In 1949, early in the Cold War, alleging Communist domination of the WFTU's central institutions, a large number of non-communist national trade union federations (including the U.S. AFL–CIO, the British TUC, the French FO, the Italian CISL and the Spanish UGT) seceded and created the rival ICFTU at a conference in London attended by representatives of nearly 48 million members in 53 countries.
Throughout its existence, the ICFTU had internal disputes over what approach to hold to communism.[1]
From the 1950s the ICFTU actively recruited new members from the developing regions of first Asia and subsequently Africa. Following the collapse of Communist party government in the Soviet Union and eastern Europe, the Federation's membership has risen steeply from 87 million in 1988 and 100 million in 1992, as trade union federations from former Soviet bloc countries joined the ICFTU.
In 1975 former CIA agent Philip Agee revealed in his book "Inside the Company: CIA Diary" that the ICFTU was a "Labor center set up and controlled by the CIA to oppose the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU)."[2]
The ICFTU had four regional organisations. APRO covered Asia and the Pacific, AFRO in Africa, and ORIT for the Americas. Until 1969, the ERO covered Europe, but it became increasingly marginal and was dissolved. The ICFTU later maintained close links with the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), which included all ICFTU European affiliates). It also worked closely with many Global Union Federations, which link together national unions from a particular trade or industry at international level.
Central to the ICFTU's work was the struggle to defend workers' rights. The ICFTU lobbied for the ratification of the so-called "core labour standards"—eight key conventions of the International Labour Organization concerning freedom of association, the abolition of child labour and forced labour and the elimination of discrimination in the workplace.
The ICFTU has staff which are devoted entirely to the monitoring and defence of workers rights, and they issue—almost on a daily basis—alerts and calls to action. The ICFTU published its "Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights" every June, the publication of which was usually accompanied by extensive press coverage of the violations of trade union rights around the world. The report often focused on the numbers of people killed for being members of unions.
In its constitution, the organisation pledged itself to "champion the cause of human freedom, promote equality of opportunity for all people, seek to eliminate everywhere in the world any form of discrimination or subjugation based on race, religion, sex or origin, oppose and combat totalitarianism and aggression in any form".
That constitution listed no fewer than seventeen aims of the organisation and it has been argued that the ICFTU from its very beginning set itself goals that would be impossible to achieve—particularly with a small staff and budget. For example, the organisation's constitution required it "to carry out a programme of trade union and workers' education" as well as to give "assistance to those suffering from the consequences of natural and industrial disasters".
In 2004 Australian union leader Sharan Burrow was elected as the first female president of the ICFTU.
Annual survey of violations of trade union rights
ICFTU published an annual report which documents violations by governments, industries, and military and police forces against both workers and related trade unions.
2006 report
Released on 7 June 2006 the report reprised the year 2005. The press release from ICFTU OnLine reports,
"115 trade unionists were murdered for defending workers' rights in 2005, while more than 1,600 were subjected to violent assaults and some 9,000 arrested ... Nearly 10,000 workers were sacked for their trade union involvement, and almost 1,700 detained."[3]
The report is divided into five regional sections, with detailed reports by country.[3]
Africa
ICFTU wrote that, "One of the most striking features of the violations that took place in Africa is the failure of governments to respect the rights of their own employees, both through the restrictions in law on organising, collective bargaining and strike action, and repression in practice." The report continues on to detail violations such as the lack of the right to organise unions in the public service in Lesotho; the police use of stun guns, rubber bullets and tear gas at workers' strikes and protests in South Africa; and the death of a Djibouti drivers' union member during a demonstration by striking minibus and lorry drivers.[3]
Americas
The report of violence in the Americas details a total of 80 deaths, more than half of the number reported worldwide. 70 of those deaths were in Colombia, while an additional 260 Colombian workers received death threats. In Ecuador 44 workers at the San Jose plantation were fired for forming a union. In Canada a collective agreement was imposed by law on members of the BCTF.[3]
The report on Europe begins by noting "Strong resistance to the creation of independent trade unions was a common trait across Central and Eastern Europe, both by employers and the State." Examples include an organised government attempt to coerce workers to leave independent trade unions in Moldova. Belarus is highlighted as wanting to return to Soviet-era trade union centres, with the ensuing close ties to the government.[3]
The death of one trade unionist in Russia is reported. Although there are no details concerning the exact circumstances, he had previously received threats, and his house had been set on fire.[3]
The report also details the difficulties faced by migrant workers in many countries, such as Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, where they are a major portion of the labour force, but have few rights.[3]
Qatar is singled out as a source of good news, with the country adopting a new labour code which, although still below international standards, allowed for the establishment of free trade unions.[3]
Robert Anthony Waters and Geert van Goethem, eds. American Labor's Global Ambassadors: The International History of the AFL-CIO During the Cold War (Palgrave Macmillan; 2014)
