MEMORANDUM ON FOREIGN LABOR DEVELOPMENTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP85-00024R000500250001-8
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 23, 2007
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: September 5, 1982
• Content Type: MEMO

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a
Week of September 5, 1992
This memorandum is prepared periodically by the Bureau of
International Labor Affairs (ILAB), U.S. Department of Labor,
for the information of authorized persons. We draw'the items
from various sources including: U.S. State Department reports
(use cleared by S/IL), foreign press, ILAB's direct contacts
with foreign labor visitors, foreign government officials, ILO
meetings, and U.S. trade unions. The "ILAB comments" are our
own and do not necessarily represent the views of other
agencies. Recipients are expected to comply with security
regulations in the handling of this document. Questions may be
directed to my staff, 523-7571.
ROBERT W. SEARBY
Deputy Under Secretary
International Affairs
This issue contains the following items:
AFRICA
1. AFL-CIO Delegation to visit Trade Union Leaders its South
Africa CU-1
2. Ghana Moves Slowly in Reorganizing Trades Union Congress (U)
EUROPE
3.. Italian
abor Leaders Call for Re-examination of Italian
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on Foreign Labor Developments
Position on Soviet Gas Pipeline LOU
4. Soviet Union Backs Jaruzelski but Stands Firm on Issue of
Trade Un1 ons C
5. Government of Belgium Faces Critical Unemployment Problem
Not referred to DOL. Waiver
applies.
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FAR EAST AND PACIFIC
6. Jap ese Trade Unionists are Unsuccessful in Deliverin
A
Solidarnosc Protest to Polish
Embassy LOU
7. Journalist's Views on Unification of Japan's Labor
Movement LOU
8. China Begins to Export Labor to the Middle East (C)
9. China's Technical and Vocational Training Problems (LOU)
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
10. General Strike Call A
Ecuador (LOU
11. Communist Peruvian
ravates Pressures on Government of
Strikes (C)
INTERNATIONAL TRADE UNION ORGANIZATIONS
12. Metalworkers Initiate Series of Publications on New
Technolo (U)
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I. AFL. -CT0 Delegation to Visit Trade Union Leaders in South
Africa
An AFL-C_0 delegation consisting of President Sol C. Chaikin of
the Ladies' Garment Workers; President Frederick O'Neal of the
Actors and Artistes; Irving Brown, Director, AFL-CIO
International Affairs Department; and Patrick O'Farrell,
Executive Director, African-American Labor Center (AALC) is
visiting South Africa from September 6 - 16, 1982. The
delegation will seek to obtain a clearer view of current
industrial relations and trade union developments in South
Africa and prospects. for the future. The delegation will also
solicit the views of South African trade union leaders on how
the AFL-CIO, both in its own right and as a member of the
International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), can
be of assistance and will explain to them the AFL-CIO's
interests in this field. (U) (AALC Commercial. Cable to Black
South African Trade Unions, 7/30/82)
ILAB Comment: This AFL-CIO mission reflects a February 1981
resolution by the AFL-CIO Executive Council giving higher
priority to efforts to work within South Africa in support of
emerging black trade unions. The AFL-CIO sees the development
of a viable black labor movement as practically the only
remaining chance to effect peaceful change in South Africa. It
believes that a massive infusion of skills-training to black
workers and the introduction of a more hopeful view of the
quality of life will avert a violent confrontation. (U)
2. Ghana Moves Slowly in Reorganizing Trades Union Congress
A recent government report states that the Ghana Trades Union
Congress (TUC) is to be reorganized by the Ministry of Labor
and Social Welfare with the intention of reviving the
revolutionary and productive potential of workers. According
to the policy guidelines of the Ministry, educational programs,
seminars and lectures will be organized to educate workers at
the Labor College in Accra and workers colleges elsewhere in
the country. With respect to existing national labor laws,
including the Industrial Relations Act of 1965, the guidelines
state that workers seminars will be held to formulate a single.
