Rock Cohen/CC-BY-2.0

By Erik Larsson
STOCKHOLM, Apr 3 2019 (IPS)

It’s been called the most important election in decades. The coming elections to the European Parliament will take place in May, and some believe it will be a springboard for the parties on the far right. But what would the consequences of that be for the labour markets in the European Union’s member states?

EU. “They’re like those bad football fans. They’ll try to demonstrate their power and start chanting slogans any time a decision needs to be made,” says Swedish Social Democrat Marita Ulvskog.

She has served as vice chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Employment and Social Affairs for five years, and has led the Social Democrats in the parliament for ten.

With the experiences from those years under her belt, she has gotten a lot of insight in how the far-right in Europe reasons on issues relating to the labour market.

At the moment, 7 out of 52 delegates in the committee belong to parties that are considered to be positioned on the far right. Among them are neo-Nazi Golden Dawn from Greece, right-wing populist National Rally and Lega Nord from France and Italy, and fascist Jobbik from Hungary.

The far-right parties are often in favour of strong unemployment benefit policies and certain kinds of social welfare reforms.

In Poland, national-conservative government party Law and Justice recently increased child support. In Hungary, Victor Orbán’s government wants to introduce a tax break for women with four or more children, in an effort to encourage women to give birth to more “Hungarian” children.

“They often want to appear to be progressive in matters regarding trade union rights. Meanwhile, they vote very differently to us when it comes to issues concerning women’s rights in the labour market,” says Marita Ulvskog.

In the last few years, several nationalist trade unions have emerged throughout Europe.

In the south of Germany, a few far-right trade unions came together under the name “Patriotic Unions”, which has close ties to right-wing populist party Alternative for Germany.

Their foothold is strongest within the auto industry. IG Metall has actively tried to counter their organisation and so far, the right-wing unions have not been very successful.

Swedish author and commentator Lars Jederlund has been following European politics since the 1990’s and recently released the book Ödesvalet(The Fateful Election), about right-wing parties in Europe.

He explains that it’s a motley crew of parties, with many different outsets. Some are fascists, others religious right-wing fundamentalists or right-wing populists. He places the Swedish Democrats in the group “Ethnocentric right-wing parties”, together with Poland’s Law and Justice and the Danish People’s Party.

Their differences aside, there are some unifying factors.

“They oppose immigration and the EU,” says Lars Jederlund.

If the far right manages to strengthen its position after the election, the number of members of parliament with critical views on issues like free trade agreements will increase, which could affect the labour market.

These parties are also sceptical of the Union’s initiatives to reduce social injustice.

The Swedish Democrats strongly oppose the European Pillar of Social Rights, because the party worry that it will lead to regulations that will affect the Swedish model.

Already today, seven EU member states are led by parties on the far right; Poland, Hungary, Austria, Italy, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Bulgaria. Most polls indicate that the right-wing parties will increase their number of seats after the election, while the Social Democrats of Europe are predicted to make a weak election.

Marita Ulvskog explains that the reason for this development is that the European Social Democrats haven’t been as good as these parties at storytelling.

“This, of course, is because we can’t trick people. We have to stick to the truth and they don’t.”

Franziska Schröter, from the German political think tank Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, which has close ties to the German Social Democrats, works with analysing the growing far-right movement.
She says that these political parties put a lot of effort into spreading their message online.

“Here, Alternative for Germany has about 20 employees working with social media to spread the messages of its parliamentarians. The Social Democrats have two.”

“That’s a massive gap. You could say that the established parties are focusing on doing their job and advancing politics while Alternative for Germany are focusing on communication.”

Theres another factor too. Followers of the far right are much more active on social media, and they attack their opponents on the internet.

“They are passionate and they hate,” she says.

“Hate is a much easier feeling to foster than love. To affect others by spreading fear is very effective.”

*Arbetet Global has tried to reach the Swedish Democrats and Golden Dawn for comments.

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Pakistani migrant workers build a skyscraper in Dubai. Credit: S. Irfan Ahmed/IPS

By Ivar Andersen and Erik Larsson
STOCKHOLM, Nov 28 2018 (IPS)

A fight for the position of Secretary-General divides the ITUC ahead of the World Congress in December. Where some see a choice between diplomacy and activism, others say it’s a question of internal democracy.

Two candidates are nominated for the position as ITUC’s Secretary-General.

The imcumbent, Australia’s Sharan Burrow, has a professional background as a teacher and has led the organisation for eight years.

Her challenger, Susanna Camusso, began her trade union career by organising Italian metal workers and subsequently took over as president of the conflict-prone Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL).

The Nordic unions say the choice will shape the way the ITUC operates in the future.

While Susanna Camusso is considered a more activism-focused alternative, Sharan Burrow is viewed as a stronger candidate when it comes to international diplomacy.

“We want a voice that represents the world’s workers at G20, climate summits and other major gatherings,” says Oscar Ernerot at the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO).

Unions in several other influential nations also want Sharan Burrow to continue. She is backed up by confederations in, among others, the United States, Great Britain, Turkey, Kenya, Egypt, Congo and the Netherlands.

It’s not the first time Sharan Burrow has had to fight for her position.

During ITUC’ last World Congress, in Berlin in 2014, the African nation Benin suggested she be replaced by US candidate Jim Baker. However, securing 87 per cent of the vote, Burrow ended up showing that she had strong support.

Unions from several significant countries, including Germany, Belgium, Spain, Algeria, Israel, Japan and Brazil, support Susanna Camusso.

At the same time, the support for her is not as solid as it may seem.

For example, the powerful German confederation DGB supports Susanna Camusso, but behind the scenes, German trade union Verdi has campaigned for Sharan Burrow.

