DOCSLIB.ORG

Maritime Labor Wins Big on OCS Bill See Special Supplement Pages 19-22

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Maritime Labor Wins Big on OCS Bill See Special Supplement Pages 19-22 Maritime Labor Wins Big On OCS Bill See Special Supplement Pages 19-22 Official Publication of the Seafarers International Union • Atlantic, Gulf, Lakes and Inland Waters District • AFL-CIO VOL. 40 NO. 7 JULY 'J • SeoforersI Crew LNG Paso Southern e . See Pages 12-13 •V / . X-A-T-. - ' X- fit"-' rv-'' , r ' r - • v' * r ' X A-;,..-'- . '*•/•• """-'I - -.-•'v ;• J '•: V:.. "'V--. '•' .'^^t,-.. V;;- . The liquid natural gas carrier,F/ Paso Southern, is the 4th U.S.-flag LNG ship to be manned by Seafarers. Milestone Pact Signed With Great Lakes Operators Page 2 SlU Blasts Navy's Non-Use of Private Tugs Page 3 Hall Says 50,000 Maritime Jobs Endangered Page 5 SlU Boatmen crewed the new tug, Seahawk, this month in Norfolk, Va. The tug is owned and operated by Allied Towing. r Milestone Pact Signed With Great Lakes Operators Great Lakes area SIU members are 90 days at a time during the shipping increases, retroactive to August I, 1977* The Great Lakes Association of Ma­ now in the process of ratifying a new season without time off the vessel. The and a hike in extended season compen­ rine Operators covers most of the SIU- contract between the Union and the crew also has the option to waive all or sation. The agreement also provides a contracted companies on the Lakes. In­ Great Lakes Association of Marine part of the vacation time which is com­ jump in transportation and daily sub- cluded in GLAMO are: American Operators (GLAMO). Contract nego­ ing to them. The only circumstance that sistance money. Steamship Co., Cement Transit Co., tiations were wrapped up last month allows the company to delay a scheduled Some work rule changes are included Erie Sand Steamship Co. and Erie Nav­ and the ship-by-ship ratification vote is vacation is "an unforeseen emergency in the new contract. These are mostly igation Co., Huron Cement Co., Litton expected to be concluded by the end of beyond the control of the company." clarification of onboard duties and pro­ Great Lakes Corp., and Pringle Transit July. Though the vacation plan is the major visions for compensating crewmembers Co. The agreement covers about 58 The highlight of the new three-year innovation in the Great Lakes contract, doing work other than the job descrip­ ships and the 1200 SIU members who agreement is the new vacation plan for the agreement also provides substantial tion layed-out in the contract. crew them. Great Lakes seamen. Effective Jan. 1, increases in benefits. The contract calls 1979, the vacation plan will give crew- for a $100 jump in pension benefits. On members 30-days-off with pay every 90- Jan. 1, 1979, pension checks will go up EUgibiUty Rules For Benefits days-worked. $50 per month with a second $50 hike to The 90-days-on/30-days-off vacation take effect on June 16, 1980. package is a breakthrough both in the Several improved welfare benefits are Changed to 125 Days industry and for the SIU. Algonac Port covered under the new agreement. The Agent Jack Bluitt noted this was "the biggest increase is in death benefit cov­ All Seafarers and Boatmen ceding the date of claim. first time ever any unlicensed union rep­ erage. Active employees' death benefit should be aware that as part of Under the Vacation Plan, a resenting merchant seamen negotiated coverage will now range from $5,000 to the changes in the Seafarers Va­ Seafarer or Boatman must now paid time-off for their members." $20,000, depending on seatime. Under cation, Welfare and Pension accumulate 125 days seatime or Under the agreement, crewmembers the old contract, the maximum death will not be required to work more than benefit was $5,000. Plans made to improve benefits boat-time before filing for vaca­ Another important welfare benefit is resulting from our recent con­ tion benefits. In addition, to be eligible for As the Log goes to press, SIU improved Major Medical coverage for tract negotiations, the Trustees Great Lakes Headquarters in dependents of Seafarers. Under the old have changed the eligibility rules. the Early Normal Pension (20 Algonac, Mich, reports that the benefit schedule, the Welfare Plan Now, to be eligible for benefits years seatime at 55 years of age. new three year pact has been would not pay more than $600 for any under the Seafarers Welfare Seafarers only), or the Disability major medical expense. All charges Plan, a Seafarer or Boatman Pension (12 years service at any accepted by the membership. SIU above that amount came out of the Sea­ representatives visited the farer's pocket. must accumulate at least 125 days age), an eligible employee must Union's contracted Great Lakes The new major medical plan will pay seatime or boat-time in the previ­ accumulate 125 days seatime or vessels one by one to tally the up to $600 of doctor or hospital bills and ous calendar year and one day boat-time in the calendar year votes. The acceptance vote was then pay up to 80 percent of any charges seatime or boat-time in the six immediately preceding his pen­ 553 in favor and 51 against. above that amount. month period immediately pre­ sion application. Great Lakes Seafarers also won pay [= rUx vities. Over the years, we have worked successfully on legislation affecting all areas of the U.S. maritime industry. We have won some very important fights in Congress. And we have taken our licks as well. But the