national labor code which will be brought in line with ILO
standards already ratified by the government. The Ministry,
with ILO technical assistance, would also update the country's
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labor statistics to form the basis of future policies in the
labor and. industrial relations field. (U) (FBIS, 8/17/82)
ILAB COMMENT: The fact that the government has proposed a
reorganization of TUC highlights the absence of a free and
independent trade union movement in Ghana. Aside from this,
and in spite of efforts by those newly appointed to top
positions, the Labor Ministry seems to be moving at a slow pace
partly because there is much ideological confusion among
government officials. The involvement of Workers'Defense
Committees (1IDC) further exacerbates the Labor Ministry's
program implementation with revolutionary rhetoric which calls
for instant social and economic transformation of the Ghanain
trade union movement. The WDC had the support of the ruling
Provisional National Defense Council (PNDC) in ousting the
leadership of the TUC immediately after the December 1981
coup. (C) (O.A.D.R., State S/IL, 632-3662)
EUROPE
3. Italian Labor Leaders Call for Re-examination of Italian
Position on Soviet Gas Pipeline ...
On July 28, the United Federation comprising the
rrTT 4- 11 C h' ' ? t d CYST tL
~.vi.tiuuis.1.j< uou~L#_ 41xe t.atliollc orlenLeU t.40.U and the
socialist/lay UIL, issued a statement which urged the
government to intensify efforts to complete the Italian
contribution to the Soviet gas pipeline construction. Barely a
month later, August 29, UIL Secretary General Giorgio Benvenuto
repudiated the statement by calling on Italy and the rest of
Europe to "re-examine" the Soviet gas pipeline question in
light of the latest developments in Poland. He stated that "we
cannot award money at an interest rate which is generally only
given to third world countries to a nation like the USSR which
most probably will use it to overcome its own internal
difficulties to turn even more tightly the screw. of
repression..." Benvenuto said that continued adherence to the
pipeline contract should be contingent upon two "essential
conditions": (1) that facilitative credit should not be given
to the Soviet Union and; (2) that the Soviets provide "precise
guarantees" regarding the future of Lech Walesa, Solidarity,
and Poland in general. While calling for a tougher line on the
contract, Benvenuto did not speak out against the imminent
delivery of Italian turbines to the Soviet Union for a pipeline
pumping station.
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.In a press interview two days later Pietro Merli-Brandini, a
CISL Confederal Secretary, echoed Benvenuto's concern about the
pipeline deal in the context of Polish developments. He
emphasized that now was the time to reopen the entire question
of trading arrangements with the East Bloc. Unfortunately,
Merli-Brandini, who expresses the views of traditional
Christian Democrats on the CI.SL Board, may reflect only a
minority in that organization. (LOU) (Rome 19703, 8/30/82;
19725, 8/30/82; and 19913, 9/1/82)
ILAB COMMENT: While Benvenuto and Merli-Brandini do not speak
for the entire Italian trade union movement, they have focused
public attention on the connection between the pipeline issue
and the recent increase in tension in Poland - a development
certainly to be welcomed by the U.S. Government. (LOU)
4. Soviet Union Backs Jaruzelski but Stands Firm on Issue of
Trade Unions
Pravda greeted the second anniversary of the Gdansk Accords by
pointedly juxtaposing two articles pertinent to the Polish
crisis: a report of General Jaruzelski's August 29 speech to
the Poznan Military Academy; and an article by-East German
labor boss and Politburo member Harry Tisch on the role of
trade unions in a communist society. Reporting on Jaruzelski's
speech, Pravda did print the General's mention of "socialist
renewal" and-his reaffirmation of his intention to lift martial
law by the end of the year if possible. The article, however,
ignored several significant passages including his assertion
that "broad authentic accord is a national necessity" and his
promise that "the trade union movement will be reborn on sound
principles and independent of the administration." In the
second article, Tisch, who focused on the question of
increasing productivity in East Germany, stated that "unless
the unions contribute to improving the economy, they will not
be fulfilling their main function--to be the representatives of
the interests of the working class." In his conclusion, he
emphasized that East German workers "under the leadership of
the Marxist-Leninist vanguard of the working class--the
Socialist Unity (Communist) Party"--are dealing with the
challenges of "socialist construction." Pravda's message is
that the Soviets back Jaruzeiski in his efforts to maintain
order and pursue "normalization," but the proper role of trade
unions in a communist country remains that of a "school of
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socialism" subservient to the party. (C) (Moscow 10459,
8/31/823)
ILAB COMMENT: Moscow's hardline position on the proper role of
"tracFe un ons" will certainly not make it any easier for
Jaruzelski to attain "normalization" in Poland. (LOU)
5. Government of Belgium Faces Critical Unemployment Problem
Belgium's 12.6 percent unemployment rate is the highest in the
European Community (EC). Soon after taking office last
December, the Martins Government obtained special powers from
Parliament to deal with urgent economic problems. While some
of the government measures designed to combat unemployment--a
wage freeze and a decrease in the valued-added tax on
construction goods and services--have been put in force,
others, notably a plan to maintain employment at the March 1982
level through 1983, have not been realized as the result of
opposition from unions or employers.
