping legitimization of the ACFTU from the reality of China's workplaces. A recent New York conference for transnational investors on "How to Make Corporate Responsibility Work in China" promised to instruct corporations on determining "the limits of responsibility". Union busters like WalMart will find this congenial because the ACFTU now gives them a "socially responsible" cover.

The government's refusal to permit international trade unionists to discuss the OECD guidelines on Chinese soil should, at a minimum, also inspire reflection on the continuing scandal of the ACFTU's representation as worker delegates on the ILO Governing Body, a position to which they were elected in June 2002. Ending this farce would be a clear declaration that labour understands that when it talks to the ACFTU, at an OECD seminar or in any other context, it is talking to a representative of state power and not to an organization representing the workers of China. Clarity on this issue is now more crucial than ever, for working people in China are mobilizing on an unprecedented scale and they take great risks in fighting for their rights as workers. As the grim accumulation of mine tragedies shows, they are paying with their lives for the absence of these rights.

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Network Rail fined £4m for Paddington crash

Network Rail was today fined £4m for "systemic and unacceptable" safety failures that led to the 1999 Paddington rail disaster.

Thirty-one people died and more than 400 were injured when a local Thames Trains service went through a red signal and collided with a London-bound First Great Western express train.

Network Rail - the firm responsible for maintaining Britain's railways - was fined at Blackfriars crown court, in London.

The company, which had earlier admitted breaches of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act between January 1 1995 and October 5 1999, was also ordered to pay £225,000 towards prosecution costs.

Officials from Railtrack, the precursor to Network Rail, were warned at least five years before the collision that a set of signals was badly laid out and so difficult for drivers to interpret that a serious incident was likely to happen, the hearing was told.

The signals had been misinterpreted by drivers at least seven times in the previous five years, and had been the subject of internal inquiries.

The Paddington disaster, which was likened in court to a "senseless and unnecessary terrorist attack", would never have happened had it not been for a string of safety blunders.

Failures spanned several years and flowed from "the culture at the top" of the company, the court heard.

Passing sentence, Mr Justice Bean said Railtrack had admitted that its failure to carry out "adequate root cause analysis" of signals passed at danger (Spads) had been "systemic and unacceptable".

Quoting from his judgment, he added: "It was due, as counsel to the [Lord Cullen] inquiry submitted, to a combination of incompetent management and inadequate process, the latter consisting in the absence of a process at a higher level for identifying whether those who were responsible for convening such committees were or were not doing so.

"If a signal sighting committee had been convened, it would have found that SN [signal] 109 was unacceptable, not merely because of its non-compliance with the relevant group standards, but also of the inferior quality of its visibility."

Chris Newell, the principal Crown Prosecution Service legal adviser, said Railtrack had been held accountable for the "disastrous and inexcusable failures" that caused the tragedy.

Denman and Maureen Groves, who lost their daughter, Juliet, in the crash, said it was "plain from quite early on" who was to blame for the disaster.

"Now we believe the truth has been heard in court," they said. "But still there are those who should have been brought to court today to stand trial for manslaughter.

"They go unpunished for their gross negligence that killed our beloved daughter Juliet and 30 others. The worrying thing is they still work for Network Rail."

The Network Rail chairman, Ian McAllister, said the company was "very sorry for the failings of Railtrack some seven years ago that contributed to the tragedy at Ladbroke Grove".

"Network Rail accepts the fine imposed by the court today," he added. "The events of Ladbroke Grove will always be remembered, and our thoughts must remain with the families and friends of the 31 people who lost their lives on that tragic day and those that were injured."

The court heard that one Railtrack official had gone as far as to assure First Great Western Trains and the rail drivers' union Aslef that he had ordered an expert review into the safety of the controversial signal when he had in fact not done so.

Another official was so concerned he sent a colleague an email warning of "a big one". He asked that it be deleted once read.

At 8.11am on October 5 1999, his fears were realised when the Thames Trains service, leaving Paddington, passed signal SN109 at red and drove into the path of the First Great Western Trains flyer, which was travelling from Cheltenham.

Both drivers belatedly realised they were on a collision path but were unable to stop and crashed at 130mph.

At the hearing, Philip Mott QC said "a catalogue of failures to act over a number of years" had "left one signal in an inadequate state and continually missed by experienced and inexperienced drivers".

Mr McAllister said new systems that would prevent a repeat of the disaster were in place.

