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How has restructuring affected employment opportunities, union negotiating and pension rights?

Botswana: The Workforce decreased from 2000 employees in 2000 to 1193 at present (2004). We hoped for employment opportunities during the feasibility study for the Botswana Р Zambia line. Further restructuring may bring more job cuts. EmployersХ contribution to the pension scheme has been reduced from 18 per cent to 14 per cent.
Christopher Phikane, BRWU

Kenya: There are no new employment opportunities. Moreover, the workforce has been reduced to meet the requirements of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Redundant workers went to their rural homes and some of them took jobs in the Informal sector. There is no change in the pension system.
John Kaunga & Francis OХLore, RWU

Malawi: Some people are being re-employed and a few school leavers are recruited. The railway workforce has reduced and only few redundant workers managed to get other jobs. The pension scheme has not changed.
Gomani Nguluwe, CEARWU

Japan: Throughout the process of the JNR Reform some 70,000 workers left their workplaces against their wishes. During the reform period various measures were taken, including early retirement and transfer of staff to the public sector. The economic boom facilitated the re-employment process of former JNR workers and the employment of workers who had to leave JRs was secured apart from some exceptional cases. The number of staff was reduced from 420,000 to 180,000. In some non-core business areas including newly-created operations employment was generated, most of which, however, is on a part-time basis.

Each company has its own labour-management relations. However, because of the fact that multiple unions exist within JR companies, it is rather being difficult for unions to have influence on the management in a true sense.
Ichiro Ogiyama, JR-Rengo

Brazil: The workforce has been greatly reduced through massive layoffs. The reasons have been the implementation of new technologies, closing down stations, scrapping railway lines, single drivers, and outsourcing. What we do know is that there are no new job opportunities, and companies have laid off and exchanged between themselves admissions of the unemployed at lower wages.

Many (former railway workers) have taken up informal work, with no fixed employment, and jobs that do not require their skills. Although the concession agreements mentioned continuing the pension and social security plans, nothing so far has been done about it.
Helio de Souza Regato de Andrade, FNTF

Ukraine: Separately, independent workers cannot influence the pace of restructuring and its consequences. The basic reason is the high percentage of unemployed in our country and the low social protection. Therefore, workers try to preserve their own workplaces and unquestioningly obey the employer. It is all complicated by the current trend in the railways, which have been the focus of local capitalists as well as international financial groups.
Semen Karikov, VPMU

These extracts are selected from responses to an ITF survey of affiliates' experiences of railway restructuring, March 2004.