Sharan Burrow’s leadership style became a contested issue at the World Congress four years ago. Employees at ITUC’ Brussels headquarters spoke of a tough leadership style and being afraid to go to work.

“I know that some are upset, especially many men… I think I upset people because I make significant changes and do it quickly,” she responded to the criticism.

Leading into the upcoming World Congress, her leadership is questioned once again. One German union source says that the election has little to do with union strategy, and that it is rather a question about internal politics.

“There has been criticism that decisions made in international contexts, especially within the ILO, have not been democratically anchored”, the source says.

“Susanna stands for returning power to the various national confederations of the global movement. Sharan Burrow runs her own race.”

Anonymous sources also present other arguments.

Susanna Camusso is considered to have a weak command of the English language.

Several national confederations are concerned it may make it difficult to convey ITUC’ point of view during G20 meetings and other international gatherings. Camusso is rumoured to have begun an intensive course to improve her English and increase her eligibility.

The fact that she is as old as Burrow is also considered a disadvantage – both women have passed 60 years of age. Few believe that a candidate of that age can serve for longer than the upcoming term.

The fact that ITUC has failed to find a younger challenger is seen as a weakness. And Sharan Burrow is therefore considered a safer choice, as she already has an established contact with several world leaders.

The election of a new Secretary-General is a delicate matter. Several union representatives who Arbetet Global has contacted do not want to discuss their positions publicly. And the ITUC, which calls for greater transparency by large companies and governments, has closed ranks.

While the battle for the position of Secretary-General intensifies, there is also an awareness that cooperation will be required once the congress is over.

Aggressive rhetoric during the build-up to the election is likely to have consequences, regardless of who is chosen to lead ITUC for the next four years.

“It’s an unusual situation. Last time, we knew who would win before the Congress. But this election divides the movement and it’s possible the issue will not be resolved before the Copenhagen Congress,” says a source.

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Prime Minister of Sweden Stefan Löfven. Credit: ILO

By Erik Larsson
STOCKHOLM, May 22 2018 (IPS)

There’s not one answer, no single solution, Stefan Löfven replies to a question about what the most important focus for the global labour market was.

– But it must work much better than what it does today. It must be more inclusive and safer.

The Swedish Prime Minister adds that it is important that more women gain employment and that youth unemployment is reduced, and that the world’s nations create better systems for primary and further education.

Last week, he was paired with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who was appointed the second chairperson.

The change followed a scandal, after Stefan Löfven’s previous co-chair Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, the President of Mauritius, was caught buying luxury shoes and jewels with a charity organisation’s credit card.

The revelation didn’t only lead to her forced resignation as president in March, but also to her standing down from ILO’s Global Commission on the Future of Work, which was then led by the Swedish Prime Minister alone for a few months.

When Stefan Löfven met his new partner, the South African President, at ILO’s Geneva headquarters this month, it was a reunion of sorts.

Like Löfven, Cyril Ramaphosa has a union background and has met the former Swedish chairman of the Swedish union IF Metall several times in his previous role as leader of the South African National union of Miner Workers.

Thus, it is two former union leaders that will lead work on a plan on how to shape the world’s labour market.

The big question is whether the world’s employers – who often dislike regulation – will have stronger ammunition against their recommendations.

Stefan Löfven dismisses such speculations.

– First of all, Ramaphosa has represented both sides. He has been a union leader, but also business leader. Secondly, this is a broad commission. The commissioners have a broad range of backgrounds and employers are also represented. So, it will be the commission as a whole that will stand behind the report, Stefan Löfven tells Arbetet Global in an interview, conducted by telephone.

ILO’s annual conference begins in Geneva on 28 May.

There, the world’s nations, unions and employer organisations will meet to discuss labour market issues. There won’t be any global legislation, but the UN agency will develop conventions, ”lists of shame” and other soft tools to shape the labour market.

One topic listed for discussion this year, is what needs to be done to reduce violence against women and men at work.
An important Swedish topic is also on the agenda.

One of Stefan Löfven’s largest international initiatives is his proposed ”Global Deal” to strengthen a social dialogue between nations, unions and businesses.

The first ILO Conference of the year will discuss whether Global Deal will be included in an official report that would make it an UN tool. It would be a way to ensure the initiative would live on beyond the Swedish Prime Minister’s tenure.

But it has been questioned. Many employers don’t want to see further regulations of a global labour market.

The PM says it’s hard to predict whether Global Deal can become a UN tool.

– I can’t assess the chances of that happening, but ILO is built on tripartite cooperation and it would be strange if ILO could not express that this is an important issue, he says.

– This is not arm wrestling to determine a zero-sum game. It’s about creating good conditions for everyone. If employees enjoy good conditions, businesses profit from productivity gains and society benefits in turn.

The entire UN – of which ILO is part – has been affected by a reduced US contribution. Everyone has had to cut costs. The question is how it will affect the design of a global labour market.

– That’s really difficult to answer as I don’t know what cuts will be required by the ILO.

Of course, it’s unfortunate to have to cut funding for multi-lateral agencies at a time the globalisation is accelerating.
The labour movement is naturally interested in finding regulations of a global labour market. It’s also not unexpected that businesses are opposed to regulations.

However, a growing question is to what extent ILO is able to affect the labour market in the face of growing nationalism.

– Despite elements of nationalism, the economy works on a global level.

This year’s meeting in Geneva can be considered a warm-up ahead of ILO 100-year anniversary next year, which will bring many leaders from across the world.

The goal is to complete the Future Report by then, but many considerations need to be made before then.

