Canadian Labour Reporter

7 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2014 CANADIAN LABOUR REPORTER by aligning with unions around the world it can expand its reach, he said. In February the union narrowly lost an elec- tion to represent more than 1,500 workers at the Volkswagen AG plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was with the help of the German union IG Metall that the UAW was able to persuade VW to remain neutral throughout the process. Bill Murnighan, research director for Uni- for, called the partnership a strong example of international co-operation. "The global reach of some of the largest em- ployers has expanded tremendously in the last several decades," Murnighan said. "Having those connections with trade unions around the world is really helpful." But along with the benefits of a global play- ing field come serious complications. Different languages, cultures and union structures can combine to create complex lo- gistical obstacles. But these obstacles are not by any means insurmountable, Murnighan said. North American unions looking to become global players are facing the same barriers the labour movement overcame historically to create unions. Unions — like the UAW — had to overcome competition to create common conditions and make sure this factory down the road wasn't being pitted against that fac- tory up the street, Murnighan said. "It's the same dynamic, it's just on a much larger scale." And while that large scale can seem in- timidating, Murnighan feels strongly that the widespread globalization of unions is not the earth-shattering shift some may fear. "I don't foresee a single organization that is going to be the union for workers in five differ- ent countries at once," he said. "What I see are strong-rooted unions in your country having much stronger international connections and capacity to work together. There's not a ten- sion between having strong national unions and strong global unions." And the faster unions make the move to this bigger playing field, the better their chances are in the end game. "Globalization is not going away," Mur- nighan said. "It is only deepening and widen- ing and as such trade unions need to do the same." John Peters — an assistant professor at Lau- rentian University who has written extensive- ly about unions and globalization — agrees that union solidarity is necessary for progress. And while the sharing of information has been the extent of most union cooperation, Peters believes further integration between labour groups around the world is necessary for substantive growth. Standardized collective agreements co-or- dinating everything from wages to work hours would improve the lives of workers around the world. What stands in the way of this co- operative collective bargaining on a global level is the animosity and mistrust fostered by competition, Peters said. "There are long, historical reasons why unions have not been co-operative," he said. Many underrepresented workers around the world fear organizing efforts will ultimate- ly cost them their jobs, fostering a mistrust of unions. At the same time, agreements made in underrepresented areas are becoming the benchmarks companies take back to unions in the U.S. and Canada. This increases conflict between the parties and further lowers the chances of those underrepresented areas be- coming unionized. "People think it's a cultural thing," Peters said of the obstacles facing global unions. "It's not just a culture thing; it's a bargaining thing and it's a real political thing. But you have to get past the animosity, you have to get past the mistrust and you have to sit down in good faith and set out long-term goals. Those are the big hurdles." According to Peters, one of the best exam- ples of this level of co-operation is Industri- ALL Global Union. Founded in 2012, IndustriALL was formed by affiliates of the former global union federa- tions the International Metalworkers' Federa- tion, the International Federation of Chemi- cal, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions and the International Textiles Gar- ment and Leather Workers' Federation. With a head office located in Geneva, Switzerland, the global union reportedly represents 50 million workers in 140 coun- tries. "Help your colleagues around the world and get help from them. That's the very basic notion," said Jyrki Raina, IndustriALL's gen- eral secretary. "In a borderless, globalized world, organized labour has to work glob- ally and together more than ever. If companies have global strategies then trade unions have to have global strategies as well; if unions want to make an impact they have to operate all over the world." Raina admits differences in language, cul- ture and union structures seriously compli- cate efforts to co-operate. What unites unions all over the world, however, are the basic needs of workers. "The basic issues are the same; the right to join a union, living wages, working hours, safety and health." Raina likens the situation to a giant, global family. "A family is never without its problems, but there's no other alternative than to continue together," he said. "And for the new generation it's easier to understand because they see what the world is today. They are not looking back; they are looking to the future." And when unions around the world join together with the strength of a global family, Raina said, they will finally be competing with companies on an even playing field. news Photo: Rebecca Cook (Reuters) Former UAW president Bob King used his farewell speech to rally members in a renewed effort to make the union a global player. King said globalization is the union's best hope for growth. Long history of competition could stand in way of global unions < from pg. 1

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