1 dead, 12 trapped in Penang construction site collapse

Story by Predeep Nambiar • Free Malaysia Today

Fire and rescue department personnel trying to locate the 12 victims. (JBPM pic)© Provided by Free Malaysia Today

GEORGE TOWN: At least one person has died and 12 more are believed to have been buried alive beneath construction debris after a partially built building collapsed tonight.

A fire and rescue department official said the incident occurred near the Fisheries Development Board office in Batu Maung around 10pm.

Rescue teams from three fire stations are currently at the scene trying to locate the victims, the official said.

“We can’t say anything for certain on the status of the people trapped at the moment,” the official said when contacted.

According to the official, a total of 18 workers, all Bangladeshi nationals, were first reported to be buried under the rubble.

As of 11.55pm, five people had been rescued, with three of them pulled out from the rubble by other construction workers on site.

Some 12 workers are still missing. One worker was reported to have been killed instantly.

Penang has been hit by a series of construction disasters over the years in view of the large number of development projects being carried out on the island.

In 2017, a 10m hill slope collapsed adjacent to a condominium construction site in Tanjung Bungah, resulting in the death of 11 people.

Subsequently, in 2018, nine construction workers lost their lives in a landslide at a bypass project near Air Itam.

In 2019, a retaining wall collapsed at a resort on Jalan Batu Ferringhi, claiming the lives of four construction workers.

U$A

A construction worker was fatally injured at Lambeau Field. Now, 2 local companies face penalties

Becky Jacobs, Green Bay Press-Gazette
Tue, November 28, 2023 

GREEN BAY — Federal inspectors found violations and proposed fines against two companies after a construction worker died in June at Lambeau Field.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to Miron Construction Co., Inc. and Mavid Construction earlier this month. USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin requested and received the documents from the agency on Monday.

Earlier this year, crews replaced the two large video boards at Lambeau's north and south ends and renovated concession stands throughout the stadium.


OSHA began its investigation after 27-year-old Joshua Shaw, of Clintonville, was injured June 15 while working at Lambeau Field. He died two days later.

Shaw was "one of our valued carpenters" at Mavid Construction, Zoar Fulwilder, the Green Bay company's owner, said in a statement to the Green Bay Press-Gazette Tuesday. Shaw was a second-generation employee, and his father and brother also work at Mavid Construction, according to the statement.

"As a family-owned company, this loss has truly impacted us all," Fulwilder said. "We continue to support both the Shaw family and our employees. Mavid Construction is working with the Shaw family to carry on Josh’s legacy through a scholarship that will benefit future generations interested in pursuing a career in the construction industry."

Fulwilder added, "We have been in communication with OSHA since the incident and are committed to safety on all of our project sites."

Miron Construction, headquartered in Neenah, was the general contractor on the project.

"We have been working with the proper officials and will continue following their established and trusted processes as we are committed to providing safe and productive project sites for all our team members," the company said in a statement Tuesday to the Press-Gazette. "Miron has a longstanding rapport with OSHA and we expect that to continue."

Construction crews work to expand the video boards at Lambeau Field on April 4, 2023, in Green Bay, Wis. A construction worker was fatally injured at the stadium June 15. Earlier this month, OSHA issued citations and proposed penalties against Mavid Construction and Miron Construction.

Carpenter struck by dumbwaiter car, OSHA says

On June 15, Shaw "was conducting framing operations inside the newly expanded" north end zone scoreboard, according to OSHA. The scoreboard has six levels and a roof section, and Shaw was working on the first level.

Around 10 a.m., Shaw leaned over a guardrail around the hoistway where the dumbwaiter car traveled to talk with another employee "about needing equipment," the agency said. Shaw asked for a table saw to be loaded on the dumbwaiter and lifted to the scoreboard's first level from the lower concourse, according to OSHA.

When the two finished talking, the other employee turned to walk away from the opening, OSHA said. As Shaw leaned over the guardrail, the dumbwaiter car, operated by pendant, came down from the upper levels of the scoreboard and struck him in the back of the head, according to the agency.

"The dumbwaiter car continued to descend," OSHA said, and trapped Shaw.

Emergency crews responded to the scene, and firefighters extricated Shaw within seven minutes. He was taken to St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay.

OSHA opened inspection cases involving Mavid and Miron that month.

More: Suamico roofing contractor faces $180K fine over fall hazards at Appleton, Menasha sites

OSHA issues fine of more than $15,000 to both businesses

Federal inspectors found two violations for each of the companies, according to letters that OSHA sent the businesses, dated Nov. 15. The agency proposed a penalty of $15,626 for Mavid and $18,976 for Miron.

According to OSHA, the companies' employees and subcontractors "were exposed to pinch-point hazards associated with the operation of an electric dumbwaiter when the employer did not ensure the controls for the lift had been tagged or locked to render the lift inoperable."

The companies also "did not ensure that employees and contractors were qualified by training or experience prior to allowing them to operate the lifting device," the agency said, among other issues.

Mavid and Miron each have 15 business days after receiving the citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Reporter Doug Schneider contributed to this story.

Reach Becky Jacobs at bjacobs@gannett.com or 920-993-7117. Follow her on Twitter at @ruthyjacobs.

This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: OSHA cites Mavid, Miron related to carpenter's death at Lambeau Field

 

BANGLADESH

Making workplace safe for construction workers

Safety precautions are frequently ignored in the construction sector since owners, contractors, and workers lack knowledge and training or are careless. PHOTO: PRABIR DAS

Over the past few years, Bangladesh has experienced a surge in the construction industry as our rapid population growth has necessitated adequate housing for everyone. And that's not all—the government is also implementing dozens of massive projects to improve the country's infrastructure.

