EI/PSI TRADE UNION RIGHTS NETWORK Asia Pacific Region

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EI/PSI TRADE UNION RIGHTS NETWORKAsia Pacific
Region
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• Commonly Asked Questions about
• TUR Network

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What is the TUR Network?

• A joint project of Education International (EI)
  Public Services International (PSI), two of the
  largest GUFs with combined membership of over 49
  million trade unionists
• Piloted in South East Asia sub-region with
  Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines
  as participating countries

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Why it was formed?

• A response to the continuing violation of the
  trade union rights of existing and potential
  members
• Violations include
• Persecution of union members who seek to exercise
  their trade union rights
• Severe legal restrictions on freedom of
  association
• Prohibitions and/or restrictions on collective
  bargaining
• Gender-based discriminations

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How about your mission?

• To develop an effective model for a trade
  union rights network through a long and
  systematic approach in three stages
• Stage 1 (1999) Develop and pilot education
  materials and a
• network resource handbook
• Stage 2 (2000-2003) Implement a trade union
  rights
• network in the South East
  Asian sub-region
• Stage 3 (2004-2005) Extend the South East Asia
  TUR
• Network to the Asia Pacific
  region

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What are your objectives?

• Our Project Objectives are as follows
• Develop and test a model for establishing an
  effective trade union rights network
• Evaluate and form the basis of a strategy to
  extend the network to the entire Asia Pacific
  Region

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Our Development Objectives are as follows

• Improve the trade union rights of public sector
  workers, teachers and other educational staff in
  the AP region with particular emphasis on the ILO
  core labor standards
• Improve the understanding of public sector
  workers, teachers and other educational staff of
  core labor standards and their rights

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Our immediate objectives are the following

• Develop and test appropriate curriculum and
  education materials and their translation into
  local languages
• Train 20 union activists as trainers focused on
  trade union and human rights
• Establish a network of over 400 trained trade
  union rights activists in the pilot area
• Publish a quarterly trade union rights newsletter
  that is distributed to network members
• Develop and commence implementation of proactive
  national level TUR campaigns, as part of an
  international strategy on trade union rights

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Who comprise your target group?

• Members of EI/PSI affiliates who are
• Elected officials including executive board
  members
• Workplace representatives
• Union trainers
• Women and Youth Committee members
• Unionists who indicate a particular interest and
  commitment to become members of the TUR Network

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How is the Project managed?

• A Steering Committee oversees the project,
  consists of
• 1. EI Chief Coordinator
• 2. PSI Regional Secretary
• 3. Two Representatives of EI/PSI affiliates
  for each
• participating country (gender-balance)
• 4. Project Coordinator- Secretary of the SC
• National Coordinating Committees

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What are your major activities?

• Development of modules and resource kits
• National workshops for key officials of
  participating unions
• Training of Trainers
• Network Member Training
• Skills Training
• Translation of Education Materials
• Trade Union Rights Campaign/Lobbying
• Urgent Appeals
• Protests/mobilization
• Reporting and Documentation of TUR Violations
• Research on Legislation and Practice
• Production and distribution of newsletter
• Steering Committee Meetings
• Internal and External Evaluation

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How is the Project financed?

• Stage 1- partly funded by ILO and counterpart
• contributions from EI and PSI
• Stage 2- primarily funded by LO-Norway and
  counterpart
• contributions from EI and PSI
• Stage 3- proposal will be developed in detail at
  a later
• stage
• Most of the participating unions also give
  contributions office space, transport, web-site
  hosting,etc.

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Summary of Progress

• More cases of violations reported
• Joint protests and actions of affiliates
• Replication of training in workplaces on the
  initiative and funding by affiliates
  (sustainability)
• Exchange of information by the network members
• Improved joint efforts with strategic partners
  and general public
• Inclusion of sessions on ICLS TURN in union
  education programs
• Consolidated the fragmented unions
• Better newsletter

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Challenges Constraints

• Insufficient number of trainers
• Lack of face to face meetings of TURN-NCCs
• NCCs have no secretariat nor full time support
  staff
• Difficulties in getting leaves
• Efficient and effective communication process
• Anti-union management
• Threats and victimization faced by activists
• Governments resistance to favorable labour laws

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• TRADE UNION RIGHTS
• ARE
• HUMAN RIGHTS