The Indian labour market, where many work in agriculture, is vastly different to the Swedish, and digitalisation also brings significant changes.

– We have a final meeting in November, to discuss the final report, says Stefan Löfven.

A large portion of ILO’s work is about trying to strengthen democracy and employee workplace rights.

At the same time, the trend today is the reverse. In 70 countries, democracy deteriorated last year, according to a report by think tank Freedom House.

The freedom of the press is also under threat in several countries, and dictatorships use terminology such as “fake news” to defend themselves against audits.

– There is always an element of that. There’s always those going in a different direction, but it’s our responsibility to work for democracy.

Translation: Liselotte Geary

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Excerpt:

Credit: Karlos Zurutuza/IPS

By Erik Larsson
STOCKHOLM, Oct 30 2017 (IPS)

In August last year armed forces from both sides pushed forward into the desert and into the no-go buffer zone that the UN had established.

One hundred meters from each other, the sides halted. Within eye sight.

On one side Morrocan military. On the other the Western Saharian liberation army Polisario. There were real concerns that the ceasefire of 1991 would now be broken.

The escalation of conflict started in 2016 when UN-led negotiations stalled.

Today though a change may be developing.

In August the UN appointed the former German president Horst Köhler as the new UN Personal Envoy for Western Sahara. The new General Secretary of the UN Antonio Guterres had prioritized finding a solution to the conflict. A policy publicized during the spring by the Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallström and that led to a UN resolution in April to resume negotiations.

Within the labor movements in Sweden and many other countries, there is pressure to recognize Western Sahara as a country. The Social Democratic government in Sweden stated last year that this wasn’t going to happen as the territory did not meet certain legal requirements of international law.
On the fourth of October in the General Assembly at the UN several delegates spoke out in favor of a referendum on the independence of Western Sahara.

The response from Morocco though was the same as on many previous occasions: “That issue has been dead and buried for a long time” said Morocco’s ambassador to the UN, according to several media sources.

The Western Sahara issue is very sensitive. Within the labor movements in Sweden and many other countries, there is pressure to recognize Western Sahara as a country. The Social Democratic government in Sweden stated last year that this wasn’t going to happen as the territory did not meet certain legal requirements of international law.

France, in support of its former colony Morocco, is a strong opponent to West Saharian independence. The fight against terrorism also plays in as many Western countries do not want to offend Morocco and want to keep an important ally.

At the same time, the suffering continues. The conflict has meant that many people have fled to neighboring Algeria. It is estimated that around 160 000 people now live in remote refugee camps in the desert that were built in the middle of the 1970’s.

The humanitarian situation is difficult. Water is scarce and incoming aid is absolutely vital for survival.

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Excerpt:

Stefan Löfven, Prime Minister of Sweden, addresses high-level summit on large movements of refugees and migrants. Credit: UN Photo/JC McIlwaine

By Erik Larsson
PHNOM PENH, Sep 5 2017 (IPS)

Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven made a special effort to reach this global agreement between countries, unions and businesses. The bearing idea is that by initiating dialogue in society, salaries can be raised, business profits improved and political stability strengthened.

Cambodia is one of sixteen countries that has signed the agreement. At this moment though, Cambodia is in reverse mode. Several experts have warned that Cambodia is turning into a dictatorship.

”You can not be part of the Global Deal if you violate all basic labour rights”, says Oscar Ernerot of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation LO, who still does not want Cambodia excluded from this international initiative.

Over the weekend, over one hundred policemen were involved in arresting the prominent member of the opposition Kem Sokha. He is being accused of treason and the authorities claim that he has planned to overthrow the government of Hun Sen, which has been in power for over 30 years.

There is a real risk for the entire Global Deal initiative to fall apart if the participating countries are in violation of the most basic labor rights. Oscar Ernerot - Swedish Trade Union Confederation LO
These charges of treason are refuted by the opposition, who claim that the government is setting the scene to stage a victory in the coming elections in July 2018.  The latest arrest seems to be part of a conscious drive to strike at the growing voices of discontent.

Over a period of a few weeks, about 30 radio stations considered to favour the opposition have been closed. Arbetet Global recently wrote about the outspoken newspaper The Cambodia Daily that all of sudden was ordered to pay a hefty tax.

Developments have caused much worry and the European Union warns of the waning democratic process in the country. Human rights defenders like Amnesty claim that the authorities are utilizing the judicial system to punish and silence political critics.

This curtailing of freedoms of independent unions and human rights organisations is having effect.

Oscar Ernerot at Swedish LO iterates that those who join the Global Deal, do so with the stated intention of protecting human rights and defending labor rights as well as promoting a societal dialogue.

Despite the change for the worse, he doesn’t feel Cambodia should be disqualified from participation.

”No, I don’t think so. We need to have a long term perspective. If they were thrown out of the Global Deal, the possibility to influence their development would be even less. Our position is that the Swedish government has to put more pressure on the Cambodian government and pose tough questions on why they are breaking their own promises.

According to Oscar Ernerot, there is though a real risk for the entire Global Deal initiative to fall apart if the participating countries are in violation of the most basic labor rights.

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Excerpt:

By Erik Larsson
PHNOM PENH, Aug 29 2017 (IPS)

You have to pay six million dollars in tax! That was the message given to the Cambodian Daily the same week that Prime Minister Hun Sen publicly attacked the newspaper.

In a speech in a park in the capital city Phnom Penh, the Prime Minister denounced the founder of the Cambodian Daily who is an American journalist. Hun Sen accused him of being a thief and that he should pack his bags and leave if the newspaper was unable to pay the tax before the 4th of September, which at the time was less than two weeks away.

