Press Releases

For media inquiries please contact Rachel Cohen: racohen78 [at] gmail.com

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk Announces Next Step in Labor Rights Enforcement Case against Guatemala

08/09/11

Washington, D.C. —United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk today announced that the U.S. is taking the next step in a dispute regarding the Government of Guatemala’s apparent failure to effectively enforce its labor laws by requesting the establishment of an arbitral panel under the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR). The United States requested formal consultations in July 2010 regarding the issues in this case.

Prominent Labor Rights Organization Welcomes Judy Gearhart as New Director

01/06/11

The International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) is pleased to welcome Judy Gearhart as the organization’s new Executive Director following former director Bama Athreya’s transition to the Global Works Foundation.  ILRF will continue to strengthen its efforts to promote just and humane treatment for workers worldwide under the new leadership of Gearhart.

Statement Concerning the Release from Jail of BCWS Leaders

09/10/10

We have received confirmation that Kalpona Akter, Babul Akhter, and Aminul Islam of the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity (BCWS) were released from the Dhaka Central Prison by the Bangladeshi authorities at about 10pm Dhaka time September 10th, at the start of the Eid Festival which marks the end of Ramadan. Their release was secured following the granting of bail on all charges during a special hearing by a magistrate judge on Wednesday, September 8. Upon their release, the BCWS leaders expressed a “heartfelt thanks” to all who have supported them.

World Cup Soccer Balls: Exploitation Still the Norm

06/07/10

Report reveals Child Labour, Poverty Wages, Temporary Workers

7 June 2010: As the frenzy grows over the upcoming FIFA World Cup in South Africa, there is a part of the World Cup that won’t be broadcast on TV. The Play Fair Alliance today asked FIFA to respond to the report “Missed the Goal for Workers: the Reality of Soccer Ball Stitchers”, released by US-based NGO International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) on 7 June.

World Cup Soccer Balls Missed the Goal Set 13 Years Ago: Child Labor, Poverty Wages, Temporary Workers

06/07/10

Washington, DC – As excitement grows for the upcoming FIFA World Cup beginning shortly in South Africa, there is a part of the World Cup that many sports fans will not see.  The workers stitching soccer balls in Pakistan, India, China and Thailand continue to experience alarming labor rights violations even 13 years after the soccer ball industry signed the “Atlanta Agreement” committing to clean up the industry.

Colombia: 195 Teachers Killed, No One Guilty

12/08/09

The ITUC has denounced and strongly condemned the murders of art teacher Zorayda Cortés López, who worked at the Higher Technical Institute of Pereira, the capital of Risaralda, and Leny Yanube Rengifo Gómez, a teacher and active member of the Cauca education workers’ union, Asociación de Institutores y Trabajadores de la Educación del Cauca – ASOINCA.

It is unacceptable and a cause for grave concern in the trade union movement that 195 teachers have been assassinated in Colombia, without a single arrest being made, and that 35 trade unionists have been killed this year alone.

Stop Violence Against Women Day: Governments to Take Decisive Action to End Violence Against Women

11/25/09

On the occasion of the UN International Day on the Elimination of Violence against Women, the ITUC and affiliates in a range of countries are organizing activities to say “no to violence against women and girls” and to mobilize against the impunity of that violence around the world. These activities are taking place in the context of the UN Secretary-General’s campaign ‘UNiTE to End Violence against Women’ and the Global Unions Campaign ‘Decent Work, Decent Life for Women’.

Turkey: 22 Public Sector Union Members and Leaders Freed After Six Months of Unlawful Detention

11/23/09

On Thursday 19 and Friday 20 November, in Izmir, Turkey, the ITUC attended, together with over a dozen representatives from trade unions and Global Union Federations from eight different European countries, the trial against 31 leaders and members of Turkish public sector union KESK. Being tried on charges of having established a terrorist organisation, 22 of them had already spent nearly six months in prison without access to due trial.
 

ITUC Mourns the Passing of Global Trade Union Leader Neil Kearney

11/19/09

It is with profound sadness that the ITUC has learned of the passing of global trade union leader Neil Kearney in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on 18 November. Born in 1950 in Donegal, Ireland, Neil Kearney served as General Secretary of the International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers’ Federation since 1988, following 16 years as a national trade union official in the UK.

Zimbabwe: Trade Unionists Freed, Charges Thrown Out

11/12/09

Lovemore Matombo, president of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions, and four other unionists, Michael Kandukutu, Percy Mncijo, Dumisani Ncube and Nhawu Ndlovu, have been released on the order of a Zimbabwean Magistrate and the charges against them thrown out by the Court in Victoria Falls. The five were detained by police on Sunday, and charged under the notorious Public Order and Security Act (POSA), which has been used against the ZCTU and its affiliates on several occasions over a number of years by the Mugabe regime.

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