important thing is we are in there punching in the political battleground—an area that is growing in importance to us every day. Another thing about politics. It is an area that is becoming more and more difficult to work in,effectively with any degree of consistency or continuity. The reason is that with every election, more and more new faces are Paul Hall n'O- OXO, popping up in the House and Senate. These are people that have little or no U Lb background or knowledge concerning maritime. These people are replacing a lot of old line Senators and Congressmen whom the SIU considered among our friends. More Political Action Needed In the face of these new happenings, the SIU is in the process of estab­ lishing a new and more comprehensive approach to politics to insure that the changing faces of the nation's legislators are friendly faces concerning Next to health and home, the most important thing to a working man in maritime. this country is security. By security, I mean the ability to get and hold a job All along, our political arm has been SPAD. For years, SIU officials have at decent wages without the constant fear that the job could be gone in the been asking for voluntary contributions to SPAD. And SIU members have morning. always come through for the Union in this respect. Some American industries have a high degree of security built into the The problem, plain and simple, is that the Union needs a larger political system for their workers. Unfortunately, our industry—maritime—is not fund to continue to work effectively in this area. However, it is not fair to one of them. ask SIU members to dig deeper for out-of-pocket donations. In fact, American maritime has traditionally been an industry with one of This is where our new program comes in. Basically, it is a checkoff the highest degrees of insecurity built into it. Merchant seamen have always program for political contributions. A lot of unions already have such a been the first to feel an economic crunch brought on by recession. And system. But this is a new concept for us. among the last to benefit from economic recovery. The program is only a month old. But already, nearly 1,000 SIU members It would be easy for us to sit back and accept anything that comes along have signed the SPAD checkoff authorization, (see back page for more and hope that things don't get too bad for maritime. But this has never been information). the way in the SIU. And if it had, there would be no SIU today worth talking Essentially, what you are doing when you sign one of these forms is about. authorizing the Seafarers Vacation Plan to deduct 30 cents per day from the The SIU has always worked hard to try and build a degree of security vacation benefit for each day worked, with the money being transferred to within our Union that will stand up to the toughest possible test. It has not the SPAD fund. been the easy way, but it has paid off for us. Thirty cents a day is a very small amount, and it may not seem like much. Right now, the SIU possesses the highest degree of job security in our It may also seem a very small amount for a member to invest in his future history. We also possess the highest degree of job security of any other sea­ security. However, with every SIU member supporting this program, the going union in the nation. Union will be able to build a bigger and more effective political program We have been able to achieve this not only because we have worked than ever before—a program that is absolutely essential for the SIU to hard. But because wc have worked hard in the right areas. continue to be effective in politics. We have worked in the area of education through the Lundeberg School The job of protecting our interest in all areas has always been a very in Piney Point.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Celebrating 70 Years Of
    Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO Nonprofit Org 501 3rd St., N.W., Washington, DC 20001 US Postage PAID Kelly Press, Inc. Electronic Service Requested SPRING EDITION 2019 As Spring approaches and we (hopefully) leave the challenging winter weather behind, our thoughts naturally turn to Summer, time off, and family vacations. I hope that all IUE members around the country take a moment to remember the Union brothers and sisters who fought (and in some cases died) to win benefits like paid vacation time. eW cannot take for granted the many benefits we enjoy as a result of the labor union activists who came before us. They were, like us, working people with families who wanted nothing more than to share in the fruits of their labor and be treated with respect on the job. Somewhere, they found the strength to risk their livelihoods and lives to organize and make change. As attacks on organized labor reach levels unprecedented in the past fifty years and as Union membership dwindles in the face of anti-worker laws and judges, it is essential that every union member understand the history of our movement and the importance our fight today might have for the generations who follow us. As we celebrate our 70th anniversary of the founding of the IUE, you will notice a renewed focus on labor history on our website, Facebook page, and here in the pages of the Bolt. I believe strongly that knowing the history of our movement and understanding where working people would be today had workers not chosen to stand together is the key to getting motivat- ed to organize and create the positive change we need in our workplaces and in our country.