Last week the Department of Finance announced that two other independent media outlets, Radio Free Asia and Voice of America, similarly would be required to pay added taxes.

The English language Cambodian Daily is one of few media in Cambodia that raises sensitive political issues and deals with the extensive corruption in the country.

In the past the English language newspapers have been left alone by the government, but the sudden demand for tax payments directed at the Cambodian Daily indicate that the situation has changed.

The government has also acted against several organisations that work with human rights issues in the country.

On Wednesday last week the Foreign Minister of Cambodia unexpectedly decreed that all foreign nationals working for the US organisation the National Democratic Institute were to leave the country within one week.

The US aid organisation aims to strengthen democratic institutions all over the world, acting in about 70 different countries. The Cambodian authorities accuse the National Democratic Institute of acting illegally in the country as they were not registered.

”What we are most concerned about is the risk that the government is planning to follow China’s lead and introduce an NGO law” according to Erik Andersson of the Swedish union IF Metall.

In his role as International Secretary at IF Metall, Erik Andersson expresses his concern to Arbete Global, for the possible impact on the project for increased union engagement that is undertaken by IF Metall together with IndustriAll Global Union. Worries are that Swedish organisations too will be targeted.

” [A NGO-law] would mean that foreign financing of organisations would be forbidden, which could have negative repercussions on our work to support the independent unions in Cambodia.”

Cambodia ranks as one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and is on 156th place of 176 in the corruption index that Transparency international compile every year.
The timing of these tough measures directed at media and aid organisations, is explained by many experts as a response to the increasing political unrest in the country.

In June, local elections were held in Cambodia. The results were a clear indication that opposition to the government had increased and with upcoming national elections in July of next year, it has unsettled the incumbent regime.

During the spring, Arbetet Global reported on the introduction of legislation in Cambodia that has diminished the freedom of action for independent unions. On paper, the country is a democracy but it has only had one single person as leader over the past 30 years, the Prime Minister Hun Sen.

As the leader of the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), he took power when the party was put into government following the Vietnam invasion of 1979. That invasion removed the Khmer Rouge and their leader Pol Pot from power, which had been a period of terror with millions of Cambodians killed.

The CPP became a safeguard from a return of the Khmer Rouge. Over the years, their political power has grown into an intricate and corrupt system in which party officials and private business are in close connection.

Cambodia ranks as one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and is on 156th place of 176 in the corruption index that Transparency international compile every year.

Disapproval of the corrupt system is also part of the explanation for the increasing disapproval of the government as the elections draw nearer.

Translation: Ravi Dar

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Excerpt:

By Erik Larsson
STOCKHOLM, May 31 2017 (IPS)

Working fulltime in their own homes, putting their health at risk with the chemicals they use, to make the shoes sold in the West. Indian women endure poor working conditions and earn just over 40 dollars per month.

”These workers are always women. Often housed in small living areas together with their family. Their working day starts early in the morning and goes on late into the evening”, says Brinda Devi Kamaraj who is a coordinator for the Indian human rights organisation Cividep.

It’s usually the women’s job to sew details onto the upper part of each shoe. Their pay is one tenth of a dollar per shoe.

In global terms, the footwear industry manufactures around 24 billion shoes annually.

Many of the shoes sold in shops in Western Europe are made in Asia under questionable working conditions.

Manufacturing in India, even for the well-known brands of Ecco, Diechmann, Clarks and Eurosko, often sees parts of shoes produced in the workers home environment.

Arbetet Global meets Cividep representatives in Stockholm.  They are visiting Sweden to meet people from the footwear industry and trade unions.

”Women receive materials from go-betweens. In their own homes, they sit and sew on between 15 and 20 shoes per day”, says Brinda Devi Kamaraj who estimates that regular fulltime earnings are at just over 40 dollars per month.

Her responsibility is to keep in touch with the many homeworking women in the region around the city of Ambur in the South Indian state of Tamil Nada.

During the past few weeks though she has been travelling to several European countries together with Cividep’s General Secretary Gopinathan Kunhithayil Parakuni to inform of the working conditions of the shoemakers.

”Women receive materials from go-betweens. In their own homes, they sit and sew on between 15 and 20 shoes per day”, says Brinda Devi Kamaraj who estimates that regular fulltime earnings are at just over 40 dollars per month.
”Their situation has not been given the same attention as the workers in the textile industry, where companies have made certain improvements”, says Gopinathan Kunhithayil Parakuni.

By placing production inside people’s homes, the workers are not included in social insurance programs or workplace laws and regulation.

Gopinathan Kunhithayil Parakuni explains it also allows retail prices to be kept at low levels. As well as making child labour more common as the young children help their mothers to sew.

He estimates that in their region in South India there are around 10,000 homeworkers and in the whole of India the total is in the hundreds of thousands.

The full extent of the putting-out system is hard to assess. Companies are unwilling to release information on whom is contracted, which makes tracking the system more difficult. Also, unions in the export industries have less clout.

”Employers do all they can to discourage labour unions. They fear strikes.

In other industry, like railways, and in the public sector and the financial sector, unions are quite strong. But in export industries the situation is very different.

Another issue of contention for Cividep and the footwear industry is the working condition in the tanneries where leather is produced. For example, treating and dyeing hides involves large amounts of chrome.

”In this production a lot of chemicals are used and often there is no protective wear”.

The frequent resulting consequences have been developments of serious allergies as well as both lung and skin diseases.

”These chemicals also flush out into the water system and that affects the people that live near the tanneries, says Gopinathan Kunhithayil Parakuni.

In 2014 pressure group Fair Action conducted an investigation into the footwear industry in Sweden.

Their report revealed that none of the four largest shoe retailers took measures to follow up on working conditions in the, often Asian, tanneries.

