Owen Tudor's Archive

Owen Tudor

I’ve been the Head of the TUC’s European Union and International Relations Department since 2003 and have worked at the TUC since 1984. I’ve been a member of the Health and Safety Commission, the Civil Justice Council, the Social Security Advisory Committee and the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council and now I’m on the Wilton Park Advisory Council. I’m particularly interested in the trade union movements of Australia, Iran and Iraq, the Middle East and the USA, and I’m interested in migration, trade, and building trade union capacity. I’m the Secretary of TUC Aid, the TUC’s charitable union development arm and on the Robin Hood Tax campaign steering committee.

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http://www.tuc.org.uk/international

Owen Tudor
Austerity in Greece strips workers of their rights

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Teachers rally in Athens. Photo: OLME

Last week, Greek teachers found out that their services were essential. No news there, of course – as the old poster had it “if you can read this, thank a teacher!” But the language of austerity is becoming more like George Orwell’s “newspeak” by the day. The Greek authorities defined teaching as an “essential service” in order to ban a one-day strike on Friday by the Greek Federation of Secondary Education State School Teachers (OLME).

The Greek Government has invoked these powers already earlier this year to ban a strike by dock workers. International human rights laws and the ILO do allow governments to ban strikes in essential services, but the definition of what’s essential is very narrow – usually only relating to certain functions protecting national security, public safety, public health or morals.

And the Greek Government is increasingly in the dock over taking away people’s fundamental human rights, because it’s the only way to ram through their austerity measures (and, according to one press report, they even get brownie points from ‘the markets’ for taking away workers’ rights.) They’ve been condemned by international union organisations, Amnesty International, and the European Committee of Social Rights, part of the Council of Europe.

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Posted on May 19th, 2013 by Owen Tudor filed under: Global solidarity
Owen Tudor
Persuade Gap & Debenhams to sign up for factory safety

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We’ve reported elsewhere about the 34 major companies that have already signed the global union Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, in the aftermath of the horrific Rana Plaza disaster. And we’re urging people to help the families of the victims with our TUC Aid Dhaka Disaster Appeal.

But this weekend, we’re also asking you to persuade two other companies to sign up to the Accord and help ensure there are no further atrocities: Debenhams and Gap. Both are involved in discussions with IndustriALL and UNI Global – the worldwide textile and retail worker unions about signing the Accord. We think some public pressure could make the difference and get them to put their words into action.

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Posted on May 17th, 2013 by Owen Tudor filed under: Global solidarity
Owen Tudor
Update: Thai employers delay legal case against rights activist

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I blogged in April about the case of Andy Hall, a British labour rights activist who is being sued for criminal defamation by the Natural Fruit Company of Thailand over a report he helped Finnwatch (who, strangely, the company is not suing) to write, revealing serious human rights abuses in the company’s pineapple operation, including child labour. The penalties, if he is convicted, would be draconian – a huge fine and a possible prison sentence. But, as is so common in cases where employers or governments use legal threats to silence legitimate criticism, the case keeps being postponed because the employer has failed to produce its evidence, still less provide a statement of their case to Andy and his lawyers so that they can prepare their defence. The latest delay is until 8 July!

If you find this attempt to silence criticism as outrageous as I do, please join nearly 9,000 trade unionists worldwide and take a moment to let the Thai employers and authorities know that we don’t like the way Thailand’s courts are being abused by a bad employer. We’re seeking publicity for Andy’s case, and are pressing the UK Government to raise the issue formally with the Thai Government, as well as working with global unions and the ILO.

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Posted on May 7th, 2013 by Owen Tudor filed under: Global solidarity
Owen Tudor
Take action today over Dhaka deaths: tell multinational companies to sign up!

