At the new IBM delivery center in Sofia, Bulgaria the situation was tense. IBM management deployed security guards at the doors and inside the center to discourage union activities.
In early July came word that the new IBM unions in South America, in Chile and Argentina, were poised to take their fight to a new level.
The IBM Chile Union, Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de Empresa IBM Chile – SNTI, was formed at the IBM Delivery Center in Santiago on September 2nd, 2010. There are about 300 members. The union in May 2011 presented IBM 23 points for negotiation in a collective bargaining agreement. IBM rejected all 23 points.
Even though the IBM Chile Union and IBM were still negotiating, and the union was hoping it did not have to strike, the US based Alliance@IBM CWA Local 1701 was hearing from members and employees that IBM US was seeking “volunteers” to go to Chile to help out the company with “customer issues”. Some IBM managers did mention the possibility of a strike and others did not mention anything about it.
The Alliance@IBM quickly started alerting members and IBM employees of IBM’s attempt to use US workers as strikebreakers in Chile through email blasts and notices on its website.
The Alliance web site comment sections were filled with posts from employees and members saying no to strikebreaking and refusing to go to Chile to help the company bust the union. The message was loud and clear to IBM that Alliance members were fighting the same fight as their Chilean co-workers.
As the raison d'etre of our national governments is to support the ruling class, they are not going to help us. International worker solidarity is the only hope. Big Blue's employees worldwide are defending themselves against the gangsterism of their management. We could help ourselves by helping them and send e-mails to IBM in support of the unions, and in opposition to their corporate thuggery.
http://talkingunion.wordpress.com/2011/07/21/ibm-global-union-alliance/
