By IRNA,
London : British trade unions are calling on the newly-elected Iraqi government to end the harassment of oil workers and finally put in place a fair and just national labour law.
In a letters to the Iraq Embassy in London, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) protested against the transfer of four key union leaders from the Basra worksite by the management of the Southern Oil Company.
“This harassment of workers is a clear breach of the right to freedom of association recognised in the Iraqi Constitution and a core convention of the International Labour Organisation,” said TUC general secretary Brendan Barber.
“This case is yet another troubling reason why Iraq needs to replace its Saddam-era labour laws, with fair, just and ILO-compliant ones,” Barber told Iraqi charge d’affaires Abdulmuhaimen Al-Oreibi in a copy of the letter obtained by IRNA.
The protest comes after key leaders of the Basra-based Refinery Workers Union, including the president and vice-president, were transferred out of their jobs by the government-owned Southern Oil Company on April 1.
“This deliberate attempt to silence union leaders and bust-up the union was in response to a series of peaceful demonstrations by workers throughout March asking for a range of reforms,” said Barber.
The TUC, which embraces 58 affiliated unions representing 6.2 million workers in Britain, called on the Iraqi government to immediately end the harassment, fully reinstate all workers, and ensure mature negotiations take place to resolve all worker concerns.
“Such a step would help to build a mature system of industrial relations in Iraq, driving a productive and profitable oil sector benefitting all Iraqis,” Barber said.