Yearly Archives: 2013

It has only been six weeks since the collapse of the Rana Plaza in Bangladesh, and workers in our region have faced another disastrous event. On Monday June 3, a fire in a poultry processing factory in the north eastern Chinese province of Jilin killed over 120 workers. The reason […]

While Turkey is touted as one of the economic successes of the region, the reality is that inequality has also grown and workers continue to face constant repression, see here, here and here. These social factors are some of the reasons that a small protest over a city park developed […]

Garment workers in the region continue to mobilise for safer workplaces and a living wage. In Cambodia earlier this week, thousands of workers took to the street to protest against continuing low wages and tough working conditions at a Nike sub-contractor. They were also protesting the arrest of some of […]

In a union busting dispute that has been going on since 2001, the Toyota Motors Philippine Corporation in late May agreed to drop all criminal charges against members of the Toyota Motors Philippine Corporation Workers Association members. These false accusations are part of the company’s long and bitter fight against […]

As reported recently, the struggle for union recognition by the workers at the Maruti Suzuki factory in India is very intense. During this week, following a rally to protest against police repression, the workers and their supporters have called for a Justice Convention for June 11. To read up to […]

Since 2006, Commodore Frank Bainimarama has headed a military dictatorship that has stripped workers of their wages and conditions, free speech has been stifled, and the country’s Constitution and Bill of Rights has been abrogated. Workers have fought back against such policies under the threat of arrest, but have not […]

For 37 years 3CR Community Radio in Melbourne, Australia has brought you union, worker, indigenous, women’s, ethnic, environmental, music and other community programs that are not heard elsewhere. As a community radio station, 3CR Radio funding comes from its listeners. Every year, a Radiothon is held to raise funds for […]

The Australian Government has passed new legislation excluding asylum seekers, who arrive by boat to Australia, from ever seeking refugee protection on the Australian mainland. This legislation marks a new level of punitive sanctions against people whose only crime is to escape persecution and misery. Many asylum seekers are now […]

In another example that brings into question the value of international certification for good corporate behaviour by global companies, a chorus of protests greeted the awarding of a Sustainability Certification to the new Samsung Smartphone. Samsung is not only a notoriously anti-worker and anti-union company, but there are also ongoing […]

As reported last week, a mine tunnel collapsed and killed 28 workers at the giant Freeport McMoran mine in West Papua. Since then the union representing 18,000 of the 24,000 mine workforce has said that none of its members will resume work till the investigation of the mine collapse is […]