UAW's Gettelfinger Demands Freedom for Jailed Unionists in Korea

The UAW demonstrated at the South Korean embassy on June 27, 2002 to protest the imprisonment of Dan Byung-ho, president of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), and more than 30 other trade unionists in Korea.

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger sent a stern letter to Kim Dae-jung, President of South Korea, demanding the release of Dan and all other Korean unionists jailed for fighting for labor rights and worker protections.

"Last year, a total of 241 trade unionists were imprisoned in South Korea," Gettelfinger wrote. "Since you were elected in 1998, more than 730 unionists have been jailed at
one time or another."

"I appeal to you as one who has been a dissident who languished in prison under the Korean military regimes of the past to free KCTU President Dan and all other jailed unionists," he said.

The UAW protest in Washington occurred as part of an international "day of action" called by the International Metalworkers' Federation (IMF). IMF affiliated unions around the world demonstrated against Korean labor repression and called for the release of Dan and other union prisoners.

Korea's anti-worker laws allow police to arrest and jail unionists for "obstruction of business." The very act of holding an assembly to form a union has been a punishable act in South Korea.

Gettelfinger urged President Dae-jung to refrain from pursuing criminal punishment for workers who exercise their right to take union action.

"The freedom of association jurisprudence of the ILO clearly recognizes the legitimacy of trade union activities, including strikes, aimed at bringing about changes in the socio-economic policies of a government," Gettelfinger's letter stated.

"I hope you'll order an end to the policies of repression and intimidation of trade unionists and honor the expectations of the OECD, the ILO, and workers throughout the world by respecting internationally recognized labor rights."

The UAW has a long and close relationship with the KCTU, and has repeatedly intervened with government authorities in support of its Korean union brothers and sisters. More recently, the UAW played a key role in helping win the release of Mun Sung-hyun, then-president of the Korean Metal Workers' Federation.


posted by Kelly Wednesday, August 14, 2002

Statement by AFL- CIO President John J. Sweeney on Passage of Fast Track Trade Legislation in the U.S. Senate
August 1, 2002


The Senate's decision today to pass Fast Track trade negotiating authority is the wrong decision for our economy, for America's workers, and for our communities. Fast Track will further the loss of family-supporting jobs to nations where corporations routinely exploit child labor, workers' rights and the environment—at a time when America's workers are already reeling from the effects of the manufacturing downturn and the layoffs due to corporate wrongdoing.

The intense debate surrounding Fast Track illustrates just how controversial such trade deals are, and makes it clear that the rules of the new global economy are still being written. It is shameful that the Senate chose to take a pass on any opportunity to fix trade deals to make them work for working people.

posted by Kelly Wednesday, August 14, 2002

Bush's Economic Forum 'Pep Rally' Offers Little (from America@Work - AFL-CIO)

With a crowd hand-picked by the White House and slick television-friendly backdrops, President George W. Bush convened an economic forum in Waco, Texas, Aug. 13 that was intended to bolster his economic policies more than explore a wide range of economic opinion.

A Bush administration official admitted the corporate donor-heavy crowd would be pretty much in line with the administration when he told The Washington Post Aug. 8, "I don't think there's any point of picking someone who has the opposite point of view."

"Despite a much touted, but anemic 'economic recovery,'" said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney, "working men and women are increasingly out of work, losing vast amounts of retirement savings, without health coverage and hard hit by growing trade deficits, especially in the manufacturing sector.

"It's important," he continued, "that we take a sober look at what's happening to working families and summon a national will to act on their urgent needs and priorities in a meaningful way, rather then try to put a sheen on a cloudy picture."

According to a story from the CNN/Money website, "The purpose of the meetings is to show the appearance of action without actually doing anything," said Bruce Bartlett, an economist at the National Center for Policy Analysis, a conservative think tank in Washington, D.C. "I seriously doubt it will serve any purpose."

While a handful of workers and some small business owners were among the participants, they were outnumbered by large donors to Bush and the Republican Party. The big-ticket participants included Henry A. McKinnell, chairman and CEO of Pfizer Inc., which the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics says gave $1.4 million in soft money donations to Republicans in 2000. The participants also included Charles Schwab, chairman and co-CEO of Charles Schwab Corp., which gave more than $406,000 to Republicans, according to the center, and Glen A. Barton, CEO and chairman of Caterpillar Corp., which gave Republican candidates more than $600,000 during the past six years.

Other participants included the CEOs of International Paper, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the New York Stock Exchange, American Express, The Home Depot, Intel Corp., The National Association of Manufacturers, Folgers Coffee, e-Bay, Verizon Communications, National Semiconductor and Yahoo Inc.


posted by Kelly Wednesday, August 14, 2002

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