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IndustriALL General Secretary Jyrki Raina marchers calling for justice for workers killed in the Dhaka tragedy. Photo IndustriALL

I blogged last week about what you can do to help Bangladeshi workers prevent more tragedies like the Dhaka factory collapse that has now claimed over 610 lives and the Tazreen factory fire which claimed 112 in November. Now global e-petition machine Avaaz has joined the union campaign, encouraging its millions of supporters globally to pressurise the multinational brands to sign the factory safety agreement that global union federation IndustriALL has proposed.

Please sign that petition and encourage as many of your friends, family and workmates to do so. The deadline set by IndustriALL is 15 May, so there are only a few days left for the multinationals who have profited out of low wages to do the right thing (you can also make a donation to IndustriALL’s fund for the humanitarian effort in Savar – the area around the Rana Plaza factory).

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Posted on May 6th, 2013 by Owen Tudor filed under: Global solidarity
Owen Tudor
Do unions really want job-destroying wage rises in Bangladesh?

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Garment workers in a Bangladesh clothing factory. Photo: Jankie

In the aftermath of the death toll in Bangladesh’s worst ever factory disaster last week, much has been written (including by us!) about what needs to be done to prevent further tragedies. Most attention has focused on what the Bangladesh government and multinational clothing companies should do, with a fair amount of blame being mis-directed (more on that in another blog) at cash-strapped, bargain-hunting western consumers.

One element of the online debate has been about what sort of terms and conditions of employment are appropriate for workers in Bangladesh’s Ready Made Garment (RMG) sector. The usual canard about not pricing them out of their jobs has been raised, so I thought I should address that specifically, because it’s being used to attack unions’ and campaigners’ attempts to demand better wages and safer workplaces.

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Posted on May 3rd, 2013 by Owen Tudor filed under: Global solidarity
Owen Tudor
Court case against Iraqi oil union leader: hunt the evidence…

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Hassan Juma’a, head of the Iraqi General Union of Oil Employees. Photographed in Iraq by David Bacon in 2005, for the photo documentary Oil for Freedom

Over a month ago, I wrote about the court case being taken against the leader of Iraqi’s oil workers at the South Oil Company (SOC). Hassan Juma’a was due to be tried for organising a strike, using a Saddam-era law. The charge itself is offensive, as the strike he is being accused of calling should be entirely legal. It is further evidence that Iraq is still way out of compliance with ILO labour standards.

But now the situation is getting farcical, with trial date after trial date coming and going. Originally scheduled for 20 March the case was initially postponed to 7 April and then 15 April. Then the trial was postponed again to 2 May and yesterday it was postponed again until 19 May. Meanwhile, pressure from trade union movements around the world is growing.

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Posted on May 3rd, 2013 by Owen Tudor filed under: Global solidarity
Owen Tudor
What can we do about the deaths in Dhaka?

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People search for survivors after the Rana Plaza building disaster in Bangladesh. Photo: Qamrul Anam Coordinator, Industriall IBC

Rosa blogged last week about how the Dhaka textile factory collapse demonstrated the need for strong, independent unions in Bangladesh. Since then, there have been thousands of words printed and broadcast about the disaster and what caused it. A lot of the comments have been more or less anguished concerns that there is nothing we can do about the situation – or, indeed, attempts to blame heartless western bargain-hunters for the 382 deaths – so far – in Dhaka.

In fact, there’s a lot that we can do about what’s happened in Dhaka, even though the real action will be taken – is being taken, despite police brutality - by workers in Bangladesh, just as it was the action of workers in Britain and the USA that led to higher living standards and safer workplaces in our own countries.

You could protest about the companies in Britain and the USA who ultimately dictate the working conditions throughout their global supply chains and profit from them. You can back the call by unions in Bangladesh – textile unions that are part of the Global Union Federation IndustriALL - for stronger labour laws and freedom for trade unions. And, longer term, you can play your part in building union power around the world, persuading fellow workers and thus securing support from the politicians who seek their votes for Decent Work to become the norm rather than a dream.

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Posted on April 30th, 2013 by Owen Tudor filed under: Global solidarity