In response to these demands, Bangladesh has seen a considerable contribution to its GDP coming from the construction sector, which reflects the industry's significance. According to the data of Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), construction added Tk 3.7 lakh crore to the GDP in 2022. This is an increase over the sum for the year 2021—Tk 3.2 lakh crore.

The Labour Force Survey 2017-18 of BBS reveals that the construction industry provides employment for more than 3.4 million individuals or approximately 5.6 percent of the nation's total workforce. But in this bustling panorama of the construction sector, there lies a shadow that often goes unnoticed: the frightening rate of accidents and fatalities suffered by construction workers.

Read more

Workplace safety for construction workers

According to a report published by non-governmental organisation Safety and Rights Society (SRS), over 700 fatalities of construction workers, as reported in newspapers, happened across the country between 2017 and 2021. This equates to an annual death toll of 143, on average. Because many fatalities and accidents occur on construction sites in our country every year, the vast majority of them never make it into official records or newspaper headlines.

Based on the report by SRS, in 2021, construction accidents ranked second in terms of workplace fatalities. The transportation sector witnessed the highest deaths among all workplaces, while the manufacturing sector ranked third. While discussions about reducing fatalities have consistently focused on the manufacturing and transportation sectors, the high number of deaths in the construction industry does not receive the attention it deserves.

When it comes to the cause of death in the construction industry, according to the SRS report, between 2017 and 2021, the most common cause of death was a fall from height (245 people), followed by electrocution (223 people), inhaling poisonous gas or suffocation (91 people), wall/mud/roof/stair/earth collapse (78 people), crushed by object (64 people), explosion (two people) and others (nine people). The data suggests that the considerable disregard for safety concerns by construction workers and owners of construction sites is the direct cause of the fatalities.

Read more

When death is built into the system

Safety precautions in construction sites are frequently ignored in Bangladesh since owners, contractors, and workers are often unwilling to ensure them because of carelessness and a lack of understanding, training, and knowledge. If we look at the causes of deaths mentioned above, we can see that the casualties caused by falling from a height, being electrocuted, and breathing in poisonous gas or suffocating could be easily reduced if those in charge of the construction site take some precautions or pay a little more attention to safety.

Some experts may bring up the issue of implementing the Bangladesh National Building Code, 2020 (BNBC), but doing so is not an easy task at the moment. Furthermore, without an efficient regulatory authority throughout the country, BNBC implementation will not be successful. Nevertheless, we cannot wait for such an authority to be established, because the death toll is increasing year after year. Along with pressing the government to establish a regulatory authority for BNBC, we must strive to raise awareness and disseminate knowledge and training among workers and construction site owners about the importance of using safety equipment and taking precautions.

Read more

Shipbreaking yards or graves for workers?

Such awareness must be raised through the combined efforts of the public and private sectors, and worker rights organisations and relevant NGOs must take the initiative to do so. A great example of this can be seen in Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST), which has a long history of providing legal aid and assistance to workers. More recently, as part of the "Empowering Workers for Justice" initiative, BLAST has supported construction workers through a variety of initiatives, including raising awareness of construction workers' rights and responsibilities regarding safety and legal protection at workplaces. Such initiatives should be continued as well as broadened by strengthening affiliation with government and other organisations. I believe, with all of our efforts, we may be able to make significant headway to prevent fatalities and injuries from such avoidable causes.

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Fahad Bin Siddique is research officer at Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST).

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Views expressed in this article are the author's own.

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Follow The Daily Star Opinion on Facebook for the latest opinions, commentaries and analyses by experts and professionals. To contribute your article or letter to The Daily Star Opinion, see our guidelines for submission.

NIGERIA
Protests At Escravos Terminal: NNPCL, NUPRC Disown Chevron

* How Chevron, Olu of Warri Palace collude to circumvent NUPRC recommendations, PIB laws

By: Freshangle | on 27/11/2023 | 



The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) have disowned the American oil giant, Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL) over the poor implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act in its areas of operations in the Niger Delta.

NNPCL and NUPRC in response to the ongoing protests by the indigenes of Ugborodo, Deghele and Ugboegungun communities at the Escravos loading terminal, said the American oil giant should be held responsible for the action.

The umpires in the oil industry were reported to have concluded that failure of the management to comply with extant laws enshrined in the PIA was responsible for the seizure of its facilities in Escravos.

It was gathered that the umpires were particularly livid that CNL jettisoned the PIA in desperation to satisfy the Palace of the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III.

Findings showed that NNPCL and NUPRC were irked that Chevron ignored the advice of NUPRC on the amicable resolution of the impasse between it and indigenes of Ugborodo, Deghele and Ugboegungun communities over the naming of the Host Community Development Trust (HCDT) for communities around Escravos terminal

The umpires were unhappy that the Palace of the Olu of Warri dictated and imposed a unilateral omnibus name for the communities, a development that negates the spirits of PIA.

Specifically, NUPRC was unimpressed that CNL ignored the letter dispatched to its Managing Director, Mr. Ricky Kennedy, on the resolution of the protracted crisis over the implementation of PIA in its host communities.

The Chief Executive of NUPRC, Mr. Gbenga Komolafe, in a letter to CNL boss dated September 6th, 2023, asked Chevron's management to respect the spirits and letters of PIA in handling the grievances of its communities of Ugborodo, Deghele and Ugboegungun.

