AUT: OWC-APPEAL TO HEADS OF STATE AT WTO SUMMIT (fwd)

["Harry M. Cleaver" <hmcleave@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 6 Aug 1999 14:34:22 -0800
From: Alan Benjamin <theorganizer@xxxxxxx>
Subject: OWC-APPEAL TO HEADS OF STATE AT WTO SUMMIT

OWC-APPEAL TO HEADS OF STATE AT WTO SUMMIT

             *****

OPEN WORLD CONFERENCE OF WORKERS
In Defense of Trade Union
Independence & Democratic Rights

(c/o S.F. Labor Council, 1188 Franklin St.#203,=20
San Francisco, CA 94109. Tel: 415- 641-8616 =20
Fax: 415-440-9297  Email: owc@xxxxxxx)


JOIN THE CAMPAIGN TO DEMAND THE IMMEDIATE=20
RATIFICATION, IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT=20
OF THE ILO CONVENTIONS!

             *****


Dear Sisters and Brothers:

We are writing to urge your support for the=20
"Open Letter to the Heads of State Attending the=20
World Trade Organization Summit in Seattle."=20

The Open Letter [see below] calls on these government=20
leaders to ratify, implement and fully enforce the=20
Conventions of the International Labor Organization=20
(ILO).

Over the past 80 years, the ILO has adopted 176=20
Conventions under the constant pressure of the=20
mass movement of workers and their allies. When=20
ratified by a particular country, the substance of=20
the ILO convention must become the law of the=20
land.

These ILO Conventions represent a tremendous=20
gain for the workers=B9 movement. They have set=20
the standard for labor rights worldwide. The=20
binding constraints for national labor legislation in=20
the ILO ratification procedure, in particular, make=20
them both a reference point and a rallying point=20
for the independent trade union movement in=20
every country.=20

Beginning in 1991, the IMF and WTO called for a=20
"reform" of the ILO. IMF top officials said the ILO=20
conventions had to be made more "flexible" and=20
more "adapted" to the needs of the global=20
economy in the new millennium. It was necessary=20
to create a "less constraining framework for=20
ensuring international labor standards."

In 1994, top officials in the WTO pressed further,=20
explaining that the countries that had ratified and=20
implemented the ILO conventions on labor rights=20
were at a "comparative disadvantage" in relation=20
to countries that had not done so. It was=20
necessary, they said, to move toward the adoption=20
of a new ILO charter on fundamental workers=B9=20
rights that could outline general principles=20
without imposing on the ratifying countries the=20
mandatory and legal constraints required by the=20
adoption of ILO conventions.

And this is precisely what happened in June 1998=20
with the adoption by the ILO of a new "Declaration=20
of Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work."=20
The principles and rights contained in the=20
declaration became disconnected from the=20
ratification process. This means a country can=20
adopt these principles =8B even though it has not=20
ratified any of the ILO conventions =8B without the=20
requirement that these principles find their way=20
into national laws.

Not surprisingly, the new ILO declaration has been=20
hailed loudly by Clinton and the leaders of the G8.

The Open Letter issued by the Organizing=20
Committee of the Open World Conference in=20
Defense of Trade Union Independence and=20
Democratic Rights (OWC) demands that the=20
existing ILO Conventions become the law of the=20
land in every country. It rejects government or=20
corporate pledges to support hollow principles and=20
rights detached from concrete implementation in=20
national labor legislation.

The Open Letter also rejects support for watered-
down agreements that would supplant the existing=20
ILO Conventions. This is a reference to the 1999=20
ILO declaration opposing the "worst forms of child=20
labor" =8B a document which Clinton supports and=20
has vowed to take to the U.S. Congress for=20
ratification.

This new agreement is presented by its defenders=20
as a "bridge" to ensure wider acceptance of ILO=20
Convention 138, which bans child labor altogether.=20
In reality, it is being deployed by governments=20
beholden to the corporate agenda to legalize the=20
"least offensive" forms of child labor. In Europe,=20
for example, the European Union is projecting=20
lowering the ban on child labor to 12 years of age=20
on the basis of this new agreement.