Our Embassy observes that the government's success or failure
in handling the unemployment problem has important implications
for the U.S. as well as Belgium. First, rising unemployment
could impact on Belgium's political stability. Second, it
could encourage Belgian support for a new EC protectionism.
Third, it could affect NATO security in that Belgium, for the
sake of preserving or increasing employment, might be tempted
to get around or ignore guidelines and cautionary practices in
the trade area that serve the common security. On this last
point, the Embassy notes that this is a temptation faced by
other Alliance partners who also must deal with growing
unemployment. (U) (Brussels 11439, 8/30/82)
FAR EAST AND PACIFIC
6. Japanese Trade Unionists are Unsuccessful in Delivering
Soli arnosc Protest to Foils Embassy
At the urging of-the headquarters of the non-communist ICFTU,
the Japanese Liaison Council (ICFTU-LC) prepared a letter
urging redress of wrongs done Solidarnosc and attempted to
deliver it to the Polish Embassy in Tokyo. The Charge refused
to meet the delegation, charging that ICFTU-LC action
constituted interference in Poland's domestic affairs. Our
Embassy comments that the ICFTU-LC effort received little
attention in
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the local press and that the ICFTU-LC was running into
increasing indifference to the Solidarnosc issue in the media
and the trade union movement. The leftist General Council of
Trade Unions (SOHHYO), which hosted Lech Walesa's 1981 visit to
Japan with much fanfare, has been virtually silent on the
Polish problem for the past nine months. (LOU) (Tokyo 15065,
9/2/82)
7. Journalist'
Views on Unification of Ja
Tateki Ijichi the Chief Editor of the Weekly Labour News, a
publication of the Japan Insititute of Labor, told an ILAB
official that a council of mainly private sector unions which
will be set up in December to further the unification of the
trade union movement will have a membership of 4.7-4.8 million,
larger than SOHYO, Japan's largest confederation. If plans
mature, the council would become a national labor center in
four or five years representing a unified trade union
movement. In response to a query, Ijichi said SOHYO
(left-of-center) might "fight like hell" to avoid being
absorbed into the new labor center. He also said that his
scenario for unification assumes few changes in Japan's
political.and.economic situation in the next several years..
(LOU)
8. China Begins to Export Labor to the Middle East
Two recent reports indicate that China is expanding its labor
export program into the Middle East. In the first visit to
China in four years by a high Libyan official, the Secretary of
the General People's Committee apparently discussed increasing
the number of Chinese'who have been working in Libya -
since 1981. Information about the number of Chinese now there
is difficult to obtain and estimates range from 1,000 to
10,000. Some of these work on projects contracted by Spanish
companies, others are covered by,a Sino-Libyan
government-to-government agreement. A prominent businessman
from the United Arab Emirates recently signed an agreement with
the state-owned China Construction Engineering Corporation to
provide labor, expertise and materials for the design and
construction of housing and building projects. No indication
was given regarding the number of workers to be involved. (C)
(Beijing 11631, 8/30/82; FBIS, 6/26/82)
ILAB COMMENT: We have been aware that Chinese workers have
been employed in recent years in Africa and South Asia, but
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China is apparently entering the Middle East labor market in
earnest. The expansion of Chinese workers in Libya follows the
unsuccessful effort this spring by thousands of Tunisian
workers to find employment in Libya. (U)
9. China's Technical and' Vocational Training Problems
The shortage of adequately trained personnel is a major
constraint. to China's modernization and it has been working to.