    [Show full text]
  • Visiting Scholars' Working Papers Spain and the Republic of China
    Visiting Scholars’ Working Papers Spain and the Republic of China (Taiwan): the “Sentinels of the West and the East” (1953-1973) Miguel A. del Río Morillas Center for the Study of Francoist and Democratic Eras- Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain Submitted 2017 Papers included in the CCS Visiting Scholars’ Working Papers are preliminary works or works in progress. Without being formally reviewed or formatted, they are intended to encourage feedback and further discussion. Please do not quote or cite without authors’ permission. Spain and the Republic of China (Taiwan): the “sentinels of the West and the East” (1953-1973) Miguel A. del Río Morillas Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences (National Tsing Hua University) Taiwan Fellowship Program (2016) This research project was made possible by the support and cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan) through the Taiwan Fellowship Program and the support of National Tsing Hua University, the Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences and the Center for Chinese Studies (National Central Library). ii Table of Contents Abstract ii Abbreviations and Acronyms iii Notes of Chinese Romanization v I. Introduction 1 II. The first steps towards mutual acknowledgement 2 III. The anti-communist brotherhood between Franco and Chiang Kai-shek is born 5 IV. The Francoist diplomacy in Taipei: Julio de Larracoechea 9 V. Organisations of the masses, supervision and indoctrination: interactions between the GMD and FET-JONS 11 VI. Academic and cultural exchanges between Spain’s Franco and Nationalist China 15 VII. The endpoint between Franco and Chiang Kai-shek (1973) 18 VIII.
    [Show full text]
  • Labor Unrest and Incipient Collective Bargaining in China
    Sarosh Kuruvilla and Hao Zhang Labor unrest and incipient collective bargaining in china Article (Accepted version) (Refereed) Original citation: Kuruvilla, Sarosh and Zhang, Hao (2016) Labor unrest and incipient collective bargaining in China. Management and Organization Review, 12 (1). pp. 159-187. ISSN 1740- 8776 DOI: 10.1017/mor.2016.2 © 2016 The International Association for Chinese Management Research This version available at: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/65208/ Available in LSE Research Online: January 2017 LSE has developed LSE Research Online so that users may access research output of the School. Copyright © and Moral Rights for the papers on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyright owners. Users may download and/or print one copy of any article(s) in LSE Research Online to facilitate their private study or for non-commercial research. You may not engage in further distribution of the material or use it for any profit-making activities or any commercial gain. You may freely distribute the URL (http://eprints.lse.ac.uk) of the LSE Research Online website. This document is the author’s final accepted version of the journal article. There may be differences between this version and the published version. You are advised to consult the publisher’s version if you wish to cite from it. 1 MOR-14-110R4 28 September 2015 Labor Unrest and Incipient Collective Bargaining in China Sarosh Kuruvilla Cornell University, USA Hao Zhang Cornell University, USA 2 Labor Unrest and Incipient Collective Bargaining in China ABSTRACT In this paper, we argue that both labor unrest and collective bargaining are increasing in China.