Another ILO Convention slated to disappear=20
before long is ILO Convention 103, which deals=20
with maternity leaves for working women.

The OWC Open Letter concludes by calling=20
specifically on Bill Clinton and the U.S.=20
government, who are hosting the Seattle WTO=20
Summit, to ratify and implement these ILO=20
conventions.

Though the U.S. government claims to champion=20
workers=B9 rights at work, in reality it has an=20
"appalling record on workers=B9 rights" and "one of=20
the worst ratification records [of ILO Conventions]=20
in the world." This was the conclusion reached by=20
the International Confederation of Free Trade=20
Unions (ICFTU) in a 15-page report published July=20
14, 1999. [See attached ICFTU report summary.]

The OWC Open Letter supports the ICFTU=B9s call on=20
the U.S. government to ratify and implement the=20
seven core conventions of the ILO, which are: (1)=20
ILO Convention 87 concerning freedom of=20
association and the protection of the right to=20
organize, (2) ILO Convention 98 concerning the=20
right to organize and to bargain collectively, (3)=20
ILO Convention 29 on forced labor, (4) ILO=20
Convention 105 banning forced labor, (5) ILO=20
Convention 100 on equal wages for work of equal=20
value, (6) ILO Convention 111 on discrimination in=20
employment, (7) ILO Convention 138 on the=20
abolition of child labor (1973).

A campaign for the U.S. government to ratify and=20
implement these core ILO conventions is a=20
campaign for labor law reform in the United=20
States. It is a campaign to ban striker=20
"replacements" and enact legislation that would=20
restore workers=B9 rights to organize (free from=20
employer harassment and intimidation), bargain=20
collectively (free from employer and/or=20
government interference), and strike (free from=20
all the undemocratic restrictions created by=20
injunctions and legalized scabs).

We hope you will endorse this appeal and help=20
circulate it widely in your union, workplace=20
and/or community organization. Please contact us=20
if you wish more information about this campaign.

In Solidarity,
Organizing Committee,
Open World Conference in Defense of Trade Union=20
Independence and Democratic Rights


OPEN WORLD CONFERENCE ORGANIZING COMMITTEE MEMBERS:

Jack Henning, Secretary-Treasurer-Emeritus,=20
California Labor Federation (AFL-CIO);=20
Walter Johnson, Secretary-Treasurer, San=20
Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO); Baldemar=20
Velasquez, President, Farm Labor Organizing=20
Committee (FLOC-AFL-CIO); Mya Shone, Co-
Coordinator OWC and member OPEIU Local 3; Ed=20
Rosario, Co-Coordinator OWC, Coordinator WHC=20
and President, San Francisco LCLAA; Daniel=20
Gluckstein, Coordinator, International Liaison=20
Committee for a Workers=B9 International (ILC);=20
Patrick H=E9bert, General Secretary, CGT-Force=20
Ouvri=E8re Labor Federation (Loire-
Atlantique/France); Nancy Wohlforth,=20
Secretary-Treasurer, OPEIU Local 3 (AFL-CIO);=20
Frank Martin del Campo, National Executive=20
Committee, Labor Council for Latin American=20
Advancement (LCLAA); Alan Benjamin,=20
Assistant Coordinator WHC, member OPEIU Local 3=20
and SF LCLAA)


**********


OPEN LETTER TO ALL HEADS OF STATE
Attending the World Trade Organization=20
Summit in Seattle:

The Conventions of the International Labor=20
Organization (ILO) Must Be Ratified,=20
Implemented and Fully Enforced in Every=20
Country!


Dear Heads of State and Government:

We, the undersigned trade union leaders, union=20
activists and supporters of labor rights the world=20
over, address you this Open Letter on the occasion=20
of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Summit in=20
Seattle in November 1999.