Komolafe ordered Chevron to act in consultation with the commission and the three communities on the naming of the HCDT for communities around Escravos terminal.

Besides, Komolafe directed that Chevron in consultation with host communities should expand the proposed membership of HCDT Board of Trustees from five to nine.

"You are hereby required to work peacefully with the host communities in the implementation of the above within 2 weeks from receipt of this letter," Komolafe warned.

However, Chevron was reported to have contravened Komolafe's order in desperation to satisfy the parochial whims and caprices of the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III.

In obedience to the Warri monarch, CNL's management circumvented the PIA, by imposing a name, alien to the law for the HCDT for communities around Escravos terminal.

Instead of the Ikpere Host Community Development Trust (IHCDT) demanded by Ugborodo,Deghele and Ugboegungun communities for the committees around Escravos terminal, CNL colluded with the Palace of the Olu of Warri, to impose Warri Kingdom Onshore Host Communiyy Development Trust (WKOHCT).

"The WKOHCT which Chevron and Olu of Warri Palace concerted and conspired to impose on the people is against the PIA and contravened the position canvassed by NUPRC in the letter duly conveyed to the company. The PIA is clear and it cannot be subjected to any manipulation by any individual, no matter, how highly placed.

"Law is law and it should be respected by Chevron and the Palace of the Olu of Warri. They should know that PIA is a law and it cannot be manipulated. The reason for the ongoing protests is the unholy alliance by Chevron and Palace of the Olu of Warri to circumvent the PIA.

"Until the PIA is duly implemented, the protesters have vowed to remain at the terminal. PIA only recognises oil bearing communities and not a blanket kingdom, which the Olu of Warri and Chevron are planning to foist on us. We are resisting it and we are going to sustain the resistance.

"The umpires - NNPCL and NUPRC believed that CNL is responsible for the ongoing crisis at the Escravos loading terminal by not doing the right thing and its management have been told to obey the law to guarantee peace," added the source.

In a statement on behalf of the protesters, Alex Eyengho, said his kinsmen would not vacate the scene unless Chevron implemented the PIA to the letters.

Eyengho, who bemoaned the sponsorship of the troops of the Nigerian Navy to intimidate peaceful and armless protesters by the management of CNL, said no amount of threat and intimidation would deter his people from achieving their legitimate goals.

Eyengho added that the protesters would remain in the area until their 41-point demand are met by the authorities in CNL.

The protesters had seized the Escravos loading terminal since Monday, November 20th, expressing anger over alleged disregard of the law by CNL's management in the implementation of the PIA.

.....:Syndicated Report

UK
Oxfam workers vote to strike for first time

27th November 2023, 

Galya Dimitrova

BBC News

Oxfam workers will go on a 17-day strike throughout December for the first time in the charity's 81-year history.

Unite union said this was due to staff being angry that average wages at the Oxford-based charity had been cut in real terms by 21% since 2018.

The union said 83% of workers voted in favour of strike action in a ballot with an 82% turnout.

An Oxfam GB spokesperson said the charity planned to meet with Unite to discuss further steps.

About 500 Oxfam GB staff members, who work across the charity’s shops, offices and Oxford headquarters, plan to walk out between 8 and 31 December.

It would impact offices and more than 200 shops.

The decision came after workers had rejected a pay increase of £1,750 or six per cent, plus a one-off taxed payment of £1,000 for the lowest earners.

Unite said the charity had repeatedly refused to enter fresh negotiations.

The union's general secretary, Sharon Graham, accused Oxfam of hypocrisy as "its own workers report having to use foodbanks", while the charity was "an extremely wealthy organisation".

Oxfam reported cash reserves stood at £44.6 million in 2022.

'Deeply regret'

An Oxfam GB spokesperson said they were "acutely aware" of the pressures that the rising cost of living has had on their workers.

"We chose to bring forward paying the latest real Living Wage increases, and prioritised lower paid colleagues in this year’s award," the spokesperson said.

“We deeply regret that we could not do more but the settlement Unite is asking for is simply not affordable for Oxfam at a time when many of the communities we work with around the world are also facing sharply rising costs."

 Foreign care staff invited to the UK  “exploited on a grand scale”, union says.

Foreign care staff invited to the UK to help fix a chronic worker shortage are being “exploited on a grand scale”, a trade union has said, after it emerged some had been effectively paid as little as £5 an hour and charged thousands of pounds in unexpected fees.

One worker from Botswana being helped by the healthcare union Unison said she worked in domiciliary care from 6am to 10pm six days a week but was paid less than half the legal minimum. The Wiltshire company laid her off after losing the council care contract and now she fears deportation. Another company in Cambridgeshire, which recruited from abroad, shut last week, leaving workers fearing deportation.

In another case, cited by the union, an employer demanded £4,000 for “training costs” when a migrant care worker tried to leave for a job in the NHS and a third care worker was hit with hidden administration fees including £395 for a “cultural induction”.

The incidents have come to light amid reports the immigration minister, Robert Jenrick, has drawn up options to curb immigration, including banning workers from bringing dependants, or restricting them to one relative.

The Home Office extended skilled worker visas to foreign care workers in February 2022 to help fill 165,000 social care vacancies, which were leaving some of the UK’s most vulnerable people struggling for help.

Most recruits have come from Nigeria, India and Zimbabwe, according to Skills for Care, a government-funded agency. Since the Home Office added care workers to the shortage occupation list, 14% of care workers in England are now from non-EU countries (excluding the UK), while 7% are from the EU.