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Credit: Sarom Em

By Erik Larsson
PHNOM PENH, May 9 2017 (IPS)

H&M has made promises to raise wage levels and increase worker influence in the garment factories of Cambodia.  The validity of these supposed ambitions is being criticized. ”What have they actually achieved? Nothing!”, says Sajsa Beslik, sustainibility banker at Swedish Nordea.

At night, mosquitos make their ways through the crack of air between the corrugated metal roof and the aged plaster of the cement wall, untroubled  by a long row of steel doors.

Seng Chhun Leng, 26, opens the padlock on her street level 15 square meter room. Several mattresses line the floor. She sleeps here together with her younger brother and his fiancée. She recently moved out of a room that cost just over 50 dollars per month.

”This was cheaper, just over 40 dollars, so I chose it instead”

She lives in the Toul Sangke area, part of Cambodia’s sprawling capital city Phnom Penh. It’s late afternoon. A few hours before dusk.

Seng Chhun Leng has just come home from the Roo Hsing Garment factory where she has sewn seams on 1150 short pants for delivery to the Swedish fashion retailer H&M. She knows her exact numbers of production as she is paid on a fixed piece rate.

One month of work brings in an income of around 170 dollars which includes bonuses. Rent and electricity cost around 50 dollars. Food comes to double of that. She also needs to help her parents.

Money is tight.

The factory is a ten minute walk from the little windowless room. The long low-rise factory building is surrounded by a fence.

A road runs along the fence, where street vendors call attention to their small stalls stocked with vegetables, fish and meat on display.

Inside the fence, 3700 textile workers make clothes. Mainly for H&M but also for other Western fashion retailers.

Seng Chhun Leng has worked here for two years. Just a week before Arbetet Global’s visit, her contract was once again extended.

Credit: Sarom Em

Her situation is precarious. Right now, she knows her paychecks will come. But at the end of June she will once again have to hold her breath in nervous worry.

This same process happens every third month, forcing her to think the same anxious thoughts. Will her contract be extended? Will she keep her job and income?

Her factory, like many others in the garment manufacturing sector, has seen workplace pressures increase. There has been media attention to the phenomena of mass fainting. Employees that spontaneously lose consciousness while at their machines.

The reason? Overtime labor, malnutrition and dehydration are offered as explanations as employees do not want to waste their precious working hours, not even to visit to toilets. At her factory there has been an improvement as a new ventilation system was installed one year ago.

But a workmate of Seng Chhun Leng, who joins us, reveals that workers still faint. ”It happens perhaps once or twice a month”

 ***

”I responded by sending 5 gigabytes of porn and other spam. If they terrorize me again, I’ll strike back”.

Arbetet Global visits Ken Loo at the office of the trade organization Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia, Gmac.

Ken Loo is Secretary General and has sat himself at a gigantic conference table which looks like a battleship. The porn comment has its own background.

On the 3rd of January 2014 garment workers clashed with police and military as they demonstrated against harsh working conditions. Four people were killed and one person went ‘missing’.

Many were detained and beaten by the police. Unions and human rights organisations protested strongly. Mass emails followed, directed, among others, to Ken Loo who represents the employers. He struck back with porn.

”They are militant. And corrupt. There isn’t a single union activist who does not take bribes”. His perception of the unions is very negative.

Ken Loo, Gmac. Credit: Erik Larsson

It is true that corruption is widespread and Cambodia has it among the worst in the world. Transparency International rates the degree of corruption in different countries and ranks Cambodia as 156 out of 176.

The political system in particular is considered to be ”extremely corrupt” and bribes are commonplace even in courts and in judicial processes. Transparency International does not mention the unions much, but does focus on the private sector a lot, pointing to ubiquitous corruption there.

To do business in Cambodia, almost every business has to pay bribes.

”We have the best conditions”

When he again is asked about the harsh working conditions, he gets agitated and stretches his hand out.

”I’ll give you one million dollars if you can prove that conditions are worse here than in other countries”.

He leans forward to shake hands.

”You will get one million dollars”, he repeats, ”but if you fail, you would have to pay 10000 dollars to me.”

He continues by saying that everyone wants more pay.

”If you go to the boss and demand a raise of 5000 dollars, he would tell you to go to hell. It is the market that sets prices and salaries. I am not saying that the workers do not have a tough job. They do! But if the wages go up, the industry will move to Bangladesh or some other country.

***

Seamstress Noy Saran has just gotten a divorce. There isn’t much that is set and steady right now. Her home. Her job. Her salary. Her life.

For the past six years she has worked at the Hong WA Factory in central Phnom Penh.

Arbetet Global comes to the offices of the garment workers union, the Coalition of Cambodian Apparel Workers Democratic Unions  C.CAWDU, to meet workers from the textile factories. Noy Saran sits down.

”Yesterday I was sewing childrens pants for H&M”

Unlike many others, she has permanent employment. Even so, she is still insecure.

”It’s because of the divorce, but also because the terms of my contract are renegotiated every six months and even though my employment is permanent, my salary can still be lowered”.

Noy Saran is an exception. The usual term of employment among most of the textile workers seems to be temporary contracts though, renewable every three months. Piecework wages and short term contracts.

Many of them feel forced to work even when sick so they do not risk their contract renewals.

”I’d like you to write in your newspaper that we want to get rid of them” says Thorn Veasna who works at the H&M subcontractor Roo Hising Garment and is now seated in the union office.

These contracts are what the workers want to discuss. Other workers present agree with him. Short term contracts make life difficult.

Minimum wages have been raised several times in recent years.

