Union resistance to a plan by employers to remove the right reached a peak during an international action day on Feb 18th. Within a week unions and employers meeting at the ILO in Geneva upheld the general right to strike.
ITF general secretary Steve Cotton said that there was no doubt that without the huge mobilisation efforts the basic human right to strike could have been removed. It was down to all of our efforts that the attempt was defeated – and it will be down to all of us to ensure that it is protected, he added.
But, he warned, even as this victory has been won, attacks on the right to strike at national level continue. Trade unions will remain vigilant, he promised, and will not surrender this basic guarantee of freedom.
Rosa Pavanelli, PSI general secretary, commented: “Today, governments and social partners have re-affirmed the right to strike as a fundamental right at work, and the role of the ILO supervisory mechanism. These same governments are currently negotiating the Post-2015 Development Agenda and international trade agreements. We need to make sure that they show the same commitment to international labour standards across the board. While the recognition of an international right to strike is essential, attacks on the right to strike at national level are widespread.”
For the latest on the right to strike and the campaign to defend it visit www.right2strike.org
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