    [Show full text]
  • December, 2004
    UFW DOCUMENTATION PROJECT ONLINE DISCUSSION December 2004 and January 2005 Kathy Lynch Murguia, 12/1/04 RE: Closure Kathy Murguia 1965-1983 As we move to the final days of the Listserve, I am bringing closure to a huge chunk of my life. I don't know about anyone else, but I do reflect back with varied emotions and interpretations of events. It began so simple and it ended up being so complicated. What was public became personal . Thoughts became projected into possibilities and threats. What was personal became public in that it became a test of loyalty. The lines became blurred; boundaries confused. We all participated in this blurring of reality. We hurt each other in our misunderstandings. I had hoped we were headed somewhere...I did believe the farmworkers needed a union. El Movimiento was a beginning. It came as a result of what Cesar called "viva swells". It was the structure that became problematic, and its tolerance for criticism and its ability to resolve internal conflict that became lost in a fog of meaning. Doug you are right. As one that was there at the beginning. I would venture to say we lost the willingness to talk to each other. Yes Abby, the Game facilitated this level of honesty. Mary, I do wish we could time travel into the next decade and be renewed. Marshall, in this interregnum will Cesar's and our dreams survive? What lessons have we learned? I would name one. Responsibility rests within. We invest in history and we have the obligation/ duty to defend what we know to be our experience; to find our voice and to speak, trusting our words, directing these words to those who need to hear what we have to say.
    [Show full text]
  • East Asia Pacific at Work
    East Asia Pacifi c At Work WORLD BANK EAST ASIA AND PACIFIC REGIONAL REPORTS Known for their economic success and dynamism, countries in the East Asia and Pacifi c region must tackle an increasingly complex set of challenges to continue on a path of sustainable devel- opment. Learning from others within the region and beyond can help identify what works, what doesn’t, and why, in the search for practical solutions to these challenges. This regional fl agship series presents analyses of issues relevant to the region, drawing on the global knowledge and experience of the World Bank and its partners. The series aims to inform public discussion, policy formulation, and development practitioners’ actions to turn challenges into opportunities. TITLES IN THE SERIES East Asia Pacifi c At Work: Employment, Enterprise, and Well-being Toward Gender Equality in East Asia and the Pacifi c: A Companion to the World Development Report Putting Higher Education to Work: Skills and Research for Growth in East Asia All books in this series are available for free at https://openknowledge.worldbank.org /handle/10986/2147 World Bank East Asia and Pacifi c Regional Report East Asia Pacifi c At Work Employment, Enterprise, and Well-being Truman G. Packard Trang Van Nguyen © 2014 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW, Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000; Internet: www.worldbank.org Some rights reserved 1 2 3 4 17 16 15 14 This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank with external contributions. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily refl ect the views of The World Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent.
    [Show full text]
  • Dr. Cornejo Tenure Letter
    Old Constraints and Future Possibilities in the Development of Taiwan’s Independent Labor Movement Yubin Chiu1 According to official labor statistics, union density in Taiwan was 37.8 percent in 2009 (see Figure 1). At first glance this seems impressive, whether compared with Western or newly democratic countries, and it appears to indicate a strong labor movement. However, as is often the case in authoritarian regimes and post-authoritarian societies, the official figure is misleading and cannot be used for cross-national comparison without further scrutiny and adjustment. The main reason is that this 37.8 percent includes a segment of the labor force that is organized by a (peculiarly Taiwanese) form of boss-controlled labor union: the “occupational union.” To get a more realistic sense of trade union density and the strength of the labor movement, we need to look at the figure for “industrial unions.” It was within this segment that the struggle for trade union rights and autonomy was fought out during the transition to democracy and where the independent labor movement is found today. Yet even the official figure of 15.4 percent for industrial unions is problematic, because schoolteachers and public servants are banned from joining or forming unions. If we adjust for this exclusion and account for cross-national comparison (members of “industrial unions”/employed + self-employed), the figure is around 5.3 percent. In other words, only about one in 20 workers receives protection from an effective trade union. 1 This article draws on research for my Ph.D. thesis: “Haunted by the Past, Organizing the Future: Independent Labor Movements in Hong Kong and Taiwan,” Department of Sociology, University of Essex.