The Unison general secretary, Christina McAnea, said: “The care system would implode without migrant care staff. Demonising these workers will do nothing to solve the social care crisis.”

About 78,000 people secured visas to come and work in social care in the year to June 2023. But the rules mean that if a worker is laid off, or their employer closes down they must find a new sponsoring employer within 60 days or face deportation. This gives employers additional power over workers and Unison is urging the government to allow them more time to find new work.

Annie, a care worker from Botswana, was one of the first to arrive under the scheme, but said her private agency only paid for the hours that she was caring for clients in their homes in Wiltshire and Somerset.

It meant she worked 15-hour days, including waiting for appointments and driving between clients, but was only paid for about six hours. She said the employer also withheld much of her wages for three consecutive months, only repaying her later. It also required her to share a room with a stranger.

“I have been living with anxiety since I arrived here,” she said. “I have problems trusting anyone because they built a fear in me when I arrived.”

She has a new job, but her current employer has not yet agreed to sponsor her visa and the 60-day deadline falls this week, leaving her worried about whether she will be able to stay in the UK. She has sold up many of her possessions in Botswana.

McAnea said: “Overseas care workers have been encouraged to come here to support those most in need, only for some employers to treat them as expendable.

“Ministers must stop being complicit in allowing this abuse to happen. The government needs to reform immigration rules, not make them more draconian.”

One care worker who came from the Philippines, said she and others had been “dropped like we don’t exist any more” by a care company that went into administration.

“The overseas staff feel very confused and manipulated,” she told her union. “They kept the closure quiet until the last minute so they could use us until we weren’t needed any more.”

A government spokesperson said: “We do not tolerate abuse in the labour market and where we identify exploitative practices are being undertaken by sponsors we take action. This can include the revocation of their licence.

“The Gangmaster and Labour Abuse Authority is working with other law enforcement agencies to identify illegal working and those found operating unlawfully will face prosecution or removal from the sponsorship register.”

UK 

Architectural workers trade union becomes part of Unite

27 NOVEMBER 2023 ·BY WILL HURST




2/2 The United Voices of the World Union (UVW) with members of the new architectural branch Section of Architectural Workers (SAW)

The Section of Architectural Workers (SAW) trade union has affiliated to Unite, which has vowed to give ‘substantial legal and industrial support’ to architect members involved in disputes

SAW was set up in 2019 to combat what it described as the sector’s ‘toxic culture’ of overwork, underpay and discrimination. Until now, it has been a grassroots union run by and for its members as part of the United Voices of the World (UVW) union.

Now it has become a national branch of Unite, one of the UK's largest unions with 1.4 million members from 19 different sectors, including construction. Unite has vowed to help improve pay and conditions within the architecture sector.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: ‘Unite is extremely pleased to welcome members of the Section of Architectural Workers to our union family

‘As part of Unite, SAW’s members will be able to closely collaborate with the wider construction sector, access expert training and receive substantial legal and industrial support during disputes.

‘Unite looks forward to working with SAW’s indomitable organisers in helping growing numbers of architectural workers achieve improvement to their jobs, pay and conditions.’

Since its formation, SAW says it has co-ordinated members in taking industrial action to work from home during the pandemic and supported more than 150 members in winning settlements worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.

It also successfully campaigned for Muyiwa Oki to become the first worker-representative to be elected president of the RIBA.

A SAW spokesperson said: ‘This is an incredibly exciting moment for SAW and the architectural labour movement generally. By affiliating to Unite, the UK’s leading union, architectural workers are now even better equipped to fight against the workplace mistreatment they so regularly face.

‘If you are not already a member of SAW, now is the time to join Unite, get organised and transform the sector from the bottom-up.’

Unite regional officer Declan Murphy said: ‘With the creation of the new architectural branch, Unite now represents workers across the entire construction industry. From the drawing board to putting shovels in the ground, from engineering to joinery, Unite is there standing up for all construction workers.’

UK Architectural Workers Organise to Open First Union Branch

27 November 2023

ARCHITECTURAL workers have organised to open the sector’s first ever branch in Unite, the UK’s construction union.

The Section of Architectural Workers (SAW), set up in 2019 as a grassroots union, has affiliated to Unite, forming a national branch earlier this month.

Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham said: “Unite is extremely pleased to welcome members of SAW to our union family. As part of Unite, SAW’s members will be able to closely collaborate with the wider construction sector, access expert training and receive substantial legal and industrial support during disputes.

“Unite looks to forward to working with SAW’s indomitable organisers in helping a growing numbers of architectural workers achieve improvement to their jobs, pay and conditions.”

Since its inception, SAW has coordinated members in taking industrial action to work from home during the pandemic. It has also supported 150 members with individual casework resulting in settlements totalling hundreds of thousands of pounds.

SAW RIBA President

SAW successfully campaigned to elect Muyiwa Oki as the first worker-representative as President of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).

A SAW spokesperson said: “This is an incredibly exciting moment for SAW and the architectural labour movement generally. By affiliating to Unite, the UK’s leading union, architectural workers are now even better equipped to fight against the workplace mistreatment they so regularly face.”

Unite Regional Officer Declan Murphy said: “With the creation of the new architectural branch, Unite now represents workers across the entire construction industry. From the drawing board to putting shovels in the ground, from engineering to joinery.”

US Social Security agency turnover may undermine hiring plans, union says

By Molly Weisner
Nov 27, 2023

 Social Security Administration's main campus is seen in Woodlawn, Md. More than 1 million Americans are waiting for a hearing to see whether they qualify for disability benefits from Social Security. Their average wait will be nearly two years, longer than some of them will live. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)


Note: This story was updated on Nov. 27 to include responses from the Social Security Administration.

