Asia Pacific
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Page context: Home > Education > Programmes/Activities > Asia Pacific Projects
Regional education projects often have sub regional and national components for which activities are carried out. These projects can either be industry specific or cross sectional. The ITF currently has the following projects in Asia Pacific, please click on the links below to go the desired project.
*Please note website links for the cooperating organisations can be found at the bottom of this page.
Industrial Projects
Railway Health and Safety project, India
The railways in India are government owned and the All India Railway men’s Federation (AIRF) with a membership of 1.1 million railway workers is the most representative organisation of railway employees. The Federation has 16 zonal level affiliated unions and 7 unions representing the railway production unit workers.
The railway administration and the unions and federations have over the years developed a system of regulating industrial relations through a Permanent Negotiating Machinery (PNM). However on the issue of occupational safety and health there is no specific legislation on Indian Railways. Hence the conflictual relationship between the unions and management in particular with regards to accidents caused by human error.
Overall health and safety has not been much of a priority in the union’s programmes. The aim of this project is raise awareness of the importance of occupation health and safety to railway workers and leaders at all levels of the All India Railway Federation. The project has the following aims:
- Enable an informed and educated leadership of the railway unions to participate in and influence the process of enhancing safety policies and the implementation of safe working practices.
- Build trade unions’ capacity and competence to devise short and long term union strategies and campaigns to deal with the issue of workplace safety.
- Establish on a permanent basis effective and functioning union safety committees in zonal trade unions. A similar committee will also be constituted at the AIRF level.
- Train a group of union activists specialising in safety who will be able to further educate and inform the grass root members on the need to adopt safe working practices and be able to play a proactive and constructive role in ensuring that safety is accorded top priority in workplaces.
- Increase the participation of women in project activities in order to integrate them in the safety related work of the unions.
Target Groups: Office bearers at all unions levels, safety representatives and members working in safety categories in railway workshops and open line operations, trained educators with previous experience of working on safety issues, women activists and rank-and-file workers (members and non members)
Cooperating organisation: SASK
Project Period: 2005-2008
Organising the unorganised in road transport in South and South East Asia
This programme consists of a series of two regional seminars, the first during 2005 for road transport affiliates in South Asia and the second in 2006 for the affiliates in South East Asia. The overall objectives of both seminars include:
- Reviewing work done by unions in the last 3 years to organise the unorganised.
- Identifying problems and exchanging organising strategies and ideas.
- Analysing the impact and implications of deregulation and how unions can respond by creating concrete short and long term national action plans aimed at organising the unorganised road transport workers.
- Identifying the unorganised categories of road transport sector workers and their status of employment, wages, working conditions and social security in the countries of the region
- Planning and developing activities and programmes for participation in
- The ITF International Road Transport Day of Action.
Participating countries: Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Australia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Korea, Mongolia, Philippines and Japan.
Cooperating Organisation: FES
Project Period: 2005-2006
Cross-sectional projects
South Asia transport restructuring project
Transport sectors in almost all the countries of the region have been experiencing continuing deregulation, liberalisation, privatisation and the opening up of sectors for foreign equity participation like in the port and civil aviation industry. Many workers are working under poor conditions with diminishing rights and outsourcing is increasing becoming the norm in all sectors. The aim of the project is to assist unions to effectively deal with these changes and represent the needs and rights of workers by:
- Contributing to the emergence of an informed and educated union leadership capable of participating in and influencing the process of reform and restructuring.
- Assisting trade unions to devise short and long term union strategies and campaigns to deal with the challenges of restructuring.
- Training a cadre of union activists who will be able to further educate and inform grassroots members and take up responsibilities in the second level of leadership in the union.
- Increasing the participation of women in project activities in order to further integrate them in union activities and develop them take up leadership responsibilities.
- Building effective unions capable of dealing with the issues and challenges of reform and restructuring and able to attract non-members and unorganised workers into the unions.
Target Group: Union representatives at all levels, educators, grassroots members, women leaders and potential leader from affiliates in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan
Cooperating Organisation: LO-TCO
Project Period: 2005-2006
HIV/AIDS and transport workers: South Asia
This project is primarily concerned with focusing on HIV/AIDS as a trade union and workplace issue. Project activities include awareness raising seminars and working towards the elimination of stigma and discrimination in the workplace.
The project has trained peer educators from different transport sectors who conduct seminars at workplaces focusing on issues such as prevention, workers’ rights, care and support issues. These activities have so far been conducted in India, and the aim is to expand activities to the rest of South Asia.
Target Group: Affiliates in India, Nepal and Bangladesh
Cooperating Organisation: FNV Mondiaal
Project Period: 2005-2006
**A new project is in the process of being developed.
Click here for the HIV/AIDS Manaul
Click here for the HIV/AIDS website
Long-term education project for women transport workers
The project aims at providing women with organisational skills to enable them to conduct education programmes and develop campaigns. It also aims to ensure that unions are motivated to establish women’s structures and participate in the women’s network in the region. Another key objective of this project is to ensure women are educated on industrial issues such as the impact of globalisation and privatisation on transport, workers and unions.
Activities under the project have included sub-regional seminars (South Asia, ASEAN, Pacific) followed by Individual Work Programmes (IWP) consisting of educational activities at local union levels. The success of the project activities have been encouraging and have led to the creation of a women’s network in some countries and the inclusion of women in union structures. Political meetings in the region like the Asia Pacific Regional Committee meetings have been devoting more time and effort to discussing the resolutions and reports coming out of the women’s activities in the region.
An evaluation and planning workshop was held in Bangkok in March 2004, which reported a general increase in women’s participation in union activities, establishment and promotion of women’s structure in some unions, a demand for increased focus on women’s issues on union agendas and the inclusion of gender sensitisation programmes in future project activities.
Target Group: Women leaders, activists and members
Cooperating Organisation: FNV Mondial
Project Period: 2000-2007
**A new project is in the process of being developed.
Click here for more information on the ITF Women's Department.
Organisation building in Thailand project
The key to the project is to strengthen the trade union movement in Thailand which is fragmented, has low membership levels and is facing the challenges of privatisation and job cuts on a large scale.
The long-term objectives of the project are to consolidate organisational structures and improve capacities of unions to influence the government on issues such as labour reform, transport privatisation etc. The immediate aims of the project are to train a group of activists and educators through leadership and education training, who will then conduct programmes in the unions thereby promoting participation
The programme has been running for 4 years and has been extended for a further two years following an evaluation seminar held in August 2004. Unions reported that although the project activities had benefited them and helped create a foundation for education activities, more time was needed to further consolidate and build on the foundation established during the first four years of the project.
Target Group: Leaders, educators in ITF Thai affiliates
Cooperating Organisation: SASK
Project Period: 2005-2006
** The project is currently being evaluated.
Useful links:
The ITF is not responsible for the content of external internet sites
SASK
Trade Union Solidarity Support Organisation
FNV Mondiaal
Trade Union Solidarity Support Organisation
LO-TCO
Trade Union Solidarity Support Organisation
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