"The railways have seen huge change since 1999," he added. "Network Rail took over from Railtrack in 2002 and completed the installation of an automatic train braking system that would have prevented the Ladbroke Grove tragedy.

"This system ... will automatically apply a train's brakes if it passes a signal at red or approaches one too quickly."

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EU Socialists call for hedge fund regulation

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Hedge funds and private equity pose risks to financial market stability and should be regulated more tightly, top Socialist MEPs said on Thursday.

The European Union assembly's second-largest group unveiled a report which it said showed the case for mandatory regulation in a sector that has hit the headlines in recent months for its ever-bigger takeovers and sparked labour union concern.

"We are dealing with hedge funds raising questions of systemic risk," Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, president of the group and a former prime minister of Denmark, told reporters.

Hedge fund TCI put Dutch bank ABN AMRO (AAH.AS: Quotazione, Profilo) into play last month by asking for it to be split up to create more value to shareholders.

Private equity firm Texas Pacific Group came under fire when airline catering firm Gate Gourmet, which it has since sold, sacked hundreds of people.

"The first thing we will move on is transparency and disclosure," Rasmussen said.

Parliament has no power to initiate legislation but the Socialists want to launch a debate to persuade the European Commission to make proposals that EU states could adopt.

The EU legislature has joint say along with EU governments on legislation related to financial services.

"After that we will focus on how can we, through national and EU legislation, protect our companies against undermining their international competitiveness," Rasmussen said.

"We are proposing a whole range of regulations, starting from incentives to direct EU and national regulation," he said, adding this could include a European regulator for the sector.

John Monks, leader of pan-EU labour union group ETUC, warned a seminar organised by the Socialist group that hedge funds and private equity groups faced a "long and bitter fight", accusing them of "asset stripping" and "destroying jobs".

But Dan Waters of Britain's Financial Services Authority told the seminar that a study of risk in the hedge fund sector found that "overall, this is not an alarming picture".

"There is no case demonstrated for the regulation of hedge funds in Europe. It would be a serious mistake to do so," he said.

Portuguese Finance Minister Fernando Teixeira dos Santos said EU finance ministers will discuss sector oversight soon.

"Such a European framework could be based on minimum standards, soft law, recommendation or just robust peer pressure mechanism in order to ensure healthy competitiveness," he said.

But dos Santos, whose country becomes EU president in July, said it was too early to say if mandatory rules were needed.

EU Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy, responsible for financial services, has repeatedly said no new rules are needed -- to the increasing anger of many lawmakers.

"McCreevy is the last voice in Europe and the United States saying what we need is deregulation. McCreevy is not that important for the moment," Rasmussen said.

McCreevy responded by saying there are rules in place that govern hedge fund activities and their exposure to banks.

"The case for additional legislation at EU level has not been proven but is being kept under review," his spokesman said.

Javier Echarri of private equity industry lobby EVCA told the seminar the sector invested in 8,000 European companies last year and was properly regulated by national watchdogs.

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New GLS Report: UNDUE INFLUENCE: Corporations Gain Ground in Battle over China's New Labor Law

A behind-the-scenes battle is raging worldwide over reforms in China’s labor law. On the one side are U.S.-based and other global corporations who have been aggressively lobbying to limit new rights for Chinese workers. On the other side are pro-worker rights forces in China, backed by labor, human rights, and political forces in the U.S. and around the world.

A new report by Global Labor Strategies, entitled UNDUE INFLUENCE: Corporation Gain Ground in Battle Over China’s New Labor Law, details how lobbying by American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham), the United States-China Business Council, and U.S.-based global corporations have forced significant changes in contract, collective bargaining, severance, and other rights guaranteed for Chinese workers under a law to be voted on later this year by the Chinese National People's Congress. UNDUE INFLUENCE follows on GLS's groundbreaking report: BEHIND THE GREAT WALL: U.S. Corporations Opposing New Rights for Chinese Workers.

The battle is far from over, however. UNDUE INFLUENCE reveals that while publicly claiming to support the new legislation, companies like Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Google, General Electric and others have launched an unpublicized new attack demanding further gutting of the law's most important provisions.

But UNDUE INFLUENCE also discloses significant pushback by Chinese and international forces. U.S. members of Congress have introduced legislation decrying the corporate intervention and apparent Administration complicity; China's official labor organization, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), has taken a strong stand against corporate pressure; international union federations have pressured their employers to reverse course; and human rights organizations have mobilized support for Chinese workers' rights.

