Union network launches Thai government complaint

SRUT dispute photos on flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/itf/sets/72157622603688341/

The ITF and its affiliate the State Railway Workers’ Union of Thailand (SRUT), backed by the Thai State Enterprises Workers’ Relations Confederation (SERC) and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), have made a complaint against the Thai government to the International Labour Organization (ILO).

The complaint to the ILO’s Committee on Freedom of Association alleges that the Kingdom of Thailand is in gross violation of the international norms on trade union rights set out in ILO conventions 87 and 98. Its evidence highlights the government having allowed the State Railways of Thailand (SRT) to victimise trade union members for exposing serious safety breaches on the country’s rail network.

The case centres on the dismissal by SRT of 13 union leaders and branch officials who took part in an occupational health and safety initiative in October 2009 to publicise serious rail safety failings. In four days that month two derailments occurred and one fatal accident, in which seven people were killed and many injured. The driver had had one rest day in the previous 30 days. The driver’s ‘deadman’s handle’ system was not working and, according to the union, only 20 per cent of locomotives even had such a fundamental piece of equipment. The initiative involved 1,200 SRUT members who refused to drive trains with faulty or missing deadman’s handles.

The SRT also took the union to court to try to impose punitive damages. Despite international protests and against all legal opinion, the Thai courts allowed the dismissals to stand.

ITF inland transport section secretary Mac Urata commented: “The injustice is manifest – these trade unionists sacked, their union targeted for massive damages totalling millions of dollars, and all for exposing serious safety dangers. The SRT has been able to get away with its behaviour because of its closeness to a government that continues to allow legislation that stifles the rights of workers in public enterprises. We are asking the ILO to rule on these terrible injustices.”