In recent months, U.S. President Bill Clinton and=20
the heads of state of the G8 countries have issued=20
countless declarations professing the need to=20
uphold workers=B9 rights in all "free trade" pacts and=20
to put a "human face on the global economy."

As trade unionists and supporters of labor=20
rights, we have reached the conclusion =8B based on=20
years of bitter experience =8B that the "free trade"=20
agreements and Structural Adjustment Programs=20
promoted by the WTO, as well as by the IMF and=20
World Bank:

o are an assault upon our rights and upon our=20
working and living conditions, and stand as=20
barriers to social progress and democracy,
o elevate the multinational corporations and=20
their interests above those of the peoples of=20
each country,

- have, at their core, the aim of destroying our=20
public services, collective bargaining=20
agreements, and national labor codes,

- are an assault on our right to employment,=20
insofar as they destroy jobs for the many=20
while creating work for only a few,

- are a means through which the governments=20
and employers seek to undermine the=20
independence of trade unions that stand for=20
the defense of working people and our=20
interests.

As trade unionists and activists, we=20
consider that any government leader that=20
today professes to uphold and defend=20
workers=B9 rights must begin by ensuring=20
that his or her own country ratifies,=20
implements and fully enforces the=20
conventions of the International Labor=20
Organization (ILO).

The ILO, which was founded in 1919, has=20
codified into 176 ILO Conventions the gains won=20
through struggle by the workers=B9 movement over=20
the past century. When a country ratifies a=20
Convention of the ILO, it must bring its own=20
national legislation into conformity with the ILO=20
convention. The substance of the ILO convention=20
therefore becomes the law of the land.

These ILO Conventions have set the standard=20
for labor rights worldwide. On every continent=20
they have laid the basis for national labor=20
legislation and labor codes =8B all which are under=20
assault today in the name of "globalization."

In June 1998 =8B under pressure from the WTO=20
and IMF to create a "less constraining framework=20
for ensuring international labor standards" =8B the=20
ILO adopted a new "Declaration on Fundamental=20
Principles and Rights at Work." The principles and=20
rights promoted in this declaration correspond to=20
seven of the existing ILO Conventions. On June 20,=20
1999, the G8 Summit in Cologne, Germany, issued=20
a communiqu=E9 pledging to "promote effective=20
implementation" of this new ILO declaration.

We, the undersigned, state categorically: If this=20
ILO "Declaration on Fundamental Principles and=20
Rights at Work" is to be of any value to working=20
people the world over, the seven corresponding=20
Conventions of the ILO must be ratified,=20
implemented and enforced fully by every=20
government participating in the WTO Summit in=20
Seattle!

These seven core ILO Conventions are:

1. ILO Convention 87 concerning freedom of=20
association and the protection of the right to=20
organize (1948)

2. ILO Convention 98 concerning the right to=20
organize and to bargain collectively (1949)

3. ILO Convention 29 on forced labor (1930)

4. ILO Convention 105 banning forced labor=20
(1957)

5. ILO Convention 100 on equal wages for work=20
of equal value (1951)

6. ILO Convention 111 on discrimination in=20
employment (1958)

7. ILO Convention 138 on the abolition of child=20
labor (1973).

We will not accept any substitutes for the=20
existing conventions of the ILO. We will not accept=20
support for hollow principles and rights at work=20
detached from concrete implementation in=20
national labor legislation. We will not accept any=20
watered-down agreements.=20

Finally, we wish to issue a special appeal to the=20
government that is hosting the November 1999=20
WTO Summit =8B that is, the U.S. government:

U.S. officials proclaim loudly in every=20
international arena that the United States is a=20
staunch defender of workers=B9 rights. Bill Clinton=20
addressed the yearly assembly of the ILO in June=20
1999, where he trumpeted his support for the=20
new ILO "Declaration on Fundamental Principles=20
and Rights at Work."

