Owen Tudor, ITUC Deputy General Secretary
The global trade union movement is all about solidarity. Solidarity with women on International Women’s Day (8 March), especially in Afghanistan, Iran and Ukraine; solidarity with unions facing repression in countries like Belarus, Eswatini, Hong Kong, Myanmar and most recently in Tunisia; and solidarity with workers facing natural disasters often exacerbated by human decisions, such as the continuing Covid-19 pandemic and responses to the recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.
But we are not merely reacting to bad news. This month, the Workers’ Group will be pressing the ILO Governing Body about countries at risk and the right to strike – the fundamental last resort of working people to protect and promote their interests.
We will be taking crucial decisions at our extraordinary General Council, 11 March, to resolve the crisis we have been facing as an organisation. And we will continue to make the argument that higher wages and social protection for all are good for workers and good for the economy.
Looking ahead, we will be taking the trade union demand for a New Social Contract to Tokyo in early April where our affiliate RENGO has secured a meeting with the Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who will chair the G7 this year.
And we are building up to a crucial day of action, 28 April, when the theme for International Workers’ Memorial Day will be ‘Organising for Health and Safety’.
In solidarity,
Owen Tudor, ITUC Deputy General Secretary
@Owen4ituc