Such counter-pressure has led to splits among global companies operating in China. Nike has virtually repudiated the efforts of the United States Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham) to lobby against the law. And the E.U. Chamber of Commerce has reversed its opposition to the law and renounced its threat that its member companies may leave China if the law is passed. Undue Influence reveals this and other shifts among U.S. and E.U. corporations operating in China.

Copies of Undue Influence are available here. The report appendices are available here.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. A behind-the-scenes battle is raging worldwide over reforms in China’s labor law. On the one side are U.S.-based and other global corporations who have been aggressively lobbying to limit new rights for Chinese workers. On the other side are pro-worker rights forces in China, backed by labor, human rights, and political forces in the U.S. and around the world.

2. Corporations operating in China are claiming success in pressuring the Chinese government to weaken or abandon significant pro-worker reforms it had proposed. Global Labor Strategy’s analysis of the revised draft of the law shows how many of their demands have been conceded.

3. Now both the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham) and the US-China Business Council have launched an unpublicized new attack demanding further weakening of the law.

4. The Bush Administration recently revealed to the U.S. Congress that it has been “closely following” the drafting of the new labor contract law and that the American Embassy in China has been consulting AmCham on this matter. But the Administration appears to have done nothing to disassociate itself from the efforts of U.S. corporations and their representatives to restrict the rights of Chinese workers.

5. Chinese and international forces are engaged in a significant pushback against the gutting of China’s new labor law. U.S. members of Congress have introduced legislation decrying the corporate intervention and apparent Administration complicity; China’s official labor organization, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), has taken a strong stand against corporate pressure; international union federations have pressured their employers to reverse course; and human rights organizations have mobilized support for Chinese workers’ rights.

6. Such counter-pressure has led to splits among global companies operating in China. Nike has virtually repudiated the efforts of the United States Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham) to lobby against the law. And the E.U. Chamber of Commerce has reversed its opposition to the law and renounced its threat that its member companies may leave China if the law is passed.

7. The battle is likely to come to a head in the Chinese National People’s Congress in April or June of 2007. But the implementation of the new law, and the further expansion of Chinese workers’ rights, will depend on the rapid changes going on in Chinese labor relations, which are increasingly marked by burgeoning strikes, worker protests, lawsuits, and changing forms of labor organizations, including the expansion of the ACFTU into foreign invested enterprises such as Wal-Mart.

8. The new focus on the role of U.S. and other global corporations in China represents the emergence of a “new paradigm” for analyzing the current form of globalization not just in terms of a “trade debate” based on “free trade vs. protectionism,” but as a product of a global “sweatshop lobby” that is deliberately shaping labor law and labor markets around the world.

9. The role of China in the global economy is shaping up to be the dominant economic issue in the 2008 presidential elections in the U.S. With widespread anxiety about the security of U.S. jobs, the role of U.S. corporations in opposing rights for Chinese workers is emerging as a significant issue in those elections.

Very thanks to: laborstrategies.blogs.com

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New GLS Report: UNDUE INFLUENCE: Corporations Gain Ground in Battle over China's New Labor Law

A behind-the-scenes battle is raging worldwide over reforms in China’s labor law. On the one side are U.S.-based and other global corporations who have been aggressively lobbying to limit new rights for Chinese workers. On the other side are pro-worker rights forces in China, backed by labor, human rights, and political forces in the U.S. and around the world.

A new report by Global Labor Strategies, entitled UNDUE INFLUENCE: Corporation Gain Ground in Battle Over China’s New Labor Law, details how lobbying by American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham), the United States-China Business Council, and U.S.-based global corporations have forced significant changes in contract, collective bargaining, severance, and other rights guaranteed for Chinese workers under a law to be voted on later this year by the Chinese National People's Congress. UNDUE INFLUENCE follows on GLS's groundbreaking report: BEHIND THE GREAT WALL: U.S. Corporations Opposing New Rights for Chinese Workers.

The battle is far from over, however. UNDUE INFLUENCE reveals that while publicly claiming to support the new legislation, companies like Wal-Mart, Microsoft, Google, General Electric and others have launched an unpublicized new attack demanding further gutting of the law's most important provisions.

But UNDUE INFLUENCE also discloses significant pushback by Chinese and international forces. U.S. members of Congress have introduced legislation decrying the corporate intervention and apparent Administration complicity; China's official labor organization, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), has taken a strong stand against corporate pressure; international union federations have pressured their employers to reverse course; and human rights organizations have mobilized support for Chinese workers' rights.