improve its technical and. vocational schools. There has been
some progress made although such training runs counter to the
traditional family desire for college preparatory studies for
its young people. The ratio of technical to regular secondary
students rose rapidly to 3.6% in 1980. But this ratio still
falls short of the 10.9% ratio of other less developed
countries cited by the World Bank. The rapid expansion of such
training led to problems of quality and standards. This
resulted in a 14% cutback in the number of secondary technical
students in 1981--a move aimed at improving the quality of
graduates. (LOU) (Beijing A-51, 7/30/82)
ILAB COMMENT': Besides the problem of traditional educational
values, China has, since 1976, been trying to rebuild its
vocational school system which was virtually dismantled during
the Cultural Revolution. (U)
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
10. General Strike Call Aggravates Pressures on Government of
Ecuador
In an August 30 press conference, Jose Chavez, current Chairman
of the Workers Unity Front (FUT), announced a two-day general
strike for September 22-23. At the same time he gave the
government until September 15_ to respond to FUT demands, which
include an increase of the monthly industrial minimum wage; a
cost of living escalator clause; freezing the prices of basic
commodities, transportation fares, electricity, telephone and
water rates for workers; and a five-year freeze in dismissals.
The FUT furthers communist goals of undermining popular support
for the democratic center-left government, building up the
communist party of Ecuador, and remains a loose-knit collection
of independent labor confederations.
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As our Embassy comments, the long-awaited FUT announcement
compounds the government's political problems. There is no way
the government ca.p come close to meeting FUT demands. Even.
Chavez associates consider them totally unrealistic, but it is
possible, if not likely, that some middle ground can yet be
found. (LOU) (Quito, 6319, 8/31/82)
11. Communist Peruvian
Union Strikes
The communist-dominated Bank Employees Federation (FEB)
surprised the government and the nation's bank customers by
waiting until banks closed for a three-day holiday weekend to
announce that its long-awaited "indefinite" strike would begin
the next workday, August 31. The last day of the month is.
payday for most Peruvian workers, so the strike left many of
them unpaid. The FEB and the bankers remain far apart on
contract terms after two months of negotiations. The FEB had
already given the required three days advance notice for a
strike beginning Friday, September 3. The pretext for
advancing the date of the strike was that the bankers' latest
response to the FEB's demands only increased the bankers'
-previous offer by a thousand soles a month (just over a
dollar), which the FEB considered an insult. The government,
particularly Labor ,Minister Alfonso Grados, responded with
indignation at the FEB's tactics, and declared the strike
illegal. (Once a strike is declared illegal, workers must
return to work within three days or they can be fired.)
Our Embassy points out that the FEB is the dues-paying core of
the communist-dominated CGTP, Peru's largest labor central.
Its members, well-paid and generally politically conservative,
continually reelect their Moscow-line communist union leaders,
satisfied that their militancy helps get bigger raises. Work
stoppages are part of the normal labor management negotiating
process, but FEB is well known for its skill in causing maximum
inconvenience. (C) (Lima, 8914, 9/1/82)
INTERNATIONAL TRADE UNION ORGANIZATIONS
12. Metalworkers Initiate Series of Publications on New
Technology
The full impact of new technology and microelectronics on the
workplaces and offices in the metal industry has yet to be
realized according to a report on Microelectronics and
Employment just published by the International Metalworkers'
Fe eration (IMF). The report also argues that the nature of
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work must change if the new technology is not to increase
unemployment and that workers must be involved at an early
stage in its introduction. The report is the first of a series
under the heading Technology, Employment and Strategies for
Trade Unions which is being prepared under IMF direction by the
Berlin Technology Centre. (U) (IMF News, 12/82)
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