A union representing 42,000 employees at the Social Security Administration says the agency’s plans to leverage direct-hire authority and other tools to boost recruitment in 2024 may be undermined by high attrition rates.


According to survey data obtained by Federal Times, nearly 24% of new hires are looking to leave the agency, most in as little as two years, and for various reasons including retirement or to take another job. About 22% of those who said they’re leaving cited feeling overworked. This year, the agency more than doubled the number of new staff brought in during the prior two fiscal years.

Turnover can vary between agencies, though the federal government’s attrition rate surveying 2 million employees has held steady at around 6% in recent years.

“All in all, this indicates that SSA’s short term strategy of focusing resources on hiring, rather than investment in current experienced employees, has not been effective in improving morale and reducing attrition,” said Rich Couture, president of Council 215 of the American Federation of Government Employees.

As the highly anticipated rankings come out for 2022, agencies are still grappling with stabilizing their workforces post-pandemic.

By Molly Weisner

The data, which reflects feedback for 2022 and 2023, also showed more departing employees were seeking a different job within the government than one outside.

“It is AFGE’s assertion that many of the employees who left would likely have stayed if workloads and work expectations were more reasonable, and if pay, benefits, and working conditions were better and more competitive,” Couture said. “Doing so would also improve retention of new hires as well.”

According to the agency’s long-term plans and $15.5 billion budget request for fiscal 2024, the agency has recognized it’s “confronting historically high employee losses, especially in the disability determination services,” and that “new strategies for employee recruitment and retention” have improved attrition.

“We are addressing these issues in a variety of ways, including hiring more employees, streamlining and automating processes, improving our training and better distributing employee workloads,” said an agency spokesperson in an email. “We remain vigilant on matters involving employee engagement, morale, and equity.”


The spokesperson said that despite onboarding approximately 7,900 new full-time employees in 2023, the agency is “once again unable to hire under a continuing resolution.”

With Congress yet to finalize a budget for 2024 nearly two months into the fiscal year, funding levels for the agency and others remain stagnant, leaving no room to expand programs or move forward on workforce planning. The spokesperson said a lack of funding risks eroding recruitment gains the agency has made, thereby also undermining efforts to even out workloads for existing employees.

RELATED
Biden warns of GOP plans for Medicare, Social Security cuts

“Many of our employees choose to work at SSA because they identify with our public service mission,” said Acting Commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi in a memo accompanying the budget. “To retain staff and remain a competitive employer, we are also exploring other longer-term reforms to build and sustain a diverse and skilled workforce to deliver the services Americans depend on for years to come.”

The most recent Federal Employee Viewpoints Survey for SSA backs that up: 90% of employees certified that contributing to the common good is of high importance. Nearly three-quarters say they identify with the mission behind their job, whether its dispensing supplemental income to retirees or approving disability pay for workers.


That mission has only grown, Couture said, while SSA’s workforce has barely held on.

RELATED

Almost 70% of federal employees still telework, OPM poll finds 

According to the 2023 results, 17% telework one or two days per week. 

By Molly Weisner

In 2022, the acting commissioner said the agency experienced a 25-year staffing low due to insufficient funding. All the while, employees and AFGE leaders have been calling on the agency to address mounting workloads and stagnant pay.

Pay and job satisfaction dropped 18% and 11% respectively since 2020, according to the survey. And 46% of employees said they believe new hires have the right skills to do their job.

Telework could be one of those things the agency seeks to preserve to stave further declines, Couture said. The agency said in its strategic plans that it will continue to evaluate remote work policies.

However, managers were called back to offices last month, Federal Times reported.

Around 29% of employees reported working remotely, according to the viewpoint survey. Another 36% telework one or two days per week.

“Telework has allowed field offices to boost customer service in situations where the public would not have been served otherwise,” said AFGE council 220 President Jessica LaPointe in June.

Results of the 25,757 voluntary responses in the FEV survey showed low scores in other measures like performance-based recognition, involvement of employees in decisions that affect their work, and perceptions of leadership.
About Molly Weisner

Molly Weisner is a staff reporter for Federal Times where she covers labor, policy and contracting pertaining to the government workforce. She made previous stops at USA Today and McClatchy as a digital producer, and worked at The New York Times as a copy editor. Molly majored in journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

UK

In growing numbers, workers are organising to demand a four-day week with no loss of pay in their workplace. They're winning — and here's how you can too.



(4 Day Week Campaign)© Provided by Tribune

The Tory government has done its best to undo almost every improvement to workers’ pay and conditions over the past 13 years, so it’s not often that we get to talk about organising as anything other than a defensive measure. But let’s change that. Let’s talk about organising for a four-day week.

Recent progress towards a 35-hour week has set a decent starting point as a core demand for unions to bring to the bargaining table. In light of the uptake of the four-day week across various sectors, however, along with the highly successful trial of a four-day week at South Cambridgeshire District Council (they’ve saved over £550,000 by filling hard-to-fill roles and expanded the trial to include the council’s refuse workers) and the imminent trial of a four-day week in the Scottish Public Sector (delivery of an SNP manifesto commitment made back in 2021), now is the time to include explicit mention of the four-day, 32-hour working week in union pay surveys and pay claims. 

It’s also time for all workers, unionised or otherwise, to demand a four-day week in their workplace. The four-day week is the ideal bargaining chip to have on the table when pay talks hit a dead end. Boss won’t budge on 5%? Add an agreement to trial a four-day week and you could have a deal that keeps everyone happy. 

