Top Union Offers 10-Point Plan to Kick-Start British Economy

Britain's biggest trade union has presented the government with a 10-point plan to kick-start the economy, including an increase in public spending and freezing house repossessions. The union, Unite, said workers needed to be protected from the "triple danger" of layoffs, house repossessions and rising prices. In its submission to the Prime Minister and Chancellor, Unite said a million new affordable homes should be built alongside support for manufacturing firms.

The union repeated its call for a windfall tax on the profits of energy firms and better regulation of the financial sector, as well as increased rights for workers. Joint general secretary Derek Simpson said: "We are calling on Gordon Brown to save our homes and do everything possible to protect our jobs.

"Our priorities seek to put an end to the unchecked free market greed that led to the current crisis and to introduce a new economic order which takes our economy out of the hands of the super-rich and puts it back under democratic control," Simpson added.

Doctors and Judges Join Strike of 400,000 Chilean Public Workers

As doctors and judges on Nov. 19 joined the strike of 400,000 Chilean public employees, their union, ANEP, rejected the government's latest offer of a 10 percent pay increase. ANEP leader Raul de la Puente said the union would continue its efforts with lawmakers to obtain the 14.5 percent pay raise that it demanded. He said that 15,000 union members from throughout Chile would gather at the doors of Congress, which meets in the coastal city of Valparaiso, to demand a "decent increase."

Meanwhile, the president of the Association of Medical Workers, Dr. Daniel Valenzuela, announced that "we're going to strike and only provide urgent care service to cover risk to life." He said that practically all the hospitals in Greater Santiago — home to 6.2 million people — had joined the public workers' strike.

Judges also have joined the strike, although they will do so by staggered shifts, along with about 9,000 court officials who will engage in a "period of reflection" between 11 a.m. and noon. In Coquimbo, north of Santiago, where on Wednesday, the women's soccer "Under-20 World Cup" is scheduled to start, municipal officials said they will not allow the public to enter the stadium.

Czech Men to Have Week-Long Paternity Leave

In a package of family legislation approved by the government, Czech men will be able to take a week-long leave from their job to care for a new-born child. The new regulation is designed to support part-time labor contracts and company kindergartens. The leave, during which the fathers would stay at the hospital with the new-born child, will be paid for in the same way as women's maternity leave.

The Labor and Social Affairs Ministry is the sponsor of flexible work-time initiatives to help parents bring the family and work obligations in harmony. The new regulations would also allow parents to ask their neighbors to help in caring for their children on the basis of a legal contract and help companies establish their own kindergartens as an alternative to overcrowded ones.

The Czech Republic is one of the EU countries with the lowest share of part-time work contracts. While one-third of women and one in 12 men work on part-time contracts in the EU. In the Czech Republic, only nine percent of women and one in 60 men work part-time.

China Feels Impact of Global Economic Crisis with Heavy Job Loss

More than 65,000 Chinese factories have gone bankrupt this year, said Lan Hailing, professor of business strategy with the South China University of Technology in Guangxhou, China's manufacturing sector, which produced 14 percent of the clothing, toys and footwear imported into the United States last year, has decelerated rapidly over the past few months.

China's job outlook is "grim," and the global crisis could cause more layoffs and more labor unrest until the country's economic stimulus package kicks in next year, the nation's minister of human resources and social security, said Nov. 20. The stimulus package, unveiled earlier this month will pump $585 billion into rebuilding communities devastated by the May earthquake, constructing railways, housing, airports, highways and other facilities.

The urban unemployment rate through October this year was 4 percent, lower than the government's 4.5 percent. But the jobless numbers do not include migrant rural workers — probably the most affected group — because they move so frequently. There are about 150 million laborers in China, mostly in cities.

A Heavy Toll of Jailed and Murdered Trade Unionists

Ninety-one trade unionists were murdered in 2007 while defending workers' rights, according to a survey by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) released Nov. 20. The ITUC said 39 unionists lost their lives in Colombia, which had the highest mortality rate among its members. This was followed by Guinea, where 30 unionists were killed last year during union-led demonstrations against corruption.

The survey, which covers workers' rights violations in 138 countries, said serious and systematic harassment was reported in 63 nations. Nearly 75 unionists were sent to prison in 2007, including 40 in Iran and 14 in Morocco. "Governments have failed to do enough to protect workers' rights, either at home or in their international diplomatic, economic and trade relations," said Guy Ryder, ITUC general secretary.

Trade union rights have been systematically eroded across Europe in recent years, ITUC claims. In France, the Sarkozy government introduced a law that restricted public transport workers' right to strike. Employers in Belgium have been relying on court orders and fines to prevent strike-related activities, particularly picketing. In many European countries, like Estonia and Bulgaria, there is a ban on strikes by civil servants, despite strong criticism from the International Labor Organization (ILO).

New Zealand Bus Drivers Locked Out over Free Rides

Hamilton bus drivers have been locked out by their bosses over plans to offer passengers free rides. Karl Andersen, National Distribution Union spokesman, said the drivers began a one-day strike the morning of Nov. 21 and planned to refuse to accept fares on an ongoing basis. "The company has responded by locking out the drivers indefinitely," Andersen said.

The drivers were attempting to negotiate a pay raise from $13.50 an hour for their demand of $16 an hour. The company, Go Bus, said the drivers would remain suspended until an agreement on a contract is reached. Go Bus managing director Calum Haslop said: "By telling its drivers not to receive fares, the union is putting drivers and Go Bus in the position of breaking the contract, which we can't allow."

Haslop said the disruptions for passengers would be minimal, with non-union members and management staff with driving experience called in to fill the gaps.

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