Workers of the World

Submitted by martin on 16 May, 2003 - 9:57

By Pablo Velasco

Korean truck drivers' strike

A strike by 1,000 South Korean truck drivers has escalated into a national dispute after thousands of other drivers walked out in solidarity. The dispute began on 2 May in Pohang, with workers from the Korea Cargo Transportation Workers' Union demanding better wages and trade union rights. The strikes paralysed steel shipments from the city, the hub of Korea's steel industry.
Drivers in the capital Seoul and other cities such as Inchon came out in solidarity. The strike has held up car manufacturing, shipbuilding and other export industries. The strike shows the power a small number of strategically placed workers have in disrupting the economy.
May Day in Indonesia

Thousands of union activists staged rallies across Indonesian cities to mark May Day, calling for the resignation of President Megawati Sukarnoputri and the manpower minister.

About 10,000 people marched in a powerful display of opposition to the anti-worker policies of the government. Organised by the May Day Action Committee, the demonstration brought together contingents from many unions. The FSP LEM (Trade Union Federation of Steel, Electronic and Metal Workers) and the FNPBI (Indonesian National Front for Labour Struggles) were well represented. A new union called the IMWU (Indonesian Migrant Workers Union) also participated. Students from various organisations joined the unions on the streets.
Protesters called for the removal of the new anti-union laws, reduction of prices on nine basic commodities, rejection of Sukarnoputri's "puppet government of imperialism", and solidarity among the workers and the poor of the Third World.

Organisers believe that the action was bigger than last year and included a broader section of the student movement. May Day rallies also took place in other Indonesian cities, including Bandung (West Java provincial capital), Surabaya (East Java capital), and Medan (North Sumatra capital).
* More information: http://tapol.gn.apc.org

Brazil car strike

Striking car workers in Brazil went back to work after winning a pay rise last week. The 10,000 workers at General Motors' (GM) factory near Sao Paulo returned to work, as did workers at Renault and Volvo factories in southern Brazil, and Ford's new factory in Bahia in the north-east.

Workers won an increase to match the 14% inflation since their annual pay rise last September. Forca Sindical, the union that organised the strikes, is critical of the new Workers' Party government under Lula da Silva.
Luiz Carlos Prates, leader of the strike at GM said, "Lula was elected on the promise of change and it hasn't happened. We want protection against inflation but the government is against it. They're putting themselves ahead of the workers."

The paradox is that Forca Sindical presented itself as the moderate "union that gets results" entering into negotiations with the previous Cardoso administration rather than organising action. It did so in contrast to the more militant trade union federation, the CUT, associated with the Workers' Party, which led the great wave of strikes in the 1980s and 1990s. Lula himself is a former metalworker and founder of CUT.
The Workers' Party and the CUT have argued that the strikes were politically motivated by Forca Sindical leaders, who are opposed to the new government. The government fears escalating inflation, while workers want automatic rises in line with inflation to maintain their purchasing power. The workers' concerns are entirely justifiable, and present an important test for the new government.

Zanon

Workers at the Zanon occupied factory repulsed a third attempt by police to evict them in April. The ceramic factory was taken over by its workers and production restarted eighteen months ago as Argentina's economy collapsed. It is the biggest factory in the province of Neuquèn and has become a symbol for the occupied factories across the country.

Over 3,000 workers, the unemployed and students gathered outside the factory when police turned up to evict the workers. Teachers and civil servants went on strike in support of the Zanon workers. Faced with a huge "human shield" defending the factory, police gave up, and campaigners rejoiced in an important victory.

May Day protest banned in Iran

Workers in Iran were banned from demonstrating on May Day against low minimum wages after riot police ordered the state-run unions to postpone their rallies.
The official unions Khane Karegar (House of Labour) in the capital Teheran had planned demonstrations to demand higher wages to keep up with the cost of living, and early retirement options for workers doing hazardous jobs. The rallies were cancelled under pressure from the Interior Ministry, which feared they would escalate tension over the presence of US forces in Iraq.
The government ban indicates their fear of the growing workers' protest inside the country, and their concern that the official unions cannot control the upsurge of militancy. The underground Communist Labour Party says the situation inside Iraq was only an excuse to cancel the demonstrations: "The regime is misusing the presence of US forces in Iraq to crack down on workers and other protesting groups in Iran." A further upsurge of workers' protests is likely in the next few months.

New union federation in Venezuela

President Hugo Chavez has formed a new trade union federation, the National Union of Workers (UNT). Chavez has consolidated his position after defeating the employers' shutdown in December-January. Leaders of the existing trade union federation, the CTV, were heavily involved in the business shutdown, including in the strategically important oil company PDVSA. Chavez claims that the new union federation already organises more workers than the CTV - though whether it affords more space for independent working class politics remains to be seen.

* Visit LabourStart for daily updates on worldwide workers' struggles.

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