For anyone reading this and weighing up the pros and cons of starting their own workplace campaign, it’s worth noting that the four-day week is an eminently achievable demand. 

This is true on the economic side: as a recent landmark study by independent think tank Autonomy showed, up to 9 million workers could be working a four-day, 32-hour working week with no loss of pay in less than a decade from the productivity benefits of AI alone. ‘Could’ is the operative word here, though, because there’s nothing to say that the benefits of artificial intelligence have to be shared out fairly. 

As we’ve seen before with John Maynard Keynes’ prediction of a 15-hour week failing to come to pass, technological advances may have made us infinitely more productive per hour, but the greed of a select few has managed to turn that productivity into profits and price rises, instead the free time we should have ended up with.

If we don’t make the case for it, we can be sure that the benefits of AI will just go straight to company bosses through greater profits. As workers and organisers, it’s up to us to make sure that technological advances work for us, rather than against us. The four-day week is the perfect vehicle for doing exactly that.

Thankfully, it’s also true on the organising side, as a number of workplace campaigns have already shown. At one large national charity, Unite members concluded their latest pay campaign with an agreement to trial a 4-day week within the organisation. Last year employees at Friends Of The Earth campaigned on, and won, a permanent four-day, 30-hour week. Workers at digital mobilisation agency Forward Action made the case for a four-day week to their directors back in September 2022; since then they’ve run a successful pilot, which ended in March, and signs are looking good for them to keep the shorter week as a long-term fixture.

Many other campaigns have seen the demand for a four-day week bring overwhelming numbers of colleagues together. This November, PCS members at a major government department started their campaign for a four-day week with a Teams launch event that drew together over 700 highly engaged civil servants. 

These success stories and examples of campaigns just ramping up are crucial, because in order to win better pay and conditions the first thing you need is buy-in from your colleagues, and one of the best ways to secure that buy-in is to show your demands are winnable. In this way you can build a campaign backed by colleagues who may not have challenged their boss on working conditions before. And in time, these workers will come out the other side with a better, deeper understanding of their workplace and the power structures that govern them. In the long term, these efforts can help raise political consciousness and create a better world for all. 

That, of course, is before we even get onto the benefits that come after implementation. An extra day off means a nation of workers living happier, healthier lives. We’ve seen workers use their free time to engage in volunteering, becoming more engaged with their local community as a result. Others have more time and energy for political activism. We hope many will be emboldened to take what they have learnt from their four-day week campaigns and apply it to other issues in their workplaces, their industries, and to the economy as a whole.

The four-day week means time to breathe. It means time to engage with what’s going on around us. Time to connect with one other. Time for rest, but also, time for action. The question is: what are we waiting for?

1933

UK
Tata Steel: Unions split on Port Talbot rescue plan

Huw Thomas - Business correspondent, BBC Wales
Tue, November 28, 2023

Port Talbot employs 3,000 people - half Tata's UK workforce


Unions representing Port Talbot steelworkers are split over an alternative plan to decarbonise the Tata Steel site.

Two unions have said proposals prepared by consultants Syndex would "safeguard the future" of the site with no compulsory redundancies.

But a third, Unite, has changed its stance and has publicly rejected the plan, calling it a "strategy for job cuts".


Tata Steel said talks were ongoing.

On 1 November, unions said Tata Steel was planning to end blast furnace production in Port Talbot by April 2024 with the loss of 3,000 jobs.

Tata cancelled a planned press conference where the plan was expected to be announced.

"It’s feasible, open to proper scrutiny and crucially avoids any non-compulsory redundancies.", Source: Gary Smith, Source description: GMB general secretary, 

The company had already committed to replacing the blast furnaces with an electric arc furnace which will melt scrap steel, rather than producing virgin steel from iron ore.

Port Talbot steelworks is Wales' largest emitter of carbon and the company and unions are committed to decarbonising the site, but disagree on how it is achieved.

The key issues at Port Talbot's Tata steelworks


Steelworkers angry at 'shambolic' Tata treatment

All three unions asked Syndex to prepare an alternative decarbonisation plan for Tata Steel's UK operations, which was endorsed by representatives of Community, GMB and Unite.

It was presented to the company's senior management by representatives of the unions in London on 17 November and involved maintaining one blast furnace in Port Talbot with about 700 job losses that the unions believe could be achieved through voluntary redundancies and redeployment.

Sharon Graham of Unite first announced the union's opposition earlier this month

But on 18 November, Unite's general secretary Sharon Graham announced her opposition to the plan.

Community and GMB have now published a summary of the Syndex plan, saying it would "protect more than 2,300 jobs over a decade and would see no compulsory redundancies in Port Talbot".

But Unite's Wales regional secretary Peter Hughes has now said: "The Syndex plan is a strategy for job cuts and Unite in no way accepts any proposal that seeks to decimate the steel industry."

Unite said it had its own plan for steelmaking which would "transform the UK into the global green steel capital".

Following last week's meeting with all three unions, Tata Steel committed to assessing the Syndex plan.

As well as maintaining one of the blast furnaces until 2032, the Syndex plan includes assessing alternative models for virgin steel production which could be constructed at a later date.

Community general secretary Roy Rickhuss said its alternative plan "had been agreed by all the steel unions, can safeguard the future of Port Talbot steelmaking and protect all the downstream plants and - crucially - it can be delivered with no compulsory redundancies".
'More in common'

GMB general secretary Gary Smith said the plan "offers a credible path" to a decarbonised future for Port Talbot, calling it "the plan Port Talbot workers want".