Economists that choose to look only at aggregate growth figures for the Cambodian economy should be pleased. The annual growth rate is at 7-8%. The frequent sightings of city jeeps on the streets of Phnom Penh are testament to that. Haven’t things improved?

”That hardly makes a difference” the workers retort. Several of them point to the way wage increases lead to rents going up. Making ends meet is hard.

City jeeps do not drive on all the streets of the city. They’re not seen in the slums. They don’t drive past the shanty town buildings made of boards and tarps where people try to find a living sorting through litter and picking lotus roots.

Cambodia is one of Asia’s poorest countries and poverty functions as a huge weight pushing wages down.

***

She smiles at the camera as she measures the width of the throat of a shop dummy. The photos in H&M’s latest report on sustainability display workers with relaxed and open expressions. All graphs and diagrams are pointing in the right direction. Things are going well.

Arbetet Global reads that H&M have a target of offering ”fair jobs” and forming inclusive workplaces open to diversity.

Furthermore next year, of all the garment producing subcontractors, half will have some form of worker representation in management. Half of all subcontractors will also have introduced a Living Wage policy.

The H&M corporation promote and try to spread a system for social dialogue that in the last year has taken a considerable step forward, from the previous 132 subcontractors worldwide to last year’s 290.

In Cambodia, the Swedish fashion giant is participating in a project for improved working conditions at factories. Swedish labor union IF Metall is also involved.

It is a project perfectly aligned with the Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven’s vision of “Global Deal”.

Stefan Löfven usually presents it as a Win-Win-Win situation. Everybody would gain from it. In a way, it is the export of the Swedish model on a global scale. Interest has increased and spread. Cambodia is one of the countries and H&M one of the corporations through which it is to be realized.

In 24 factories a workplace dialogue process has been introduced. In 12 factories, collective bargaining on wages has been agreed on.

Workers from several factories can witness of improved ventilation systems over the past year.

Toum Nai Leng works as stock manager at H&M’s subcontractor Zhong Yin. He used to be a farmer but made the switch three years ago.

“I make about as much as I did before but the factory work is not as strenuous as farming”.

 ***

He is hungry and about to have his lunch break but still lifts up a pile of papers and waves them in the air. Back at the trade union C.CAWDU, legal expert Vong Vuthy says ”I just received these”.

The pile of papers concern a H&M subcontractor JSD-Textile.

In May 2014 workers protested against the poor conditions. The company replied, not with dialogue, but with mass firings. 128 employees were fired. Eventually the union brought the matter to the H&M corporation, but there was no reaction.

It has been a drawn out process. Of those that protested the working conditions and lost their jobs, there are still 75 that demand to take the process further and are demanding their jobs back.

The process is supposed to restart after this news story has gone to press.

H&M though write in an email that they no longer have business relations with that subcontractor. According to H&M, the relationship ended just after the turn of the year when the factory changed ownership.

It is very hard to gain insight into H&M’s business in Cambodia. Despite numerous and repeated requests, H&M will not permit Arbetet Global to make visits on site.

That refusal even includes the H&M factories that are part of the aid project for improved working conditions funded by Swedish tax money through the Swedish aid agency SIDA.

H&M’s unwillingness to make visible the conditions of everyday work at their subcontractors is corroborated by several journalists.

The Swedish fashion giant describes great improvement in their reports, but it is very hard to find out what happens behind the factory walls.

***

The bang was heard throughout the entire plant as a steam generator exploded.

Witnesses could describe that the container filled with boiling water was hurled a good one hundred meters away before impacting into the cafeteria.

One worker was killed at the Zhen Tai Garment factory, a subcontractor in Phnom Penh to the jeans company Levis.

“The company blame a worker who has been arrested by the police” says Tola Mouen at the human rights organisation the Center for Alliance of Labor and Human Rights, Central.

He has followed developments within the textile industry at close range, and has just got been on the phone after another call about the accident that has kept him busy during the last week.

The development of the textile industry is a key issue for Central as they want the Western garment retailers to put pressure to enact the so called Living Wage in Cambodia.

They seek to find an agreement where set terms can regulate monthly wages to not only cover the costs of rent, food and insurances, but also afford to start a family and to stay home when sick.

Although the Swedish corporation has for some time claimed to be ready to comply with such an agreement, Tola Mouen has grown tired of them just talking about it.

“H&M are very good at promoting themselves, but they are no better than any of the others”

In Sweden the work done by H&M is considered to be successful. The Swedish trade union  IF Metall has though as of yet not taken an official position to the project in Cambodia. There are several aspects of the fashion giant’s engagement to consider.

Erik Andersson, international secretary at IF Metall, is of the opinion that it is positive that both H&M and their Spanish competitor Inditex (who include the Zara retailer) have a global framework agreement.

He also compliments H&M on the skill they show in cooperating with SIDA and the UN agency International Labour Organisation.

“They are really on the ball. And that strengthens their brand”

But he also feels that H&M should be able to do a lot more in improving conditions for their employees.

“They should put in tougher regulation on transports. Today, employees can be transported on the back of trucks on muddy roads. Also, H&M should do more to raise wage levels and union representation”

Under the present conditions he questions whether it is appropriate to purchase garments.

“You have to ask yourself whether you should buy from a country like Cambodia at all”, and referring to the increasingly tense political situation in the country, adds “The unions that take critical positions towards the government get banned”.

More and more people are concerned that while SIDA,  H&M and IF Metall are attempting to increase social dialogue, the country itself is moving further and further toward a one party system.

Last year a law regulating trade and labor unions allowed several unions to be banned due to their criticism of the reigning government party, the Cambodian People’s Party, which has been in power since the downfall of the Khmer Rouge in 1979.