Such counter-pressure has led to splits among global companies operating in China. Nike has virtually repudiated the efforts of the United States Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham) to lobby against the law. And the E.U. Chamber of Commerce has reversed its opposition to the law and renounced its threat that its member companies may leave China if the law is passed. Undue Influence reveals this and other shifts among U.S. and E.U. corporations operating in China.

Copies of Undue Influence are available here. The report appendices are available here.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. A behind-the-scenes battle is raging worldwide over reforms in China’s labor law. On the one side are U.S.-based and other global corporations who have been aggressively lobbying to limit new rights for Chinese workers. On the other side are pro-worker rights forces in China, backed by labor, human rights, and political forces in the U.S. and around the world.

2. Corporations operating in China are claiming success in pressuring the Chinese government to weaken or abandon significant pro-worker reforms it had proposed. Global Labor Strategy’s analysis of the revised draft of the law shows how many of their demands have been conceded.

3. Now both the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham) and the US-China Business Council have launched an unpublicized new attack demanding further weakening of the law.

4. The Bush Administration recently revealed to the U.S. Congress that it has been “closely following” the drafting of the new labor contract law and that the American Embassy in China has been consulting AmCham on this matter. But the Administration appears to have done nothing to disassociate itself from the efforts of U.S. corporations and their representatives to restrict the rights of Chinese workers.

5. Chinese and international forces are engaged in a significant pushback against the gutting of China’s new labor law. U.S. members of Congress have introduced legislation decrying the corporate intervention and apparent Administration complicity; China’s official labor organization, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), has taken a strong stand against corporate pressure; international union federations have pressured their employers to reverse course; and human rights organizations have mobilized support for Chinese workers’ rights.

6. Such counter-pressure has led to splits among global companies operating in China. Nike has virtually repudiated the efforts of the United States Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai (AmCham) to lobby against the law. And the E.U. Chamber of Commerce has reversed its opposition to the law and renounced its threat that its member companies may leave China if the law is passed.

7. The battle is likely to come to a head in the Chinese National People’s Congress in April or June of 2007. But the implementation of the new law, and the further expansion of Chinese workers’ rights, will depend on the rapid changes going on in Chinese labor relations, which are increasingly marked by burgeoning strikes, worker protests, lawsuits, and changing forms of labor organizations, including the expansion of the ACFTU into foreign invested enterprises such as Wal-Mart.

8. The new focus on the role of U.S. and other global corporations in China represents the emergence of a “new paradigm” for analyzing the current form of globalization not just in terms of a “trade debate” based on “free trade vs. protectionism,” but as a product of a global “sweatshop lobby” that is deliberately shaping labor law and labor markets around the world.

9. The role of China in the global economy is shaping up to be the dominant economic issue in the 2008 presidential elections in the U.S. With widespread anxiety about the security of U.S. jobs, the role of U.S. corporations in opposing rights for Chinese workers is emerging as a significant issue in those elections.

Very thanks to: laborstrategies.blogs.com

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Workers 'worse off under private equity'

Companies that are taken over by private equity firms leave their employees demoralised and financially worse off, according to a new report by The Work Foundation published today.

Where private equity groups bring in their own executives - so-called management buy-ins - around a fifth of jobs are cut within six years of the deal, while the remaining staff end up an average of £231 worse off than other private-sector workers.

The record of management buyouts, where the existing executives remain in place, is slightly better, with the overall workforce usually expanded after a round of initial job cuts. Nevertheless, workers are still on average £84 worse off each year compared to other private-sector employees.

The report said private equity takeovers also often destroy relations between management and their staff. Just one in 10 managers in private equity- owned firms said they were positive about the role of trade unions in the workplace, while some 40 per cent said they were "hostile" towards unions.

The Work Foundation, an independent think tank, concludes its report by calling on the Government to tighten workplace regulations to provide more protection for employees in the event of takeovers. The report also calls for tighter tax rules to prevent private equity firms from offsetting large portions of their debt interest against tax, and demands that the private equity industry becomes more transparent.

Will Hutton, chief executive of The Work Foundation, said: "Private equity firms pride themselves on their ability to squeeze performance from the organisations they own, and they turn up the pressure on individuals in order to do so. We are concerned that often, the price that is paid by workers is too high and that levels of trust between workers and managers suffer."

