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Globalisation and Irish Workers: Coping with Globalisation in Developing Countries

This presentation discusses the challenges faced by workers in developing countries due to globalization, focusing on the agricultural sector. It explores the lack of worker rights, high accident and child labor rates, and the increasing control of retailers. The strategies and successes of the International Union of Food, Agriculture, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers (IUF) are also highlighted.

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Globalisation and Irish Workers: Coping with Globalisation in Developing Countries

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  1. Globalisation and Irish Workers:how are workers in developing countries coping with globalisation? Croke Park Conference CentreApril 23, 2008 Sue Longley

  2. Presentation • Introduce my organisation • talk about the sector I know best - agriculture • outline the problems facing workers in agriculture • how we are working on this • ideas for strengthening TU co-operation

  3. Who we are • IUF = international union of food, agriculure, hotel, restaurant, catering, tobacco and allied workerswww.iuf.org • 377 affiliated unions in 122 countries - SIPTU & Unite; - worked with Mandate (bananas) ICTU on fair trade • Global union federations: BWI, EI, IFJ, IMF, ICEM, ITGLWF, ITF, PSI ,UNI • International trade union confederation (ITUC): www. ituc-csi.org ; Council of Global Unions; TUAC

  4. IUF - what we do • Bring together workers throughout the food chain - from plough to plate • solidarity/defence of workers/rights • equality • TU development project - OHS • build organising capacity along the foodchain - TNCs - Nestlé, Coca Cola

  5. IUF - what we do Statutory commitment to work with like-minded organisation and broader civil society to achieve equitable distribution of the world’s food resources

  6. Working in agriculture

  7. Agriculture…... far from decent work • lack of freedom of association/collective bargaining • 1 of 3 most dangerous industries • high fatal accident rate • 70% of all child labour in agriculture • high number of migrant workers • precarious conditions - seasonal work & outsourcing

  8. Agriculture…... far from decent work We sow it We reap it We can’t afford To eat it (NUAAW, 1980s)*************************************************** 75% of world’s poor live in rural areas

  9. Women in agriculture • women are farmers and workers - produce more that 50% of world’s food • agriculture = most important sector for women’s employment, especially in Africa and Asia • often in most precarious forms of employment/unpaid family work/seasonal contracts

  10. Children in agriculture • 70 % of all child labour • most on small, family farms • some in commercial agriculture • many child migrant workers • hidden by piece rates/task work • worst forms - forced labour, dangerous, deprives them of education

  11. Agriculture & globalisation • Trade been dominated by TNCs for some yearseg bananas - 5 companies control 75 % of trade: 80% of grain distributed by 2 companies - Cargill and ADM; • similar dominance in tea, coffee, cocoa,

  12. Agriculture & globalisation • Now increasing control of retailers - “rise of powerful global buyers, which can dictate terms to suppliers” (ILO, Best & Mamic - agri.food chains) • Increasing financialization of agriculture

  13. How are these workers coping? • moving to towns - especially youth - first time in human history that more people live in urban areas; • migrating to another country; • self-employment & survival informal economy

  14. IUF’s strategies • Organising, and more organising • building union strength inside TNCs- International Framework Agreements- guarantee rights throughout company Danone Accor Fonterra Chiquita

  15. IUF’s strategies • not just stating the right but using it • working with our affiliates to build organisation within the companies • strategic targets - Hotels, restaurant, catering- Coca Cola - PROGRESS MEET 2 TIMES A YEAR- Nestlé - world’s biggest food company

  16. The successes • IFAs so far achieved • Elimination of child labour in tobacco foundation • International Cocoa Initiative • New international partnership against child labour in agric - ILO, FAO, IFAD, IFAP, IFPRI & IUF • Building of alliances - bananas and flowers • commitment to organising migrant workers

  17. Organising across borders

  18. The successes • Refocus of policy interest:no achievement of Millennium Development Goals- World Bank/World Development report 2008- UN Commission on Sustainable Dev- ILO 2008 - rural employment for poverty reduction

  19. Global TU co-operation • Build our strength within companies - food and hotels • Identify global issues to campaign around - issues attractive to young workers - OHS; environment, fair trade • Co-operation on private equity, sovereign funds. financialization

  20. Global TU co-operation • TU definition of “green jobs” - green jobs must be decent jobs - Food miles • TU perspective on food miles • TU perspective on climate change/global warming

  21. Global TU co-operation • TU definition of “green jobs” - green jobs must be decent jobs - Food miles • TU perspective on food miles • TU perspective on climate change/global warming

  22. “My breakfast and lunch is gramoxone. It`s very nice if you get use to it. Except it caused I lost my baby 2 times cause`miscarriage, it scratches your skin, and makes you difficult to breath in the night” (Barjiah, Lonsum women workers, Bagerpang estate, North Sumatera)

  23. An Gorta Mór - parallels with today’s food crisis? • Records food exported even during the worst years of the Famine. When Ireland experienced a famine in 1782-83, ports were closed to keep Irish-grown food in Ireland to feed the Irish. Local food prices promptly dropped. Merchants lobbied against the export ban, but government in the 1780s overrode their protests; that export ban did not happen in the 1840s. • Cecil Woodham-Smith, an authority on the Irish Famine, wrote in The Great Hunger; Ireland 1845-1849“no issue has provoked so much anger or so embittered relations between the two countries (England and Ireland) as the indisputable fact that huge quantities of food were exported from Ireland to England throughout the period when the people of Ireland were dying of starvation.”

  24. An Gorta Mór - parallels with today’s food crisis? • Ireland remained a net exporter of food throughout most of the five-year famine. • Christine Kinealy, a University of Liverpool fellow and author of two texts on the famine, Irish Famine: This Great Calamity and A Death-Dealing Famine, writes that Irish exports of calves, livestock (except pigs), bacon and ham actually increased during the famine. The food was shipped under guard from the most famine-stricken parts of Ireland. However, the poor had no money to buy food and the government then did not ban exports.

  25. An Gorta Mór - parallels with today’s food crisis? • Lack of political will not lack of food • We must make sure there is political will • People have good quality, fairly priced safe food

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