We are not alone. On the eve of its annual conference in Bournemouth, England, the Trades Union Congress, one of Europe’s biggest and oldest federations of unions, has called on the Secretary-General to recognize the staff unions of the UN.
In the letter, which you can read here, TUC head Frances O’Grady also expresses concern that the rights of UN staff “were unilaterally withdrawn just days before the terrorist attack on the UN office in Mogadishu, given that the health and safety of employees has been shown to benefit from trade union representation”.
A similar letter has been sent to UK foreign minister William Hague.
The fact that workers outside the UN support our cause is heartening. You may recall that in June the International Trade Union Confederation also wrote the Secretary-General. The response from management was underwhelming.
We will continue to keep you updated on our efforts to re-establish staff rights.