Interview with Jerry Fernandez, of the global union Workers Uniting

Unite, of Great Britain and Ireland and the United Steelworkers Union (USW), United States and Canada, decided to join forces within Workers Uniting to be more active against multinationals and better face the multiple relocation threats. Jerry Fernandez, USW international relations director since 1988, is telling us about the strategy of the federation, a transatlantic alliance with nearly 3 million members. (Ref. 100614)

What gave you the will to create Workers Uniting (WU)?
Jerry Fernandez. Let’s do some history. In 1988, we experienced a very long strike in a multinational aluminum group. We sought the owner out and we found out that he was Marc Rich who was, at the time, the biggest metal negotiator in the world, in Geneva. Then, in 1992, there was a 3.5-year strike at a Bridgestone factory belonging to a Japanese group. I realized we were involved with multinationals that were geographically widespread and that, to face this, we had to create a strategic alliance with several unions on several continents. This is where the idea of a transnational metal union federation, able to organize joint campaigns, bargain together and work on everyone’s working conditions, came from.

So, what did you establish?
JF. We signed a first agreement with the German IG-Metall for Europe. Then, we looked for a sophisticated union, full of resources, in Asia, and we chanced on two Australian organizations, the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Unions (CFMEU) and the Australian Workers Union (AWU). Then, we discussed with activists from the CUT (Central Unica dos Trabalhadores), Brazil’s key trade union, which opens a window into Latin America. Finally, we signed agreements with Los Mineros in Mexico, Amicus in England (now Unite) and representatives from South Africa National Union of Mine Workers. This way, we cover the entire world.

Is this type of agreement enough for you?
JF. No it isn’t. The next step was to find a partner willing to create a federation. We got even closer to Unite, the largest union in the UK and in Ireland with nearly 2 million members. USW is present in the US, Canada and the Caribbean, so with Unite we cover 5 countries. We speak the same language, we have the same view of the labor world, strikes, activism, we come up against the same employers, we know what it’s like when a private company tries to get rid of a union in a factory…. Workers Uniting is the starting point but, in the long run, we would like 3 or 4 more partners.

How does the federation work, in concrete terms?
JF. We have a steering committee with 16 members, 8 from Unite and 8 from USW. There are two co-presidents and a temporary constitution which allows the committee to make decisions. We also said that, after three years, we would organize a congress, in August 2011, to adopt a more permanent constitution and common rules to include other unions. We are notably thinking about our Australian and Brazilian colleagues as well as a couple other organizations. The south African union is our priority because it is the grand father of all African unions.

Do you want to create a new world organization?
JF. No, we don’t want to be an excessive organization. We want to be 5 big unions in strategic places in the world. We want to be able to mobilize quickly, fight quickly and efficiently, without having to overcome major cultural differences.

Are you interested in France?
JF. No, we’re not. France, as many other countries, has unions with very different ideologies. We can’t form an alliance with just one. You have the CFDT, FO and the CGT…. Why form an alliance with one and not the others? Besides, it isn’t easy for us to establish a common program with three different French organizations. The strength of the federation we want to build will depend on the strength of the weakest member. We need consensus, common employers to fight, and unions with activists that want to fight for workers’ rights.

How do you handle the finances?
JF. For the time being, Unite and USW split costs 50/50. we each have 4 people working for WU full time, sometimes up to 10-12 on special projects. We want to set up our headquarters in London, where we established the constitution. What’s more, London is close to Geneva and Brussels, two cities where international organizations meet. During our congress, we will vote a budget, and determine how much unions have to pay to join the federation. We don’t want junior partners, we’re looking for equals.

Have you already organized joint campaigns with Unite?
JF. Our two unions have invested in sophisticated technical resources. We have videoconferences almost every day. We use HD telepresence and we’re face to face, as if we were in the same room. We’ve had meetings on the paper industry, packaging, and the oil industry in the north sea. We recently received a report from a delegation that went to Bangladesh in ship scrap yards, a dreadful industry. We’re interested in everyone’s struggles. For instance, our union supports the 3,500 workers of the Vale Inco Brazilian company in Canada. Unite sent $200,000 to help them. For our part, we send delegations to support British picket lines. We exchange information and documents on the American and British health systems. I can’t attend all meetings, but I know that a group of British activists met with Americans working in the same company in the US. When they saw that their safety regulations were far more developed than in the US, they decided to campaign together so that the US would get in line with the UK.

Interview by Caroline Crosdale, Planet Labor’s correspondent in New York. Words translated from French to English. About the creation of Workers Uniting, please read our dispatch No. 080567.