    [Show full text]
  • Making, Remaking, and Unmaking of Collective Identities and Democratization: Democratic, Labour, and Women’S Movements in South Korea and Taiwan
    Making, Remaking, and Unmaking of Collective Identities and Democratization: Democratic, Labour, and Women’s Movements in South Korea and Taiwan by Chong Su Kim B.A., Hanyang University, Seoul, 2002 M.A., University of Victoria, Canada, 2011 A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in the Department of Political Science ã Chong Su Kim, 2018 University of Victoria All rights reserved. This dissertation may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without the permission of the author. ii Supervisory Committee Making, Remaking, and Unmaking of Collective Identities and Democratization: Democratic, Labour, and Women’s Movements in South Korea and Taiwan by Chong Su Kim B.A., Hanyang University, Seoul, 2002 M.A., University of Victoria, Canada, 2011 Supervisory Committee Dr. Matt James, Supervisor Department of Political Science Dr. Feng Xu, Departmental Member Department of Political Science Dr. Guoguang Wu, Departmental Member Department of Political Science Dr. William K. Carroll, Outside Member Department of Sociology iii Abstract The present dissertation focuses on the role of collective identities of Taiwanese and South Korean social movements in democratic processes. Taiwan and South Korea took similar paths of rapid industrial development and democratic processes. Yet, democratization and democracy is understood as and linked closely with national- sovereignty in Taiwan but popular-sovereignty in South Korea. This study asks how differences in understanding democracy and in democratic practices are engendered and reproduced and what the role of collective identities of social movements in democratic processes is. I answer these questions by exploring making, remaking, and unmaking of collective identities of Taiwanese and South Korean democratic, women's, and labour movements, and their role in democratization.
    [Show full text]
  • Uhm Phd 9519465 R.Pdf
    INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from anytype of computer printer. The quality of this reprodncnon is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely' event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate th~ deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back: ofthe book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. UMl A Bell & Howell intormatron Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann A'bor. MI48106·j346 USA 313!761-47oo 800:521-0600 Taiwan's Transition From Authoritarian Rule with special Reference To South Korea A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN POLITICAL SCIENCE AUGUST 1993 By Sai-hsin May Dissertation Committee: Dae-Sook Suh, chairperson Manfred Henningsen Belinda Aquino Stephen Uhalley, Jr.
    [Show full text]
  • U·M·I University Microfilms International a Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road
    INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. liMI films the text directly from the original or copysubmitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send liMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyrightmaterial had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sectionswith small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UM! directly to order. U·M·I University Microfilms International A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor, M148106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 Order Number 9506282 The proletarianization process and the transformation of Taiwan's working class Sen, Yow Suen, Ph.D. University of Hawaii, 1994 V·M·I 300N.
    [Show full text]
  • Rivista Degli Studi Orientali Nuova Serie Rivista Degli Studi Orientali Nuova Serie
    RIVISTA DEGLI STUDI ORIENTALI NUOVA SERIE RIVISTA DEGLI STUDI ORIENTALI NUOVA SERIE Organo scientifico del DIPARTIMENTO DI STUDI ORIENTALI SAPIENZA, UNIVERSITÀ DI ROMA * Direttore responsabile Raffaele Torella * Direttore scientifico Mario Prayer Editor-in-Chief Franco D’Agostino Comitato scientifico Alessandro Catastini, Giorgio Milanetti, Maria Teresa Orsi, Angelo Michele Piemontese, Arcangela Santoro, Biancamaria Scarcia Amoretti, Chiara Silvi Antonini Segretaria di redazione Francesca Gorello * Pubblicato con il contributo di «Sapienza», Università di Roma SAPIENZA, UNIVERSITÀ DI ROMA DIPARTIMENTO DI STUDI ORIENTALI RIVISTA DEGLI STUDI ORIENTALI NUOVA SERIE VOLUME LXXXIV Fasc. 1-4 (2011) PISA · ROMA FABRIZIO SERRA EDITORE 2012 RIVISTA DEGLI STUDI ORIENTALI NUOVA SERIE Trimestrale I prezzi ufficiali di abbonamento cartaceo e/o Online sono consultabili presso il sito Internet della casa editrice www.libraweb.net. Print and/or Online official subscription rates are available at Publisher’s website www.libraweb.net. I versamenti possono essere eseguiti sul conto corrente postale n. 171574550 o tramite carta di credito (Visa, Eurocard, Mastercard, American Express, Carta Si) Fabrizio Serra editore® Pisa · Roma Casella postale n. 1, Succursale 8, I 56123 Pisa Uffici di Pisa: Via Santa Bibbiana 28, I 56127 Pisa, tel. +39 050542332, fax +39 050574888, [email protected] Uffici di Roma: Via Carlo Emanuele I 48, I 00185 Roma, tel. +39 0670493456, fax +39 0670476605, [email protected] * Sono rigorosamente vietati la riproduzione, la traduzione, l’adattamento anche parziale o per estratti, per qualsiasi uso e con qualsiasi mezzo eseguiti, compresi la copia fotostatica, il microfilm, la memorizzazione elettronica, ecc., senza la preventiva autorizzazione scritta della Fabrizio Serra editore®, Pisa · Roma.