But the truth of the matter is that the U.S.=20
record on workers=B9 rights is abysmal.

On July 14, 1999, the International=20
Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) issued=20
a 15-page report that fully documents the=20
"massive, ongoing, and appalling violations in the=20
United States of the right to freedom of association=20
and the right to organize."=20

"The United States," the report continues, "has=20
ratified only one of the seven core labor standards=20
=8B ILO Convention 105 opposing forced labor. ...=20
This is one of the worst ratification records in the=20
world."

The ICFTU report reviews in great detail how=20
the core ILO conventions =8B including those on=20
child labor, forced labor, discrimination in the=20
workplace, and the right to strike =8B are violated=20
daily in the United States. The ICFTU report=20
concludes with these words:

"The United States needs to take a series of far-
reaching measures to establish genuine respect for=20
core labor standards in the United States. In areas=20
of compelling violations, ILO Conventions 87=20
(Freedom of Association) and 98 (Right to=20
Organize) should be ratified and the country=B9s=20
laws brought into conformity with these=20
Conventions, because major reforms are needed to=20
protect workers who try to organize and bargain=20
collectively from employer interference and=20
intimidation.

"The United States should also ratify=20
Conventions 100 and 111 against Discrimination,=20
Convention 138 on Child Labor, and Convention 29=20
on Forced labor, and work to put these=20
Conventions into full effect."

We, the undersigned, fully concur with this=20
ICFTU report and its conclusions. Any government=20
that pretends to uphold workers=B9 rights must=20
begin by ratifying the Conventions of the ILO!

*****

[This Open Letter was prepared by the=20
Organizing Committee of the Open World=20
Conference in Defense of Trade Union=20
Independence and Democratic Rights (OWC),=20
which will be held in San Francisco in February of=20
2000 with the participation of trade unionists and=20
activists from 86 countries.=20

[The call to organize an international campaign to=20
ratify the ILO conventions was first issued by the=20
Seventh Annual Meeting of Trade Unionists in=20
Defense of the ILO Conventions, held in June 1999=20
in Geneva at the time of the yearly assembly of=20
the ILO. The meeting was convened by the heads=20
of 17 African trade union federations and the=20
International Liaison Committee for a Workers=B9=20
International (ILC). The ILC is a co-sponsor of the=20
OWC, along with the San Francisco Labor Council=20
(AFL-CIO) and the Continuations Committee of the=20
Western Hemisphere Workers=B9 Conference Against=20
NAFTA and Privatizations (WHC).=20

[For more information about the Open World=20
Conference, write to OWC, c/o S.F. Labor Council=20
(AFL-CIO), 1188 Franklin St. #203, San Francisco=20
94109, or tel. (415) 641-8616, or fax (415) 440-
9297, or email <owc@xxxxxxx>.]

*****

Initial list of Signatories:

Organizing Committee of the OWC:=20

Jack Henning, Secretary- Treasurer-Emeritus,=20
California Labor Federation (AFL-CIO);=20
Walter Johnson, Secretary-Treasurer,=20
San Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO); Baldemar=20
Velasquez, President, Farm Labor Organizing=20
Committee (FLOC-AFL-CIO); Mya Shone, Co-
Coordinator OWC and member OPEIU Local 3; Ed=20
Rosario, Co-Coordinator OWC, Coordinator WHC=20
and President, San Francisco LCLAA; Daniel=20
Gluckstein, Coordinator, International Liaison=20
Committee for a Workers=B9 International (ILC);=20
Patrick H=E9bert, General Secretary, CGT-Force=20
Ouvri=E8re Labor Federation (Loire-
Atlantique/France); Nancy Wohlforth,=20
Secretary-Treasurer, OPEIU Local 3 (AFL-CIO);=20
Frank Martin del Campo, National Executive=20
Committee, Labor Council for Latin American=20
Advancement (LCLAA); Alan Benjamin,=20
Assistant Coordinator WHC, member OPEIU Local 3=20
and SF LCLAA.

