Trade unions: rights violations worsened in 2009
By STEPHANIE FLEMING, Associated Press
Jun 8, 2010 2:01 PM CDT

At least 100 trade unionists were killed defending workers rights in 2009 _ up from 76 the previous year, the International Trade Union Confederation said in its annual survey Wednesday.

Latin America was the most lethal region: 48 trade unionists died in Colombia alone _ 22 were senior union leaders, of whom five were women.

It was followed by Guatemala (16), Honduras (12), Mexico and Brazil (4 each), the confederation said.

It also listed murders in Bangladesh (6), the Dominican Republic and the Philippines (3 each) and one each in India, Iraq and Nigeria.

Additionally, the confederation reported 10 attempted murders of union workers, "35 serious death threats," mostly in Colombia and Guatemala, and hundreds of imprisonments.

The group said the onset of the global financial and economic crisis in 2008 led to the loss of tens of millions of jobs and worsened violations of workers' rights.

"In many countries ... public authorities and companies have continued to use the crisis as a pretext to weaken and undermine trade union rights," it said.

Disregard of internationally recognized labor standards has eroded job security and put half of the global work force in "precarious" jobs, said the confederation, which represents 176 million workers in 155 countries.

The survey details numerous cases of strike-breaking and violence against striking workers in every region of the world.

Thousands of workers demonstrating to claim wages, denounce harsh working conditions or the harmful effects of the global financial and economical crisis have faced beatings, arrest and detention, including in Algeria, Argentina, Belarus, Burma, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Honduras, India, Iran, Kenya, Nepal, Pakistan and Turkey, the confederation's report said

The group's general secretary, Guy Ryder, said defending workers rights in Colombia is "a death sentence," but elsewhere in Latin America matters improved a bit: El Salvador's government made it easier for workers to organize and Argentina's high court increased trade unionists rights.

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