Tata Steel said there was a well-established multi-union consultation arrangement - the UK Steel Committee - which involved national representatives from the Community, GMB and Unite unions and it met with the company on 17 November to start discussions on its proposals.

A spokesperson added: "We agreed to further detailed conversations on specific items within their proposal and these discussions are ongoing."

Welsh economy minister Vaughan Gething said the Welsh government was very clear that it wanted to see the maximum number of jobs maintained for the longer term.

"It really does matter that the conversation is a serious one, with meaningful engagements," he said.

"I think there is more in common in the trade union position, that's my understanding, than can be seen as a nuance between them.

"Either way, that does not mean that either the company or the UK government should walk away from the conversation that still has to conclude on what the future could be."

He said he wanted to see a credible plan for decarbonisation that "does not offshore Welsh jobs and does not offshore emissions that will simply take place in a different part of the world".


Unions reveal plan to safeguard Port Talbot steel plant and protect jobs

Alan Jones, PA Industrial Correspondent
Tue, November 28, 2023 

Unions have revealed details of a plan aimed at safeguarding the future of the UK’s biggest steel plant without the loss of thousands of jobs.

Community and the GMB said their proposal would secure a just transition for the workforce at Port Talbot in South Wales and across owner Tata Steel UK, and deliver on the country’s climate responsibilities.

The unions have condemned plans to produce “green” steel at the site with the potential loss of thousands of jobs, saying they are “seriously concerned” about the proposal to build a single electric arc furnace (EAF).

They said their two-phase plan would protect more than 2,300 jobs over a decade and see no compulsory redundancies at Port Talbot.

Community general secretary Roy Rickhuss said: “The multi-union plan can safeguard the future of Port Talbot steel-making and protect all the downstream plants, and crucially it can be delivered with no compulsory redundancies.

“It is a serious and credible plan developed with the support of the respected industry experts Syndex, who have had access to the company’s confidential information and who have in-depth knowledge of Tata Steel UK, having worked with us since 2014.

“Our alternative is ready to go and we call on all stakeholders to get on board and back the plan, back our industry and back our steelworkers.”


GMB general secretary Gary Smith said: “Port Talbot workers deserve a decarbonisation plan that protects the future of UK steel while safeguarding jobs.

“The multi-union plan offers a credible path to this future.

“It’s feasible, open to proper scrutiny and crucially avoids any non-compulsory redundancies.

“It’s the plan Port Talbot workers want – now unions, Tata and the Government need to make sure it’s implemented.”

Sarah Jones, shadow minister for industry and decarbonisation, said: “It is welcome to see Tata engaging with a multi-union process around an alternative proposal for Tata Steel UK.

“There can be no route to green steel without proper engagement with the workforce to ensure we do not simply ship our emissions and jobs overseas.

“Labour is hopeful all parties can reach a solution in partnership with workers and industry, investing in a range of technologies to decarbonise steel and build the jobs and opportunities for the future of the UK steel industry.”

Stephen Kinnock, Labour MP for Aberavon, said: “This detailed, serious, robust and compelling plan for the future of the Port Talbot steelworks has my full and unequivocal support.

“It’s the only realistic route to retaining our customer base, and it’s also the only credible pathway to a strong, competitive and profitable future for steel-making in Port Talbot and throughout the downstream plants across Wales and the UK.”

The Unite union has put forward its own proposals, arguing there is no need for any job losses at Port Talbot.

A Tata Steel spokesperson said: “Tata Steel has an agreed and well-established multi-union Information & Consultation arrangement for matters potentially affecting the company – The UK Steel Committee.

“Senior leaders from Tata Steel met with the UK Steel Committee and their advisers on November 17 to start discussions on their proposals. We agreed to further detailed conversations on specific items within their proposal and these discussions are ongoing.”
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Gucci design studio strikes over move to Milan

Artisans at Gucci are striking in protest over a move from Rome to Milan.

By AFP
November 27, 2023

Gucci's fashion. - Copyright AFP JUSTIN TALLIS

Some 40 artisans from Gucci’s design studio downed tools Monday in the creatives’ first ever strike, held over plans to move much of the team from Rome to Milan.

The Italian luxury brand, owned by French group Kering, said in October it was transferring 153 of its 219 design employees from the capital to Milan, a move the strikers claim is “a mass redundancy in disguise”.

“Gucci cuts but doesn’t sew”, read one banner held aloft by demonstrators outside one of the Rome offices, while another read: “At Gucci, redundancy is fashionable”.

“The style office is the heart of Gucci, where the designers and couturiers work, and this is where all the collections are born. This is the first strike in its history,” Chiara Giannotti, a union representative for the brand, told AFP ahead of the four-hour strike.

 – Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File JOE RAEDLE

Last week, over 50 Gucci artisans joined a national strike organised by Italy’s largest trade unions, Giannotti said.

“Kering wants to take advantage of this restructuring to reduce staff numbers and push out employees who have been offered unsatisfactory conditions or who cannot leave Rome because they have their families and children there,” she said.

Gucci told AFP the move “does not envisage any reduction in personnel and will be implemented in full compliance with current regulations”.

It has also provided “a series of economic and support measures” to affected staff, the company said.

While 153 employees are due to be transferred to Milan by March, the fate of the 66 other artisans due to remain in Rome “is uncertain”, according to the unions.

“We are demanding the same conditions for all as part of the transfer to Milan, or else the relocation of employees to other Kering companies in Rome or Florence”, said Giannotti.