    [Show full text]
  • Labor Notes Asia Regional Conference, August 16-18, 2019
    Labor Notes Asia Regional Conference, August 16-18, 2019 Friday, August 16 Main Room 1 Room 2 Room 3 8:00am- Registration 9:00am 9:00am- Roundtable: What is Labor Notes? Labor Journalism Training: 11:00am Labor Movement in and Organizing to Build the Progressive Building Union Democracy Taiwan Wing of the Labor Movement 11:15am- Opening Plenary: Highlights of Labor Organizing across Asia 12:15pm Welcome: Labor Notes, International Labor Rights Forum, Taoyuan Serve the People Association Speakers: Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, EVA flight attendants, Action Labor Rights (Myanmar), Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions 12:15pm- Lunch Break 1:45pm 1:45pm- Training: Training: Roundtable: 5:00pm Building A Democratic Approach to Training and Labor Movement in China Transnational Facilitation Campaigns (1:45-4:00pm) Labor Movement in Taiwan How much do you know about Taiwan’s labor movement and workers’ struggles? As the host country of this conference, you cannot miss this introduction on Taiwan’s labor movement. This roundtable discussion features unions across a range of sectors and occupations to provide an overview of the state of the labor movement in Taiwan, and highlight some of the unions’ current organizing efforts. Facilitator: Ray Cheng (Youth Labor Union 95) Speakers: Solidarity, Taiwan Federation of Financial Unions, the Union for Taiwan Higher Education, Taoyuan Union of Pilot, Taipei Doctors’ Union What is Labor Notes? Labor Notes is a media and organizing project that since 1979 has been the voice of union activists in the United States. In this workshop, Labor Notes will discuss our approach to journalism and how we use our magazine, website, books, schools, and conferences to cultivate more activists, and to put them in touch with each other to multiply their power.
    [Show full text]
  • CHALLENGING STATE CORPORATISM: the POLITICS of TAIWAN's LABOR FEDERATION MOVEMENT Ming-Sho
    CHALLENGING STATE CORPORATISM: THE POLITICS OF TAIWAN’S LABOR FEDERATION MOVEMENT ∗ Ming-sho Ho Taiwan’s authoritarian postwar regime instituted numerous legal and extralegal restrictions to ensure labor quiescence. The right of workers to strike and other forms of collective bargaining were highly proscribed, and a system of extensive state-corporatist control emerged.1 According to Philippe Schmitter, state corporatism is a system of noncompetitive, compulsory, hierarchical and limited-interest representation which helps the ruling élites to “repress and exclude the autonomous articulation of subordinate class demands”.2 In Taiwan, state corporatism was characterized by two layers of control. At the workplace level, individual labor unions were closely monitored and manipulated by Kuomintang (KMT) party branches. The latter made sure that only KMT loyalists were elected as union officers so that the state and management could effectively control the unions. At the national level, the KMT pre-emptively recognized one federation of trade unions as the only legitimate representative of Taiwan’s labor. The Chinese Federation of Labor (CFL, quanguo zonggonghui) was patronized, financed and staffed by the KMT and, as a result, labor unions became mere extensions of state rule. They did not represent the rank-and-file. To be sure, the term “corporatism” only captures one dimension of Taiwan’s labor control. Probably unique among non-Communist countries, the KMT also built an extensive Leninist system of party organizations in major factories in the ∗ This study is in part supported by Taiwan’s National Science Council 94-2412-H-343-003. The author thanks Anita Chan, Luigi Tomba, Deborah Brown and anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions.
    [Show full text]