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AFL-CIO refuses to ‘clear the air’
on foreign policy, operations
By Kim Scipes
Feb. 27— A report now circulating on the results of an
Oct. 14, 2003 meeting in Oakland between the California State AFL-CIO
and AFL-CIO International Affairs leaders shows that national AFL-CIO
leaders have not accepted a California labor initiative to reveal the
federation’s role in past and current foreign operations.
This meeting was the outcome of a process that began in 1998 with an
effort by labor activists in the San Jose, California area to demand
that the AFL-CIO “clear the air” about its involvement in
events leading up to a 1973 coup that overthrew the elected government
of Chile.
Initiated by Fred Hirsch, a member of Plumbers and Fitters Local 393,
the “Clear the Air” resolution was drafted with the help of
members and leaders of the South Bay Labor Council, Local 393, former
political prisoners in Chile, and others.
Hirsch, in 1974, had discovered and publicized the fact that the AFL-CIO’s
Latin American operation, AIFLD (American Institute for Free Labor Development)
had been involved in helping create the economic turmoil and conditions
that led to the coup by the Chilean military.
Based on Hirsch’s research, the Central Labor Council had passed
a resolution in 1974 condemning AIFLD’s involvement in undermining
this democratically elected government, and refused to withdraw it even
in the face of direct pressure by the then-head of AIFLD, William Doherty.
This new resolution was to re-open the call for the AFL-CIO to “Clear
the Air.” Unfortunately, other events intervened, and the resolution
was not acted upon at the time.
Clearing the air
The effort was revived after an article on AFL-CIO foreign operations
was published in the Summer 2000 issue of Labor Studies Journal by this
author —”It’s Time to Come Clean: Open the AFL-CIO Archives
on International Labor Operations” and subsequent resolutions passed
by California Central Labor Councils in the San Jose, San Francisco,
and Monterey Bay areas.
These resolutions — stimulated by the initial “Clear the Air”
resolution initiated by Hirsch — were combined into a resolution
titled “It’s Time to Clear the Air About AFL-CIO Foreign Policy
Abroad” and were presented to the 2002 California Federation Convention
in July of that year. Similar resolutions have been passed by the King
County Labor Council from the Seattle area, the Washington State AFL-CIO,
and the national lesbian-gay-transgender constituency organization,
Pride at Work.
AFL-CIO representatives were aghast at the “Clear the Air”
resolution. The author’s sources weren’t in the room at the
time, but it appears likely that a deal was made whereby the AFL-CIO
representative asked the California Federation’s Executive Committee
to accept a “watered down” resolution (#20) in exchange for
a meeting between the Federation and California activists and leaders
from the International Affairs Committee and Department to discuss these
issues in a less confrontational manner. Resolution #20 called upon
the AFL-CIO “to convene a meeting with the State Federation and
interested affiliates in California to discuss their present foreign
affairs activities involving government funds.”
It then noted, “The aim of the meeting will be to clear the air
concerning AFL-CIO policy abroad and to affirm a policy of genuine global
solidarity in pursuit of economic and social justice with attention
to domestic and international labor standards that include the right
to organize and strike, an adequate social safety net, the right to
health care and education, elimination of mandatory overtime, protection
of the rights of immigrant workers, prohibitions on strikebreaking,
and the pursuit of peace among nations and peoples.”
While the “deal” for the meeting was ultimately accepted by
the California Federation, and Resolution #20 passed instead of “Clear
the Air,” it was made clear that if the meeting with the AFL-CIO
international affairs leaders was not satisfactory in moving substantively
toward the goals of “Clear the Air,” then the officers of
the California Federation would support the original resolution.
Historic meeting
Although it took over a year to take place, the Oct. 14 meeting was
historic. Top representatives of the AFL-CIO International Affairs Committee
(IAC) and International Affairs Department (IAD) had never been called
up to meet with representatives of a State Federation and its affiliates
on matters of international affairs.
Representing the IAC was Bill Lucy, Secretary-Treasurer of the Committee,
President of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, and International
Secretary-Treasurer of AFSCME. Barbara Shailor, Director of the IAD
was to attend but was unable to do so; in her place, Stan Gacek, Assistant
Director, stood in for her. The meeting was chaired by Art Pulaski,
Secretary-Treasurer of the California AFL-CIO. With over two million
members in California, membership in the state federation makes up roughly
15 percent of the AFL-CIO’s total membership.
To help facilitate communication — at the urging of Lucy and Gacek
— no one could be quoted directly for public consumption. They
said they would submit a report of the meeting, giving their input and
analysis of it, but no such report had been received as of Dec. 17.
The overall meeting report is a compilation of a number of reports by
meeting attendees based on notes taken during the meeting. (The author
did not attend the meeting.)
