Solidarity for Slovak workers

Slovak Paper Mill Workers Victimised for Organising a New Trade Union
Latest News from Ruzomberok. Central Slovakia

The Neusiedler Corporation, a division of Mondi and Anglo-American plc, is
continuing to use repressive measures against the organisers and supporters
of a new workers union in the Slovak paper mill, SCP Mondi Business Paper
Ruzomberok. On November 8th, 2004 over 120 workers came out after the
morning shift to protest against the sackings and intimidation by management
of the supporters of the new union, ZOO Papier. A total of 19 leaders and
supporters of ZOOP have been sacked since the dispute over representation,
wages and conditions began in September.

The new trade union has still not been accepted by the management of SCP
Ruzomberok. The dismissals of the 14 workers who joined the union were
stopped after the international pressure from other trade unionists and left
organisations, but officially none of the 19 persecuted workers have been
reinstated yet. Management is refusing to come to the negotiating table ­ a
meeting scheduled between the workers of both Austrian and Slovak factories
and management was cancelled earlier this month.

Management claims that the new union is a fraud because it represents only
5% of the workforce at Ruzomberok ­ yet in this climate of intimidation and
fear it is not surprising that many workers will not risk their livelihood
by openly declaring their membership. The unemployment rate in Slovak
Republic is over 16%. Yet still over half the workforce (1223 workers)
signed the petition initiated by the ZOOP organisers for higher wages and
against sackings. Slovak Neusiedler workers earn about a third of what is
paid in the Hungarian sister company and about one eighth of what is being
paid in Austria. They are demanding a raise of 80 pence or 1.25 euros an
hour.

Last week (Dec 7th), the Labour Minister, Ludovít Kaník, carried out an
inspection in the factory concluding that the legal rights of the workers
were being abused and asked the management to reconsider its previous
measures. Together with a very critical front-page article in the Austrian
daily DIE PRESSE, these events have caused certain alarm in the
Austrian-Slovak management. There are unofficial rumours that the new union
will be accepted soon. What is evident is that the managers are quite
sensitive to the negative media attention that this dispute is receiving
across Europe.

It is imperative that this pressure be maintained until the Ruzomberok paper
mill workers win their dispute!

On December 10, International Human Rights Day, pickets were held at the
Neusiedler offices in Vienna, Prague and London to expose Neusiedler’s
contravention of human rights ­ the right to organise in a trade union.
During a press conference, the new union demanded that the Austrian managing
director, Otto Pichler, resign from office. In London, the international
activists met with the manager of the sales office and made clear that the
international campaign would continue until the company recognises the ZOOP
and agrees to the workers demands:

Official recognition of ZOO Papier
Reinstatement of 14 sacked members and 5 members of the factory committee
Freeze on all sackings
Immediate start of negotiations on demands from original petition and
social program which ZOOP wants to put forward

ZOO Papier: An Independent Trade Union

A second issue of the new union newsletter appeared at the end of November.
One of the key articles explains why the union will not affiliate to the
Confederation of Trade Unions ­ KOZ (Slovak biggest TU federation):

"The last Congress of the KOZ clearly confirmed that this bureaucratised TU
organisation has lost its previous weight. The number of its members is
declining ­ from 1.9 million in 1989 to 570.000 now.... Why? The answer is
quite simple. The KOZ does not defend the rights of its members, employees
and of workers in factories. E.g. the leadership of KOZ even did not reply
to our letter asking for their help. But why should they when they receive
such nice salaries..." "The new trade union ZOOP at its founding conference
adopted a principle that they will fight without the bureaucratic elite
unable of any actions to help the rank-and-file unionists."

The ’official’ or company trade union that is in effect at the Ruzomberok
factory is an affiliate of the KOZ. It was in reaction to the outright
betrayal of the official trade union, with its leadership distancing itself
from the workers’ struggle, that exposed the imperative need for a new trade
union.

Another article "What shall we do next?" mentions the need to send appeals
to the Austrian embassies in the world. Also the need for an international
action day. Jozef Danis, vice-chairman of the factory committee, also asks
the workers to create secret trade unions cells in the industrial units of
the plant. He emphasised the need for secret meetings because of the level
of intimidation.

The first issue of the newsletter published right after Jozef Danis came
back from the European Social Forum in October described the functioning of
the ZOOP according to its statutes. The functionaries are elected by all
members and not just by the delegates as it is in the KOZ. The members can
recall their mandates every year. Their wage will be the workers average and
not three times more, as it is in the KOZ. The draft of the collective
agreement between the ZOOP and the management will be discussed at the
grass-roots level first. The financial balance sheets of the ZOOP will be
immediately accessible to all workers in the factory.

What you can do

1. Please send emails of support to sativa@zoznam.sk and noveodbory@post.sk.

2. Please send email protests to the company at hovorca@neusiedler.sk,
mondibpscp@mondibp.com, and info@mondibp.com. Also write to the CEO of Mondi
BP at guenther.hassler@mondibp.com.

Plus write to company officials in your country:
Austria: sevice@neusiedler.com
Britain: infolineuk@neusiedler.com
Bulgaria: milan.demjanovic@neusiedler.com
Czech Republic: ivana.capkova@neusiedler.com
France: commercialmarketingparis@neusiedler.com
Germany: infoline@neusiedler.com
Italy: neusiedler-italia@neusiedler.com
Netherlands: info@neusiedler.com
Poland: nscp.polska@neusiedler.com
Russia: craig.jacobs@neusiedler.com

3. Protest calls to the director Otto Pichler 0042 144 436 3505. (He really
hates this!)

4. The ZOOP has spent all its money. The sacked leaders are completely
broke, all with families to support and mortgages. They are in critical need
of solidarity funds. If you want to financially support the costs for the
trade union actions (newsletters, leaflets, telephone, etc) and trade
unionists in struggle, please send a donation to the following bank account:
10006-13219052/4900 Istrobanka.

Thank you very much for your support! Please circulate this as widely as
possible.