Yearly Archives: 2017

Sri Lankan tea plantation workers receive some of the lowest wages of any workers in the world, for hard labour in hazardous conditions. Last week workers at the Hairpark Estate in Hunnasgiriya began a protest against their estate being deliberately run down by the government owned Sri Lanka State Plantation […]

The garment sector in Bangladesh is characterised by low wages and terrible working conditions where labour activism is routinely suppressed. In the first couple of months of this year, a new wave of repression saw over 30 garment labour activists either arrested or detained and over a 1,000 workers dismissed. […]

The industrial actions and strikes that began last year in the telecommunication sector in Sri Lanka are continuing despite grave attempts by government forces to intimidate and undermine the workers will. The issues are ones that are familiar to workers all around the world, namely the use of contract labour, […]

In an incident that has recently been publicised, in early January, thousands of construction workers building a large Samsung's production factory in Vietnam's northern Thai Nguyen province clashed with security guards and police. These clashes resulted in 13 people been injured, with four critically. The clash was sparked by a […]

The lockout of 65 workers in the regional Victorian town of Echuca by the global dairy company Parmalat is now in its 7th week. The dispute is around a new contract and the company’s intentions to cut wages and conditions. Attacks like this on workers in Australia are becoming more […]

In commemoration of 100 years since the Russian Revolution that was sparked by International Women’s Day, for this year’s IWD Rally in Melbourne Australia, we’re raising the demand Peace, Bread and Land!  Additionally, Victoria Trades Hall is organising its annual Women’s Rights At Work Festival.  For details of WRAW Fest, […]

Once again Iranian labour activists are facing the repressive actions of the Iranian government as it tries to contain workers’ anger. This month, an appeal for a retrial of Esmail Abdi, a prominent teacher activist, was dismissed by the Supreme Court. Esmail is serving a 6 year sentence for organising […]

In a surprising and unexpected move, Somyot Prueksakasemsuk’s jail sentence was reduced by three years this week. While Thailand’s Supreme Court once again found Somyot guilty of Lese Majeste, it handed out a sentence of 7 years, which is in contrast to a lower court’s sentence of 10 years. Given […]

The arrest of Lee Jae-yong, Samsung Electronics’ Vice Chairman, on bribery charges is a small victory for the workers movement in South Korea. His arrest is connected to the political influence peddling scandal that, amid unprecedented mass protests, has forced the South Korean president Park Geun-hye to step aside. At […]

This week, the Australian industrial commission handed down a decision that will cut penalty rates for thousands of workers who work on a Sunday. The decision targeted workers in the hospitality, retail and fast food sectors, who are already some of the most exploited and lowest paid workers in Australia. […]