By James Daley
Published: 26 March 2007
Thanks to: news.independent.co.uk

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Domestic help credit scheme to be launched in Sweden

After observing the experiments of the Finnish Tax Administration pertaining to the so-called domestic help credit, Sweden is now following the example set by its neighbour.
The domestic help credit has caused a heated debate in Sweden. The labour unions and left-wing parties have labelled the benefit as "a maidservant deduction", while the non-socialist parties have expressed enthusiasm about such a rebate.

"In Finland, the domestic help credit has created some 10,000 new jobs, while according to our calculations, approximately 3,000 to 19,000 new jobs could be opened up in Sweden", reported Sweden’s Minister for Industry Maud Olofsson.
Minister Olofsson noted further that the primary aim of the domestic help credit would be to help families with children.

"This is a gender equality reform, as today men and women alike work outside home", Olofsson concluded.
The domestic help credit can be granted for ordinary housekeeping, nursing and provision of care and maintenance and repair of homes or summer residences.

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Finns find salaries in several public sector occupations loo low

Helsinki (16.03.2007 / edited 17.03.2007 - Juhani Artto) What are the average monthly earnings (in full-time work) for nurses? What should they be?

The earnings of nurses and nine other employee groups were treated in this way in the opinion survey, published last week by the Trade Union for the Public and Welfare Sectors JHL. Nine of the ten occupations, covered by the survey, are common to the public sector.

Before the questions were posed, the interviewees were told that in Finland the average monthly earnings of wage and salary earners are over EUR2,500.

Interestingly, Finns seem to have rather realistic picture of the earnings.

Still more interesting is that

  • replies to the question "How much are the average monthly earnings of ..." came close to the basic pay

  • and replies to the question "How much should the average monthly earnings of ... be" came close to the total earnings.

As the table below indicates, there is, in all ten occupations, a considerable difference between the average basic pay and the average total earnings. The latter includes overtime pay, working hour supplements, fringe benefits, performance-based bonuses and several other one-off items.

Among nurses the difference is almost EUR600 per month. The average difference between basic pay and total earnings of all ten occupations is over EUR330 per month.

For employees in nine of the ten occupations Finns support an average pay rise of EUR217 per month. This can be concluded from a comparison between the interviewees' idea of "proper pay" and the total earnings of the employees. Private child minders top the list with people recommending a EUR339 per month pay rise for them.

The tenth group, home care assistants, proves to be the exception. The interviewees find their total earnings to exceed the "proper pay" deserved by them, by EUR21 per month.

Results of JHL's opinion survey show that Finnish citizens share the union's claim that pay levels for public sector employees is too low. People, as well as the union, clearly regard the value of work performed by child minders, library clerks, building caretakers, nurses etc. as being worth more than their earnings indicate. Thus the results give valuable backing for the union in its collective bargaining efforts in the near future.

In the last few months' of the election campaigns, politicians have largely agreed with the need to raise the pay level of public health care employees. However, economists have reminded everyone that the budget framework does not allow for significant pay rises for any large group of public sector employees.

In eight of the ten occupations there is a considerable female majority. Therefore the debate about the pay level in these occupations has also had a strong gender dimension. Women are in majority also among youth leaders. Of the ten occupational groups only building caretakers are mostly men.

Basic pay
(e/month)
Total earnings
(e/month)
"Present pay" in Finns' minds
(e/month)
"Proper pay" in Finns' minds
(e/month)
Nurse
Sairaanhoitaja
1 835 2 422 2 093 2 532
Practical nurse Lähihoitaja 1 613 2 016 1 824 2 234
Assistant nurse Sairaala-apulainen 1 456 1 829 1 691 1 999
Kindergarten assistant Lastenhoitaja 1 609 1 862 1 762 2 102
Private childminder Perhepäivähoitaja 1 408 1 674 1 653 2 013
Home care assistant Kodinhoitaja 1 621 2 014 1 688 1 993
School assistant Koulunkäyntiavustaja 1 527 1 649 1 595 1 864
Youth leader Nuoriso-ohjaaja 1 659 1 920 1 778 2 035
Library clerk Kirjastovirkailija 1 569 1 767 1 856 2 046
Building caretaker Kiinteistönhoitaja 1 524 1 886 1 988 2 154

The table is produced by Statistics Finland. The basic pay and total earnings concern October 2006. The opinion survey figures are based on interviews, in February 2007, with 1,000 Finns (from 15 to 75 years of age).

