Worst Companies for Union Organizing Highlighted for International Human Rights Day

From the International Labor Rights Forum:

Adopted on this day sixty years ago, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) states that "everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests," (Article 23, Section 4). As human rights advocates around the world celebrate International Human Rights Day, the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) has released "Working for Scrooge: 5 Worst Companies for the Right to Associate," a list of the five worst multinational corporations for union organizing.

One particularly sad and shocking statistics (among many) in this survey: the ILRF reports "at least 91 unionists were killed globally as a result of their organizing efforts in 2007."

The companies on this year's list of the 2008 five worst multinational corporations for union organizing include:

• Wal-Mart - for violating worker rights in the USA, Canada and elsewhere.
• Nestle - for violations in the Philippines, Colombia, Peru, Russia and Pakistan.
• Del Monte - for violations in Guatemala and the Philippines.
• Dole - for violations in the Philippines, Costa Rica and Colombia.
• Russell/Fruit of the Loom - for violations in Honduras and Uzbekistan.

Read the full report here.

*Top offenders selected on the basis of their ties to violence against trade unions and suppression of the universal right to organize.

"We have to recognize that in real, 21st-century terms, 'Workers of the world, unite,' can't be just a slogan," said SEIU President Andy Stern during the early stages of the formation of Alliance for Justice at G4S, a growing group of unions from across the globe that first came together in 2005 to raise standards and win a better future for security workers.

Today, the Journal of the International Centre for Trade Union Rights (ICTUR) called SEIU's global effort to organize private security officers in several African countries, the United Kingdom, and other locations "One of the most developed campaigns aimed at building a global union and raising standards for low wage service..."  

Read the entire article here.

>> More about SEIU's global partnerships

Making Globalization Work for Workers

click for more photos

Uniting Across Borders • Assisting with organizing campaigns and helping develop strategies to help workers • Participating in organizing exchanges to share ideas and learn from each other • Winning for U.S. workers by helping bring up standards in the industries we're organizing

On every continent, in virtually every country, the story is the same. Corporate power is on the rise, and the power of workers is in decline.

The promises of globalization have yet to materialize for most workers and their families. Increasingly, around the world, workers' incomes are shrinking, forcing them to live with greater insecurity, while social safety nets are being dismantled.

While multinational corporations are amassing even greater strength, unions--formed to help working people improve their lives--are shrinking in power and influence. In most countries, the labor movement is getting weaker at the time when it needs to be the strongest.

Coming Together in Global Partnerships

SEIU is committed to ensuring that the benefits of globalization are shared with workers and their families--not just corporate elites. Increasingly, service sector corporations are becoming multinational employers, with branches and partnerships that employ workers around the globe.

SEIU's Global Organizing program works with partner unions and global union federations to organize these workers across borders.

Our counterpart unions in other countries are also committed to arresting the decline in the power that unions have experienced around the world. We are sharing the same campaigns. We're sharing best practices, and we have committed ourselves to checking this decline.

Our Global Partners:

>> Public Services International

>> International Transport Workers' Federation

>> UNI Property Services Global Union: G4S Alliance for Justice Campaign