Lucy/Gacek reported on international work by the AFL-CIO, which has
improved considerably since 1995, when the Sweeney administration came
into office. This work now focuses around five different areas: (1)
defending the ILO’s (International Labor Organization’s) core
conventions — such as freedom of association, freedom of speech,
freedom to collectively bargain, etc.; (2) making international solidarity
work and increasingly important area for AFL-CIO members; (3) being
for what they called “the moral imperative” whether it did
or did not directly benefit AFL-CIO or its affiliated unions; (4) fighting
for labor rights in trade/investment agreements; an (5) engaging in
strategic organizing and collective bargaining interests in confronting
multinational corporations.
In response to the demand that they “come clean” on past AFL-CIO
operations, however, the AFL-CIO national reps argued that the past
was past, and that efforts to get them to come clean on these past events
would only give AFL-CIO opponents more ammunition to fight unions.
In response to the demand that they quit taking US government money
— either from US Agency for International Development (USAID) or
the quasi-governmental (and Reagan-created) National Endowment for Democracy
(NED) — they argued that union members are taxpayers, and that
they have just as much right to take government money as any corporation.
And in response to the demand that an international work be funded only
out of AFL-CIO member support, they claimed the affiliates would never
support it.
Unclear
While there is no question that the AFL-CIO has made improvements over
the Meany/Kirkland years, it is certainly not near what the AFL-CIO
projects—nor what workers around the world need. Current policies
continue those of the past toward AFL-CIO members themselves: no transparency,
no accountability, no democratic discussion or member decision-making
power.
The AFL-CIO is still conducting labor operations in a number of countries,
although these representatives did not offer information as to why it
is involved in some countries but not others. They did not provide a
country-by-country report of current operations, which they had been
specifically asked to provide before the meeting — a request that
the AFL-CIO representatives used to delay holding the meeting.
The AFL-CIO is still taking US Government money from USAID and NED,
but would not provide the amounts received from either or on what basis
it was provided. Interestingly, they stated that countries where USAID
or the State Department had no interests are “off limits.”
California labor activists, unsatisfied with the meeting’s outcome,
are planning to place another “Clear the Air” resolution on
the State AFL-CIO Convention’s agenda in 2004.
According to one participant of the October 14 meeting, “I don’t
know if any of the 50 people in attendance on October 14 would contend
that the meeting had a satisfactory and productive outcome in regard
to Resolution #20. It certainly did not in regard to ‘clear the
air.’
Source: Labor Notes
30 million workers go on strike in Indian
against Court ruling
New Delhi, India, Feb. 24— Millions of workers
from the government, financial and industrial sectors went on strike on
Tuesday to protest a Supreme Court ruling against work stoppages.
Union leaders said workers ranging from bank employees to electricians
and civil servants wearing black badges held rallies outside their offices.
In New Delhi and Trivandrum striking employees stood outside their offices
in protest.
Union leaders said 30 million workers were taking part in the strike.
“Today 30 million workers across the country, 1.5 million employees
and officials of the financial sector are observing country-wide one-day
token strike. This strike is basically to demand review of the Supreme
Court judgment which says that government employees do not have the right
to go on strike. Other than that there are two major issues confronting
everyone, one is disinvestments and privatization of public sector banks
and other is anti-labor policies of the government of India,” T.N
Goel, president of All India Bank Officers’ Confederation, said in
New Delhi.
Economists, however, did not expect much impact.
Government workers often strike in India, the world’s second- most
populous country, crippling services and pinching tax revenues. But in
August last year, the Supreme Court said government employees had no right
to strike because it inconvenienced citizens and cost the state money.
All unions in the financial sector are participating in the strike, including
insurance, Reserve Bank of India and banking institutions.
The RBI Officers’ Association said it would join the strike “to
express solidarity with the working class of India.”
To bridge a huge fiscal deficit, India will sell nearly 3 billion dollars
of equity in five energy firms over the next few weeks.
Jet Airways, the largest private-sector airline, said it would not operate
some flights to and from West Bengal and Kerala due to the strike. Other
domestic airlines like Sahara Airways and Indian Airlines said there were
no schedule changes.
Kali Ghosh, General Secretary of Center of Indian Trade Unions, West Bengal,
said the apex court’s order negated even the basic rights of industrial
workers.
“This 24-hour general strike is basically against by the Supreme
Court verdict of banning strikes not only government employees but even
by industrial workers which is a legal right they have,” said Ghosh.
Ghosh said 90 percent of the 1.5 million financial sector employees will
join the strike.
Nandu Mhatre, a Mumbai resident, said the strike would affect transactions
across the country.
“It causes a lot of problem if banks go on strike. This causes a
lot of inconvenience to the people. They are on strike because they say
they do not get enough perks but we believe that they get everything.
In spite of that they are on strike which is wrong,” said Mhatre.
Government employees would be on total strike, while defense production
at ordnance depots would be affected and 400,000 coal workers out of 600,000
would join the action.
Source: webindia123.com
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