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Politicians Support Time Off Work to Care for Elderly






The idea of giving employees the right to adjust their working life in order to take care of elderly family members is gaining ground in government.


The idea of granting employees either shortened hours at work or short-term leaves of absence to take care of ailing elderly relatives was put forth by Finland’s Social Forum. This is an annual gathering of NGO's, professional, religious, and political groups.

In their meeting last week, they presented a report to government that urged legislators to enact changes to make this possible.

The newspaper Kotimaa reported on Tuesday that the idea is almost unanimously supported by newly elected parliamentarians.

Outgoing Minister for Social Affairs and Health says this subject should be incorporated into the next round of negotiations for national wages and working conditions.

The National Coalition’s party council chair, Sari Sarkomaa, says that implementing this type of workplace flexibility should be included in the next government's agenda.

Care for the elderly rose to become one of the main concerns of voters in the general elections. With baby boomers pushing 70 and poised to leave the workforce in droves, the government will have to come up with ways to take care of them even as income tax revenue declines.

Thanks to : YLE News, Finland.

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Malaysia Employment Law : Occupational Safety And Health Act.

WHAT IS OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ACT ?

The Occupational Safety and Health Act is an Act which provides the legislative framework to secure the safety, health and welfare among all Malaysian workforce and to protect others against risks to safety or health in connection with the activities of persons at work.

This Act was gazetted on 24th February 1994 and may be cited as the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994. This Act is a practical tool superimposed on existing safety and health legislation.

The aims of this Act are

  • to secure the safety, health and welfare of persons at work against risks to safety or health arising out of the activities of persons at work
  • to protect person at a place of work other than persons at work against risks to safety or health arising out of the activities of persons at work
  • to promote an occupational environment for persons at work which is adapted to their physiological and psychological needs
  • to provide the means whereby the associated occupational safety and health legislation may be progressively replaced by a system of regulations and approved industry codes of practice operating in combination with the provisions of this Act designed to maintain or improve the standards of safety and health.

The provision of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 are based on the self-regulation scheme. Its primary responsibility is to ensure safety and health of work lies with those who create the risks and those who work with the risks.

Through self-regulating scheme that is designed to suit the particular industry or organization, this Act also aims to establish effective safety and health organization and performance.

The concept of self-regulation encourages cooperation, consultation and participation of employees and management in efforts to upgrade the standards of safety and health at the workplace.

The Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 is enforced by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH), a government department under the Ministry of Human Resources Malaysia.

Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) will ensure through enforcement and promotional works that employers, self-employed persons, manufacturers, designers, importers, suppliers and employees always practise safe and health work culture, and always comply with existing legislation, guidelines and codes of practice.

Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) will also formulate and review legislation, policies, guidelines and codes of practice pertaining to occupational safety, health and welfare as a basis in ensuring safety and health at work.

Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) is also the secretariat to National Council for Occupational Safety and Health, a council established under section 8 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994.

The National Council for Occupational Safety and He

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Malaysia Employment Law : SOCIAL SECURITY ORGANIZATION

WHAT IS SOCIAL SECURITY ORGANIZATION ?

The Social Security Organization is an organization set up to administer, enforce and implement the Employees' Social Security Act, 1969 and the Employees' Social Security (General) Regulations 1971.

The Social Security Organization provides social security protection by social insurance including medical and cash benefits, provision of artificial aids and rehabilitation to employees to reduce the sufferings and to provide financial guarantees and protection to the family.

SOCSO is the abbreviation for Social Security Organization. It is commonly known in the Malay term as PERKESO or Pertubuhan Keselamatan Sosial.

WHO IS COMPULSORY TO CONTRIBUTE TO SOCSO ?

An employee employed under a contract of service or apprenticeship and earning a monthly wages of RM2,000 and below must compulsorily register and contribute to SOCSO regardless of the employment status whether it is permanent, temporary or casual in nature.

An employee must be registered with the SOCSO irrespective of the age.

SOCSO only covers Malaysian workers and permanent residents. As a result, foreign workers are protected under the Workmen's Compensation Act 1952.

