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ICFTU Press Release BRUSSELS, Belgium, 28 June 2000 -- International trade unions are launching a campaign for a global ban on the use of asbestos after last week's news that the WTO (World Trade Organisation) will uphold France's ban on using asbestos, and reject the Canadian government's appeal to the WTO that the ban was invalid under free trade rules. As its first move the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions will hold a joint technical meeting in the early summer with the ILO (International Labour Organisation) and the WHO (World Health Organisation). This will prepare the way for a high level meeting this autumn between the unions and the Director Generals of the ILO and WHO to discuss the problems posed by the world use of asbestos and promoting alternatives. Trade unions will use the autumn meeting as a springboard for a full campaign for a global ban on the use and commercialisation of asbestos, a fatal material which kills 100,000 workers each year. The ICFTU and the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD (TUAC) say that the WTO ruling paves the way for more countries to support a global ban of the product. In response to a request from its Occupational Health and Safety Executive (OHSE) Working Party, the ICFTU Executive Board agreed to support an asbestos ban last December at a meeting in Seattle. The asbestos issue will be reviewed at the ICFTU/TUAC OHSE Working Party meeting next November, which will discuss a 'Just Transition' employment programme for workers displaced in countries which have banned asbestos. The European Union, France, Norway, Sweden and United States have all officially banned certain asbestos uses and Brazil intends to do so. The international trade union working party has been working with the ILO on a Code of Practice on synthetic vitreous fibre insulation wools and is encouraging country ratification of ILO Convention #162, which includes a provision for banning asbestos. The trade union working party currently operates a trade union electronic forum to coordinate its work on chemicals which will be an important medium for coordinating action on the asbestos campaign. Last week the ICFTU released a series of news stories on asbestos and these are now available on its web site www.ICFTU.org. For further details please contact ICFTU Press Department on: ++322 224 0212 FAIR USE NOTICE. This document contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. The Basel Action Network is making this article available in our efforts to advance understanding of ecological sustainability and environmental justice issues. We believe that this constitutes a `fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond `fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. More News |