Gucci changed its artistic director in January, bringing in Sabato De Sarno to replace Alessandro Michele, who transformed the label over seven years with his eccentric, gender-fluid designs and offbeat shows.

BLACK FRIDAY FIGHT BACK

Worldwide strikes, protests—making Amazon pay

OLIVER ROETHIG

SOCIAL EUROPE

24th November 2023

The monopoly online retailer has extracted vast rents from workers and citizens who raise their voices globally today.

their collective power: Amazon workers at its Vélizy-Villacoublay warehouse in France (Frederic Legrand—COMEO / shutterstock.com)

On this day, Black Friday, three years ago, Amazon warehouse workers and their progressive allies co-ordinated a global protest for the first time in the company’s history, under the banner ‘Make Amazon Pay’. During the pandemic, Amazon—its founder, Jeff Bezos, the richest person in the world—had forced workers to be at the warehouses without protective equipment. But on Black Friday they pushed back with strikes and actions in 15 countries to demand safety and dignity.

Today, Amazon workers in Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy and the United States are making their demand to Make Amazon Pay even louder, with a new wave of strikes. It is a display of the collective power they have built, together with supporters in their workplaces, on the streets and in parliaments.
Biggest challenge

This growing day of action confirms what became clear during wide-ranging discussions at the Summit to Make Amazon Pay, held at the end of October in Manchester. For the first time it brought together workers, trade unions, civil society and parliamentarians from the global Amazon movement. The company is facing the biggest challenge to its abuses in its history.

This year in Germany, Prime Day saw strikes at ten warehouses across the country, organised by the union Ver.di. In the US, Amazon delivery drivers formed the first-ever drivers’ union with the Teamsters. They set up rolling pickets for better pay, safe jobs and union recognition. At the same time, members of the Writers’ Guild of America won a major victory against Amazon and other film and television production studios, establishing guardrails so technology cannot drive down their working conditions.

In the UK, the GMB union organised 1,000 Amazon warehouse workers in less than a year—and brought them out on strike for a total of 28 days. When they filed for official recognition of the union (which, under UK labour law, requires 50 per cent of workers in a workplace to be unionised), Amazon hired thousands more workers to thwart the attempt. But the workers kept fighting.
Not alone

This Black Friday, they take industrial action again but they are not alone: strikers from Germany, Italy and the US join them on a historical international picket line at the Coventry warehouse in the English midlands. Together, they say: Amazon’s union-busting must end.

Amazon workers draw support from civil society and the progressive movement across the world. In more than 30 countries, activists and citizens are today organising protests in solidarity and to hold the company accountable for its harms to communities and our planet.

In Luxembourg, Amazon’s European headquarters, a coalition of unions, tax-justice and climate organisations are challenging its recent layoffs and its tax avoidance in the centre of Europe. Although it made €50 billion in revenue in 2022, for the fifth consecutive year Amazon did not pay any taxes in Luxembourg.

In seven countries—Japan, the Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the UK and Canada—climate activists will protest at Amazon Web Services (AWS) facilities. They condemn Amazon’s ‘greenwashing’, its data centres’ growing climate impact and electricity consumption and AWS’ contracts with fossil-fuel companies.
Threat to democracy

But the demand to Make Amazon Pay resonates not just in warehouses and on the streets. Political leaders are increasingly recognising the threat the company poses to workers, communities and democracy at large.

A number of US states—including New York and Minnesota—have introduced legislation to protect warehouse workers. The outgoing progressive government in Spain passed legislation allowing workers and their unions a degree of control over the algorithms designed instead to control them. Barcelona’s municipal government introduced the so-called ‘Amazon tax’, which levies a fee on last-mile deliveries’ free use of public space. In Ireland, a bill has been progressing through the Oireachtas (houses of parliament) which would stop Amazon dumping new and unused products.

On a wider canvas, the US Federal Trade Commission’s anti-trust case and the European Union’s Digital Markets Act show policy-makers on both sides of the Atlantic understand the urgent need to tackle Amazon’s monopoly power.
Public money

These are positive developments. What remains rarely acknowledged, however, is the role public money plays in propping up the Amazon business model, of destabilising industries, avoiding taxes and busting unions. Amazon’s e-commerce growth has been fuelled by the profits generated from its cloud-services arm, AWS—and public contracts have been key to AWS’ growth.

In 2021, UNI Europa, the European service workers’ union federation, published research showing that the total estimated value of AWS contracts with public institutions in Europe amounted to as much as half a billion euro a year from 2019 to 2021. That’s €1.3 billion in public money in just three years. The research was based on publicly available data, so the actual figure is most likely higher. Worse still, in follow-up research UNI Europa showed that up to 99 per cent of public contracts going to Amazon were awarded without open competition.

It is wrong that public authorities are rewarding Amazon—and, by extension, its business model—with lucrative cloud-computing contracts. The company is a prime example of why UNI Europa has campaigned for public contracts to go only to those with a collective agreement in place.
Need for reform

The EU public-procurement directive needs to be reformed, so that the rules stop bad employers such as Amazon—as opposed to good employers which respect their workers and collective bargaining—from receiving public money. A recent hearing in the European Parliament’s Employment and Social Affairs committee confirmed a broad consensus around the need for reform, among the social partners, experts and parliamentarians.

The next parliament and commission, after the elections in June 2024, should turn that into reality. It is the least the thousands of Amazon workers on strike today deserve that our public institutions do not fund their exploitation—but rather support their rights and dignity at work.




Oliver Roethig heads UNI Europa, the European service workers’ union.