Union calls
for ownership
legislation
in wake of
Postmedia
layoff s
OTTAWA — In the wake of lay-
offs at Postmedia, the Commu-
nications Workers of America
(CWA) union is calling on the
federal government to address
media concentration and own-
ership concerns.
The CWA's announcement
immediately followed a move by
Postmedia on Jan. 19 to cut 90
positions and merge newsrooms
in Ottawa, Vancouver, Calgary
and Edmonton.
The union said legislation or
regulations limiting the con-
centration of media ownership
would "prevent destructive, debt-
leveraged takeovers" of the coun-
try's major daily newspapers.
CWA Canada's president
Mark O'Hanlon called it a "dark
day for journalism."
"We're now seeing why it's so
dangerous to let one corporation
have so much control. It's bad for
journalism, the economy and
democracy," he said in a state-
ment.
Cambodia
fi rms demand
stricter union
bill to halt
'illegal' strikes
PHNOM PENH — Business
owners in Cambodia urged
lawmakers to introduce stricter
measures to a controversial draft
trade union law on Monday to
stabilize a vital manufacturing
sector plagued by unrest, warn-
ing the current bill was too le-
nient towards unions.
The Cambodian Federation of
Employers and Business Asso-
ciations (CAMFEBA) submitted
seven recommendations that in-
cluded empowering the govern-
ment to suspend registration of
unions, instead of only a court,
and for a union to have member-
ship of at least one-fifth factory
workers.
Strikes, mostly over pay, have
left the government with the task
of satisfying workers' demands
and keeping Cambodia's $5-bil-
lion textiles and footwear sector
attractive amid rising competi-
tion.
Van Sou Ieng, president of
CAMFEBA, said strikes were
being masterminded by "misbe-
having" union leaders.
Strikes have often been ac-
companied by violence as police
try to disperse crowds, creating
reputation risks for brands that
outsource to Cambodian fac-
tories, which include Adidas,
Marks & Spencer, Walmart,
Next and Inditex's Zara.
The draft law, originally re-
quested by business owners in
2007 to curb strikes, would set
rules on how unions are formed,
operated and dissolved.
Labour unions and rights
groups have complained the leg-
islation would be too restrictive
and used to trample on workers'
rights.
Pav Sina, president of the
Collective Union Movement of
Workers, said parliament should
adopt legislation that benefits
all, not just business owners.
"There are many obstacles for
unions to operate in this draft
law," Pav Sina told Reuters.
"We call for the removals of
articles suspending unions and
requiring unions to prepare fi-
nancial reports."
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Police offi cers protested outside the presidential palace in Tunis, Tunisia, to demand improvements in pay.
Photo:
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