Nevertheless, SOCSO does not cover the following categories of persons :

  • A person whose wages exceed RM2,000 a month and has never been covered before.
  • Government employees.
  • Domestic servants employed to work in a private dwelling house which includes a cook, gardeners, house servants, watchman, washer woman and driver.
  • Employees who have attained the age of 55 only for purposes of invalidity but if they continue to work they should be covered under the Employment Injuries Scheme.
  • Self-employed persons.
  • Foreign workers.
WHAT DO WAGES MEAN FOR THE PURPOSE OF SOCSO CONTRIBUTION ?

For the purpose of SOCSO contribution, wages mean all remuneration payable in money to an employee. The following payments are considered as wages :

  • salary
  • overtime payment
  • commissions and service charge
  • payment for leave, sick, annual, rest day, public holidays, maternity and others
  • allowances, shift, incentive, housing, food, cost of living and others.

Payments made to an employee paid at an hourly rate, daily rate, weekly rate, task or piece rate are also considered as wages.

However, the following payments are not considered as wages :

  • payments by an employer to any statutory fund for employees
  • mileage claims
  • gratuity payments or payments for dismissal or retrenchment
  • annual bonus.
WHAT IS THE COVERAGE PROVIDED TO AN INSURED PERSON BY SOCSO UNDER ESSA 1969 ?

An insured person or dependants will be entitled to the following benefits :

  • Periodical payments in the case of invalidity
  • Periodical payments in the case of disablement suffered as a result of an employment injury
  • Periodical payments to the dependants of an insured person who dies as a result of an employment injury
  • Payments for funeral benefit or expense on the death of an insured person as a result of an employment injury
  • Periodical payments to an insured person who is in receipt of invalidity pension or disablement benefit and is so severely incapacitated or disabled as to require the personal attendance of another person
  • Medical treatments for the attendance on insured persons suffering from disablement
  • Periodical payments to dependants of an insured person who dies while in receipt of invalidity pension

SOCSO provides coverage to eligible employees through 2 schemes namely

  • Employment Injury Insurance Scheme
  • Invalidity Pension Scheme.

These schemes are classified into 2 categories :

  • First Category - Employment Injury Insurance Scheme and Invalidity Pension Scheme. The contribution payment is made by both the employer and employee
  • Second Category - Employment Injury Insurance Scheme Only. The contribution is paid by the employer only. An employee who is not eligible for coverage under the Invalidity Pension Scheme is protected under this category.

These schemes provide the benefits of invalidity pension, invalidity grant, survivors pension, rehabilitation, funeral benefit, constant attendance allowance and educational loan.

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Malaysia Employment Law : Pension

WHAT IS PENSION ?

Pension means money paid under given conditions to a person following retirement or to surviving dependants.

The Pensions Act 1980 which came into force on the 1st January 1976 is the governing act for pensions benefits in Malaysia. This Act provide for the administration of pensions, gratuities and other benefits for officers in the public service and their dependants.

Under the Pensions Act 1980, pension, gratuity or other benefit granted shall be charged on the Federal Consolidated Fund.

Pension does not include any cash award granted in lieu of accumulated vacation leave to an officer whose salary is not paid out of the Federal Consolidated Fund.

An officer refers to an officer of the public service or an employee of any statutory or local authority who prior to retirement or death, was service in Malaysia or in any of the territories which presently constitute Malaysia.

WHO IS ENTITLED TO PENSION BENEFITS ?

In Malaysia, officers on full-time employment in the public service under given condition are entitled to pension benefits.

Public service refers to :

  • the Judicial and Legal Service
  • the General Public Service of the Federal Government
  • the Police Force
  • the Railway Service
  • the Education Service
  • the Joint Public Services common to the Federal Government and of one or more of the states
  • the Public service of each state
  • the Parliamentary service
  • such other service as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong may determine to be public service for the purposes of the Pensions Act 1980

Officers in the public service

  • who have opted or who are deemed to have opted for any New Scheme
  • who are or were appointed under any New Scheme
  • who by virtue of their option are bound by any New Scheme

and temporary officers in the public service who were appointed prior to the 1st January 1976 and who were not given the option to opt for the New Scheme which came into force from that date are entitled for pension benefits.

New Scheme is the revised salaries and terms and conditions of service of officers in the public service arising from the revision of salaries and terms and conditions of service of such officers made by the Federal Government with effect from the 1st January 1976 or from any other subsequent revision made by the Federal Government from time to time.

UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES CAN PENSION BE REDUCE OR WITHHOLD ?

An officer who is found guilty of negligence, irregularity or misconduct may have his or her pension, gratuity or other benefit for which the office would have been eligible, be reduced or withheld.

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