*****

ENDORSEMENT FORM:

PLEASE ADD MY NAME TO THE LIST OF SIGNATORIES=20
OF THIS OPEN LETTER TO THE HEADS OF STATE

NAME=09=09=09=09=09=09=09 =20
EMAIL
ADDRESS
CITY=09=09=09=09                   =20
STATE=09=09     =20
ZIP
UNION/ORG:                                                   =20
TITLE (for id. only)

(Return to OWC, c/o S.F. Labor Council (AFL-
CIO), 1188 Franklin St. #203, San Francisco 94109,=20
or email: <owc.igc.org>)

*****


ATTACHMENT NO. 1

SUMMARY OF THE ICFTU REPORT ON WORKERS=B9=20
RIGHTS IN THE UNITED STATES

On July 14, 1999, the International Confederation=20
of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) issued a report=20
slamming the United States=B9 "appalling record on=20
workers=B9 rights and calling on the U.S. to ratify the=20
core conventions of the International Labor=20
Organization (ILO).

It is worth examining in greater detail the content=20
of this 15-page ICFTU report, which was issued=20
the same day the WTO released its trade policy=20
review on the United States.

The ICFTU press release that summarizes the=20
report states in part:

"Violations in the United States of the right to=20
freedom of association and the right to organize,=20
are =8Cmassive, ongoing, and appalling.=B9 ... =8CIt is=20
shocking to see that in the United States both=20
government and employers harass and persecute=20
those who exercise their rights at work,=B9 said the=20
ICFTU General Secretary Bill Jordan.=20

"The United States has ratified only one of the=20
seven core labor standards, which cover the right=20
to organize a trade union, to bargain, the=20
prohibition of discrimination and child labor, as=20
specified by the UN=B9s International Labor=20
Organization (ILO). This is one of the worst=20
ratification records in the world, says the ICFTU."
The ICFTU report details how the right to freedom=20
of association and collectively bargaining are=20
severely restricted.

"[F]orty percent of American public service=20
workers =8B nearly seven million =8B are denied the=20
right to collective bargaining. Over two million=20
federal government employees are denied the=20
right to strike and to bargain over hours, wages,=20
or economic benefits. ...

"In the private sector, workers are not adequately=20
protected from employer interference in the=20
fundamental right of workers to organize a union.=20
Where limited protections exist, penalties for this=20
form of corporate lawlessness are often weak and=20
ineffective. At least one in ten union supporters=20
campaigning to form a union is sacked illegally=20
each year. Employees who support trade unions=20
are often harassed, intimidated, and isolated from=20
other workers. Many employers use consultants,=20
detectives and security firms in anti-union=20
campaigns.

"In addition to trying to block union organizing,=20
many companies attempt to destroy unions where=20
they exist. Unfortunately, enforcement of=20
protections for worker rights which exist in the=20
law is weak, both because penalties are light and=20
because procedures are long and often difficult.=20
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which=20
administers the law covering most industrial=20
relations in the private sector, has a backlog of=20
25,000 cases. For example, it took 62 workers who=20
were fired in 1979, 19 years to receive financial=20
compensation.

"Union representatives are often threatened with=20
arrest when they try to help workers organize=20
unions and are denied access to the workplace.=20
Union solidarity is restricted by the law which=20
makes secondary boycotts and sympathy strikes=20
illegal.=20

"When workers vote to have a union, employers=20
regularly challenge the results. For example, 5,000=20
workers at the Avondale Shipyard in New Orleans=20
are still being denied the right to form a union,=20
although they voted for one in 1993.=20

"An increasing number of employers deliberately=20
provoke strikes to get rid of trade unions. In=20
1995, Detroit News and Knight Ridder unlawfully=20
provoked a strike involving 2,600 employees. The=20
newspapers were ordered to reinstate the striking=20
workers by the NLRB, but have appealed against=20
the decision and are still refusing to rehire most of=20
them. Other companies have locked out workers=20
as part of a strategy to destroy unions.