Tensions have been rising as there are indications that there is support for a shift of power in next year’s parliamentary elections. There are also upcoming local elections in June.

Recently a bill on minimum wages was put forth which could make union strikes illegal and which would even outlaw the gathering of wage statistics.

Such harsher measures used to curtail the influence of unions and human rights organisations will certainly lead to divisions.

Erik Andersson adds “If I was in H&M top management I would be more self-critical and modest”.

The fact that the unions are critical of the terms that the employers support is not unusual, but the unusual aspect is that banks and financial institutions have joined them in criticizing the poor working conditions and lack of transparency.

One example is Sasja Beslik, the manager of Sustainable Finance with the Swedish bank Nordea. Last year he was awarded Banker of the year in 2016 by the financial magazine Privata Affärer.

From his position with Nordea Wealth Management he has followed H&M for some time and has tried to find out what actual improvements they have made for the employees. He finds it hard to draw any conclusions.

“There is no transparency”. There isn’t a financial investor in the world who can validate the claims H&M make.

Sasja Beslik is of the opinion that the perception of H&M’s projects is idealized and there is an unfounded belief in their human rights projects.

“H&M tell me that they have improved working conditions in Cambodia. The only way for me to find out is to go there. Yet if I request to get into their factories, they first say ‘no’, and eventually I am offered to take a guided tour together with 40 other investors.

The claims from both the fashion giant and SIDA of increased dialogue and collective bargaining agreements that have been signed locally, are dismissed by Sasja Beslik as succesful PR for H&M.

“This really makes me very angry. What improvements have been achieved? Nothing has gotten better. It’s just bullshit!”

 
The Living Wage

The idea of the Living Wage has attracted more and more support from human rights organizations and trade unions. It is a salary that is high enough to cover an employee’s basic needs, such as food, accommodation, health care and clothes, within the limits of normal working hours.

Today the garment worker in Cambodia has a monthly wage of about 170 dollars, which is considered to be below the estimated 200 dollars per month of the Living Wage.

In Cambodia, the term has gained traction and global labour unions like IndustriAll hope that the Living Wage system can become a reality in Cambodia and then spread to other parts of Asia.

Source: Fair Action, IndustriAll

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

Translation: Ravi Dar

Tensions in Cambodia are growing. The reigning party have been in power for decades, but as the upcoming elections in June come closer, support is gathering for the opposition. The response from the government has been to pass laws that seek to silence protests.

The corridor is stacked with boxed kits of demonstrator equipment. In each box there are sections for vests, for helmets and for glasses.

”For teargas”, Naly Pilarge explains.

She works for the Cambodian human rights organisation Licadho.

Political control in the country has tightened. In June local elections will be held, followed by parliamentary elections in 2018. The government has started to sense that its hold on power is threatened. For defenders of civil rights, Cambodia has practically turned into a one party state.

Every Monday, members of the opposition dress in black to show their discontent with the present regime. This led to the arrest of two women a few weeks ago. The commander of the army commented: ”We can’t permit a revolution of color in the country”.

The government has started to sense that its hold on power is threatened. For defenders of civil rights, Cambodia has practically turned into a one party state.
Naly Pilarge shakes her head and leaves the room. Out in the corridor, she lights a cigarette. ”Things have gotten much worse”

A year ago, on the tenth of July, local politician Kem Ley was followed into a gas station in the capital city Phnom Penh by a man with a gun.

Three shots to the head ended his life. The murderer was apprehended but there were plenty of unanswered questions. Why did the police drive alongside the fleeing murderer for a long while, witnessed by bystanders and recorded on video. What did they say to each other for a prolonged period of time before the arrest was made?

Kim Ley led the grass root advocacy group Khmer for Khmer that aligned several of the country’s grass root movements, and had also started a political party which was quickly gaining support.

He often spoke out in criticism of the prime minister Hun Sen, and only briefly before the shooting, he had added comment to a report on widespread corruption. Although the 38 year old murderer claimed that a dispute over money led to the shots being fired, the opposition claim that it was a planned assassination, although the accomplices are as yet unknown.

In order to understand the present situation, the past must be considered.

The government party CPP (Cambodian Peoples Party) have been in power since the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia in 1979 that removed Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge.

With messages from the leadership like: ”It’s better to kill an innocent by mistake than spare an enemy by mistake.’ the Khmer Rouge communist reign of terror decimated Cambodia by killing one fourth of the population.

The effects of that systematic torture and murder of those deemed unsuited for the Khemer Rouge society, is still visible in today’s politics.

Prisoners held at S-21, the Khmer Rouge regime’s main torture centre, on display at what is now a genocide museum in Phnom Penh. Credit: Irwin Loy/IPS

From the tenth floor of Phnom Penh Tower, the Swedish embassy overlooks the heavily trafficated city streets that clog to a standstill several times every day. From there, Andreas Johnsson, among other tasks, can overlook the political situation in the country.

”There is turbulence right now”, he begins. ”Alot of people support the CPP as they see the party as a safeguard for stability and to make sure that what happened under the Khmer Rouge does not happen again”

Down below SUVs crowd the narrow streets as testiment to a booming economy.

Growth is around 7-8% annually. For some, times are very good. But only few can reap the gains. Of the 16 million inhabitants of Cambodia, as many as 12 million are surviving on just over 2 dollars per day.

The spread of mobile phones and increasing use of social media has spurred a willingness to discuss political issues. At the same time, the important textile industries have increased pressures as they demand improved wages and a higher standard of living.

This forms a growing demand for change, which isn’t easy to deal with for a leader who has been in power for more than thirty years.

