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Union News Archive
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STUC and UNISON Scotland Support Trade Union Organising in Ecuador. |
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October 2007
In October this year the STUC and UNISON Scotland donated a generous £3,000 to Banana Link’s Ecuadorian trade union partner, FENACLE. This support is the outcome of important solidarity links which have been strengthened since the STUC’s former President, Katrina Murray, visited Ecuador on a Banana Link coordinated Youth Delegation Visit in October 2006.
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Dole Food Company, Inc., and The Dow Chemical Company Face A First Time Jury |
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October 2, 2007
Verdict In A Sterility Lawsuit Filed By 12 Foreign Banana Plantation Workers For Exposure to the Chemical Pesticide called DBCP. Closing Arguments Are Expected to Begin on October 11, 2007, in Los Angeles Superior Court Final closing arguments in Tellez, et al., v. Dole Food Company, et al, first sterility case amongst thousands of other similar sterility cases awaiting adjudication in the United States from foreign Plaintiffs plantation workers against Defendants U.S. multinational corporations, is set to begin on October 11, 2007. After final arguments, the case will be submitted to the jury for eliberation and decision. Several thousand more claims by foreign plantation workers with similar sterility complaints are pending before the same judge, Honorable Victoria G. Chaney of the Los Angeles Superior Court. Thousands more are awaiting their day in court in other countries.
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Success For New Agricultural Workers Union in Peru |
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After a long struggle with the sub-contracting company, SERAGRO SAC – which was set up by Dole to avoid direct labour relations on their plantations – the new agricultural workers union, SITAG, have won their battle for the payment of proper wage rates, which the company had refused to pay until now. The workers have been working on Sundays and outside of normal hours for some time without any overtime pay, as well as not receiving any extra payment for days of rest. SITAG have now negotiated an agreement where workers receive payment for weekend work and days of rest from October 15th, as well as receiving full back payment of the wages owed before this date.
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General Resolution of the Coordinating Body of Latin American Banana Workers Unions COLSIBA |
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August 2007
A general resolution was made at the 9th COLSIBA conference, held on August 3rd and 4th in Changuinola, Panama; the home of the SITRAIBANA union.
Banana workers unions of Latin America and active members of COLSIBA, the Coordinating Body of Latin American of Banana Workers Unions, were reunited for the ninth conference in its 14 years of existence at the city of Changuinola, Bocas del Toro, Panama, to continue the debate the challenges faced by workers in the banana plantations of Latin America.
Once more, we touched on issues that have accosted us for years. However, we can confirm that year after year our legitimacy has been proved as a representative of banana trade unions in our continent and as an interlocutor in dialogues between multinational companies, the governments and authorities of both producer and consumer countries and also the powerful supermarkets who are increasingly becoming a major influential factor in the banana production, industry and supply chain.
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FENACLE Youth Programme Funding Appeal |
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August 2007
Banana Link’s Ecuadorian trade union partner, FENACLE, is now in its fourth year of an important Youth Programme, working to support and strengthen youth participation and promote the construction of a national network of organised youth, who make up over 75% of the Ecuadorian banana workforce. The FENACLE Youth Committee have now succeeded in establishing an active network of over 700 young workers, with a wider network of up to 3,000. Activities, such as education and training workshops, the coordination of a National Youth Day and fundraising to construct local youth centres, are helping to raise awareness on youth issues and enable young workers to fully exercise their rights and improve their conditions of work and standards of living.
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Nicaragua: Tripartite Agreement for Eradication of Child Labour and Improving Rural Life & Education |
29th June 2007The agricultural workers union in Nicaragua, ATC, has signed a Tripartite agreement with the government (Ministry of Labour)and the organisations of agricultural employers with the objective of combining efforts for the eradication of child labour in agriculture. The agreement was signed on June 12 as part of the World Day Against Child Labour in Agriculture. Click here to read more. |
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Ecuadorian Young Activist at CIVICUS Youth Assembly |
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May 2007
In May 2007 a young delegate, Tania Auxiliara Mieles, represented our Ecuadorian trade union partner FENACLE at the CIVICUS Youth and World Assemblies, held in Glasgow. The CIVICUS - World Alliance for Citizen Participation - Youth Assembly was the first of its kind and was attended by 150 young delegates, representing civil society organisations from all over the world. The event was a chance for young people to share experiences and participate in educational workshops on leadership, citizenship, poverty reduction, accountability and globalisation.
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Former Banana Workers March Again to Managua; Los Angeles Court Case Goes Forward |
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1st June 2007
Two hundred banana plantation workers from the northwestern region of Nicaragua, sick from pesticide exposure, are again marching to Managua asking the government to support their fight to get compensation from foreign companies. The demonstrators are mostly elderly workers with precarious health due to their contact with the pesticide Nemagon. They began their march on Sunday 20th May in Chichigalpa, 120km from Managua, and advanced toward the capital, arriving on the 30th.
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Decent Housing Programme – ICTU and COLSIBA Solidarity |
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16th May 2007 Thanks to dedicated work by Brendan Archbold, who has just retired as national officer of MANDATE retail workers union in Dublin, Irish trade unions have been raising funds all year for decent housing for trade union activists in Ecuador, Costa Rica and Nicaragua. The project, proposed by the regional banana workers union coordinating body COLSIBA, has already raised enough funds for 9 houses for women and men who have dedicated their lives to union work in countries where it is far from easy being a trade union organiser.
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Life in Honduras' Banana Republic |
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18th April 07
Read about life in Honduras' banana republic, where 12 hour shifts are the norm. Article and interviews by Damian McCarney. |
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Bulletin |
Banana Trade News Bulletin
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The new issue of Banana Trade News Bulletin provides a comprehensive guide to the latest developments in the international banana trade.
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