"Multinational companies refuse to bargain in=20
good faith or drag out and delay the process. For=20
example, the German multinational Continental=20
Tire, after not seriously engaging in bargaining,=20
hired permanent replacements for striking=20
workers at its facility in Charlotte, North Carolina.=20
This practice of permanently replacing strikers=20
has a devastating effect on industrial relations.=20
The threat of permanent replacement is used to=20
scare workers during organizing campaigns, to=20
intimidate them at the bargaining table, and as a=20
tool to eliminate union representation altogether."
The ICFTU goes on to report on discrimination at=20
work in the United States:

"Surprisingly, for a country where the law=20
provides for equal rights regardless of race, sex,=20
age or religion, the United States has ratified=20
neither ILO Conventions 100 nor 111, which deal=20
with discrimination at work.=20

"Also, in a country with such a high proportion of=20
female workers =8B the percentage now stands at=20
45% =8B women on average earn only 75% of men=B9s=20
earnings, Black women 65% of men=B9s earnings, and=20
Hispanic women, 57%."

The ICFTU continues its report with a section of=20
child labor and forced labor:

"Again, surprisingly for a government which has=20
taken a strong stand against child labor=20
internationally, it has not ratified ILO Convention=20
138 itself, banning child labor. A 1997 survey,=20
based on federal government data, found that=20
290,000 children were working illegally. 14,000=20
were under the age of 14, and some nine-year-
olds were working in garment sweatshops.=20

"There are also a large number of children of=20
migrant workers, whom the survey was not able=20
to document fully, the majority of whom work in=20
the agricultural and horticultural sectors. This=20
sector is one of the most dangerous, and between=20
400 and 600 children working in agricultural=20
suffer work-related injuries, and many are killed=20
in accidents each year.=20

"Regarding forced labor, the United States has=20
ratified one out of the two ILO Conventions=20
dealing with forced labor (No. 105). However=20
there is evidence of a considerable amount of=20
prison labor being carried out for profit by the=20
prison authorities, which prisoners are penalized=20
for refusing.=20

"Prisoners work for between $0.23 and $1.15 a=20
day in sectors including telemarketing and=20
telephone reservation systems for hotels and=20
airlines (including Trans World Airlines, which=20
uses prison labor extensively). They also work in=20
computer circuit board assembly, clothing, and=20
food. At least three states are exporting prison-
make goods.=20

"Prisoners who refuse to work lose their chance of=20
early release, are deprived of privileges or sent to=20
high-security prisons and may be locked up in=20
their cells as a punishment.=20

The ICFTU report then concludes:

"The United States needs to take a series of far-
reaching measures to establish genuine respect for=20
core labor standards in the U.S. In areas of=20
compelling violations, ILO Conventions 87=20
(Freedom of Association) and 98 (Right to=20
Organize) should be ratified and the country=B9s=20
laws brought into conformity with these=20
Conventions, because major reforms are needed to=20
protect workers who try to organize and bargain=20
collectively from employer interference and=20
intimidation.

"The United States should also ratify Conventions=20
100 and 111 against Discrimination, Convention=20
138 on Child Labor, and Convention 29 on Forced=20
labor, and work to put these Conventions into full=20
effect."

The ICFTU report fails to mention a fundamental=20
workers=B9 right that is being trampled upon daily=20
in the United States =8B and that is the right to=20
strike. While there is no ILO convention that=20
upholds explicitly the right to strike, ILO=20
jurisprudence has established that the right to=20
strike is covered by ILO Conventions 87 and 98.
=20
The ILO=B9s Commission on Freedom of Association=20
(CFA), in fact, has ruled that the United States=20
persistently violates the workers=B9 right to strike.=20
The CFA has taken issue, in particular, with the=20
hiring of permanent striker "replacements" and=20
the various laws restricting workers=B9 rights to=20
picket.



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