The CPP realize that they must deal with the opposition in some way. The results of the last elections in 2013 shocked the party. Although they won, the support for the opposition had grown significantly.

Soon after that result, leader Hun Sen realized that some action must be taken. He brought forth several reforms and reached out to the leader of the opposition Sam Rainsy.

But the initiative quickly got bogged down without making any reforms and relationships quickly cooled. Rainsy was also accused of numerous crimes and charged with criminal defamation.

As the upcoming elections on local and national levels grow near, new laws have been introduced that curtail the opposition.

In February, a law was enacted that could lead to political parties being banned if they are repesented by criminals.

While that might sound like a sensible idea, the reality of it, and that was apparent to the opposition, was that opposition representatives had started to be charged with crimes.

Their claims that the charges were unfounded has been backed by Amnesty International.

Sam Rainsy decided to leave Cambodia and lives in exile in France. One month ago he also resigned as leader of the opposition in order to stop any attempts to ban the party due to the new law.

Persecution has also been seen on the streets as several representatives have been struck down by unknown assailants.

Another legal challenge has come with a new law that regulates union activity. Regulation dictates which unions are given the right to negotiate and for independent labor unions this makes organized efforts more difficult and they risk losing members.

Furthermore, the government has proposed a new law to regulate minimum wages.

According to the proposal, mimunim wage levels are set for the entire labor market, and not for individual industries, for example the textile industry.

These minimum levels are to be set by a tripartite committee representing unions, employers and the State. But when the levels are set, protests by the unions would be outlawed.

The proposal goes even further, in banning research and reporting on minimum wages. These laws have made it difficult for opponents of the legislation to come together.

There are 3000 registered labor unions in Cambodia, a country that is considered to be one of the most corrupt in the world.

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global

In a shed made of boards and tarps, one-year old Nune is in deep sleep as his mother Check Srey-Toy gently rocks his hammock. Then she tells me that she sells her breast milk to the US.

They have no front door. Privacy is a sheet of cloth drawn across an opening. A gas burner on the ground. A saucepan with leftover porridge.

“It’s been three months. Since I started”, Check Srey-Toy tells Arbetet Global. “It’s an easy job. All I need to do is lie there and the machine pumps it out”.

As the Cambodian capital city falls into darkness, some glimpses of light shine through the makeshift wall of plastic and wood out to the alley-ways among the ramshackle sheds of Stoeng Mean Chey, one of Phnom Penh’s poorest slums. Dark figures move along, shuffling past, following the stench filled pathways covered with ripped plastic bags and other litter.

This used to be a garbage dump. Then bulldozers covered the garbage and poisonous soil, creating a housing market for ramshackle sheds at ten dollars per month. For an extra 15 dollars, electricity is provided.

Check Srey-Toy and her husband used to make their daily income by picking plastics, aluminium cans and paper from the city streets. They assorted their rewards and sold it to a recycling centre. A few months ago a new opportunity arose as two women approached them.

Check Srey-Toy was selling her breast milk during three months. She was paid 5 dollar a day. Photo: Daniel Quinan

“They talked about breast feeding and that there were women who were unable to develop their own breast milk. They asked if we would be willing to sell ours”. Over twenty women from their area saw a possible boost to their income.

“I’ve been doing it for about three months. Almost every day”

Every morning at eight she is picked up by a man on a motorcycle who takes her to different private homes in Phnom Penh. She pumps the milk out twice a day, once in the morning, once in the afternoon, with a lunch break in-between.

She stresses: “It is completely voluntary”.

By four or five she returns home. “It’s like a job”.

Before being allowed to supply breast milk she had to go through a thorough medical examination. For ten straight days she was driven to the air-conditioned rooms of the Royal Phnom Penh Hospital, one of the best and most expensive hospitals in Cambodia.

A considerable contrast from the NGO-run Khmer-Russia Hospital where she had given birth to her son a year ago.

After getting medical approval from the doctors, she was permitted to sell her breast milk. Her remuneration depends on how much breast milk she can deliver.

“Usually I get about 5 dollars per day”. A good income for her, compared to previously.

“The company has told me that my breast milk goes to other children. I like to think about that. When the drink my milk I think that they are my children”.

The demand for breast milk has increased and is now a commodity on international markets. The US company Ambrosia Lab have donators in several different countries. They target US mothers who pay close to 25 dollars for a bag of just under 150 millilitres of milk.

Check Srey-Toy and her husband are collecting and sorting garbage to make ends meet. Photo: Daniel Quinan

But it isn’t only new Moms that are prepared to buy breast milk. Among body builders, drinking breast milk has become a health fad with the belief that muscle growth will increase. Another group of customers is those who have a sexual fetish for breast milk.

When Cambodian media started to report on the breast milk export to the US, there was a hefty reaction. Critics felt it was immoral and that poor Cambodian women were being exploited. Ambrosia Lab’s defended their breast milk export as a possibility for these women to increase their earnings. They furthermore claim that their business mission actually allows women to breast feed their own children for a longer period, thus being beneficial for the child’s health. This is an argument refuted by most experts on the area.

With growing international attention, breast milk export from Cambodia was first temporarily stopped and then at the end of March, the Cambodian government adopted legislation that banned exports of breast milk.

The United Nations Children’s Fund UNICEF has along with other aid organizations welcomed the decision. They are of the opinion that poor women are exploited and children may risk malnutrition when being robbed of their mother’s breast milk.

A few days after the ban was put in place Arbetet Global spoke with Check Srey-Toy. She had stopped selling breast milk. She and her husband were once again out collecting and sorting garbage to make ends meet.

Translation: Ravi Dar

This story was originally published by Arbetet Global