manufacturing and materials
News and articles about work, policy and workers' struggles in manufacturing, research and development, mining and materials around the world.
The Good and Bad Old Days - The Whinger
The following notes look at various developments in employment, unemployment, and industrial struggles, mainly in the UK, through the period of the sixties, and up to the mid-seventies.
These notes are not revolutionary, they don't even claim to be radical,... I_just nicked them and adapted them from an old seventies cyclopedia I found in a charity shop!. But they do tell a story, and they illustrate a big process of change at a critical turning point.
From; The Whinger - Irregular journal of hysterical madterialism; No. 6, Oct 2007.
Organized Labor versus "The Revolt Against Work" - John Zerzan
Article examining the role of unions in the exploitation of workers, focussing in particular on the US car manufacturing industry from the 1930s to 1970s.
Serious commentators on the labor upheavals of the Depression years seem to agree that disturbances of all kinds, including the wave of sit-down strikes of 1936 and 1937, were caused by the 'speed-up' above all.
Vietnam: Over 10,000 Nike workers walk out
Workers at the Tae Kwang Vina plant, 19 miles northeast of Ho Chi Minh City are demanding higher salaries and increased cost of living allowances.
With the rapid rise of inflation, now at 9.5%, the cost of living in Vietnam has risen sharply, with prices being 10% higher than they were a year ago. The average monthly wage at the plant is $62.
"Given the fact that inflation is so high now, it is hard to say they are being too demanding," said Kieu Minh Sinh, an official with Dong Nai Provincial Trade Union.
Mexico: Garment workers vote in the independent union, but still face uncertain future
![The FAT-affiliated [i]19 de Septiembre[/i] union won the workers' vote](http://libcom.org./files/imagecache/teaser/images/news/gruponavarra2.jpg "The FAT-affiliated [i]19 de Septiembre[/i] union won the workers' vote")
Workers vote for representation by the leftist FAT (Frente Auténtico de Trabajo) union in the Grupo Navarra garment factory in Tehuacán, Puebla, Mexico, but doubts remain over the effectiveness of the organisation and the status of 45 fired workers.
The elections follow a long campaign of letter-writing and lobbying by various international anti-globalisation non-governmental organisations in conjunction with the FAT.
Iran: Lightning strike at Haft-Tapeh Sugar Factory
Haft-Tapeh workers went on a shift strike following another arrest of a workers’ representative
Another workers’ representative of Haft Tapeh Sugar Factory, Mohammad Heydari Mehr was arrested by security forces on November 7, 2007 after being asked to refer to intelligence and security offices in the city of Shoush. Ghorban Alipour, another representative of Haft Tapeh Sugar Factory workers was arrested at his residence and taken away by security forces on November 5, 2007.
Iran: The struggle of the Haft-Tapeh workers
Workers at Iran's Haft Tapeh sugar factory have been engaged in a struggle since they first went on strike in October. The state responded with repression, arresting organizers, and the workers have been engaged in action in response.
Here is the statement from the Workers Action Committee following the initial strike.
Haft Tapeh Sugar Cane workers in southern Iran go on strike
Class struggle in the automotive industry: Will it step on the gas? - The preface
Preface to the bulletin “Class Struggle In The Automotive Industry: Will It Step On The Gas?” published by Kolektivne proti kapitalu (Collectively Against Capital, KPK) in June 2007
Introduction
Mexico: 50 workers lose their jobs in garment factory due to union organising drive
Over 50 employees of a garment factory in Tehaucán, Puebla have been sacked for their affiliation with rival trade unions and non-governmental organisations.
The workers had been organising against the interference of the Puebla state government by way of the FROC-CROC union’s presence in the Grupo Navarra factory, which makes clothes for Abercombie & Fitch, Gap, Levi and Calvin Klein, amongst others. FROC-CROC is affiliated to the PRI (Partido Revolucionario Institutional) political party, which runs the state government.
Strike wave sweeps Finland
Finland is experiencing its worst outbreak of industrial unrest for a generation after relations between the right-leaning government coalition and powerful trade unions collapsed over wage negotiations.
The Financial Times reports:
Strikes have either broken out or are threatened in industries spanning the economy, affecting some 40,000 workers in core areas including shipping, forestry, postal services and steel.
In the most serious development, 12,800 nurses have decided to resign en masse next month if their demands for a 25 per cent wage increase over the next two years are not met.
Egypt labour unrest: late October updates
A short update on labour struggles in Egypt in late October.
Egypt’s workers’ unrest is continuing unabated. According to the Egyptian Workers and Trade Union Watch (EWTUW) there have been a total of 580 industrial actions in the period January- September. Almost every month sees an increase in workers’ actions: from around 20 in early 2007 to the peak of 100 and 94 actions in August and September respectively.
