Victory for
Portuguese dockers following widespread solidarity
21 February 2014
A strike in the ports
of Portugal has been called off after the reinstatement of 47 dismissed workers
an d assuran ce
from man agement that a new
collective bargaining agreement (CBA) will be negotiated.
A dispute involving the the Sindicato des Estivadores,
trabalhadores do Tráfego e Conferentes Maritimos do Centro e Sul du Portugal
(SETC) has been ongoing since the Portuguese government adopted a new port law
on 1 February 2013 which initiated liberalisation.
It was the start of a
process to progressively deteriorate conditions for port workers, in particular
in Lisbon where 47 workers were dismissed without reason. It was also a breach
of ILO Convention 137 on dock work which Portugal has ratified.
There has been a mass display of solidarity for Portuguese
workers by dockers throughout Europe coordinated by the European Tran sport
Workers’ Federation an d the International
Dockworkers’ Council. Letters of protest were sent to Portuguese embassies in
Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Fran ce,
German y, Greece, Latvia, The Netherlan ds, Roman ia,
Spain an d the UK, in addition to
industrial an d support actions.
Now, following a
meeting in Lisbon on 14 February, negotiations between the union an d man agement
over a new collective bargaining agreement have been extended until September.
Assuran ces have
also been given that preference for professional dockworkers will be given in
port hiring practices, more professional training will be made available for
all workers an d that all parties
will maintain social peace during the negotiation period for the CBA.
ETF dockers’ section
chair, Terje Samuelsen said: “This is a great step forward for the
Portuguese unions an d excellent news
for all European Dockers. Once
again, the pressure put by international solidarity played a crucial
contribution to the achievement of this result. We will keep doing our best to
ensure that all the other current disputes, notably the ones in Norway, are
settled with such a positive outcome.”
Visit the ETF dockers’ webpages
for more background on the dispute.
ITF deman ds end to Honduran
an ti-docker attacks
21 February 2014
ITF president
Paddy Crumlin today put the main stevedoring compan y
in Puerto Cortés, Honduras, on notice that it has to act to end intimidation of
union members.
Crumlin protested to the man ager
of the ESTIR stevedoring compan y,
after learning that Carlos Alvarado, treasurer of the ITF-affiliated SGTM
dockers' union, had been unfairly sacked. ESTIR is a contractor for ICTSI,
which took over the port concession last year.
He told the man ager:
‘We strongly support the SGTM’s efforts
to secure a collective bargaining agreement for its members in the port an d believe that those working to further this cause
are facing victimisation an d
intimidation.
‘The international
dockworkers’ community is closely watching this situation an d hoping for an
end to the abuses an d intimidation
which seem to have become commonplace in operations at Puerto Cortés.’
The ITF is contacting the Honduran
Minister of Labour an d Social
Security regarding this situation an d
making ICTSI aware of its concerns.
The ITF also
continues to act in support of union leader Victor Crespo whose father has been
murdered an d who has been forced to
leave his home because of threats an d
attempts on his life, all as a result of his trade union activities.
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