Trade Union Africa Conference on Labour & the Environment 27- 07 - 06

Trade Union African Conference on Labour and the Environment

Johannesburg, South Africa, 28th & 29th July, 2006

The media are invited to attend an important international trade union conference in COSATU House, Braamfontein, Johannesburg on 28-29 July 2006, starting at 09h00 each day.

The African Trade Union Conference on Labour and the Environment aims to establish a framework for discussion, development and adoption of common strategies for the trade union movement on sustainable development at the workplace, community, national and regional level.

80 trade union leaders from 22 countries will be gathering to follow up on decisions taken at the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development and on the legacy of the First Global Trade Union Assembly on Labour and the Environment, organized by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Labour organisation (ILO) and Sustainlabour, on 14-16 January 2006.

The Global Assembly was a giant step in the unfolding of the trade unions’ environmental and sustainable development agenda. The time has now come to examine its outcomes in the context of regional and local realities. Incorporating the environmental dimension into trade union work, encouraging decent and sustainable job creation and setting in motion the necessary just transition measures.

The objectives of the African Trade Union Conference on Labour and the Environment are to establish a framework for discussion and the adoption of common strategies for action on sustainable development by African trade unions to:

· Improve the understanding of African trade union concerns and needs regarding environmental issues.
· Raise awareness about the linkages between Environment, Occupational Health and Safety and other areas of trade union action, e.g. asbestos and HIV/AIDS.
· Identify the training needs of African workers, so as to enhance their role as agents for change toward sustainability, through actions at the workplace and within the local, national & regional settings.
· Promote an exchange of experiences and good practices.
· Build action networks for empowering national organizations to implement the decisions taken regionally and to incorporate them within international processes.
· Support the development of regional actions, i.e. campaigns or action plans.

The conference is sponsored by the United National Environment Programme, the World Health Organisation and the International Labour Organisation.

Among the many speakers will be:

· Andrew Kailembo, General Secretary of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions - Africa Region
· Zwelinzima Vavi, General Secretary of COSATU
· Blessing Manale, Director of Sustainable Development, SA Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
· Joaquin Nieto, President of Sustainlabour Foundation
· Representatives of African trade unions, UNEP, ILO, WHO and Global Action against Poverty

The media are invited to a press conference to receive a report on the conference. The details are:

DATE: Saturday 29 July
TIME: 11h00
VENUE: COSATU House, 1 Leyds Street, cnr Biccard, Braamfontein.

Please find the full programme for the conference below

Patrick Craven (National Spokesperson)
Congress of South African Trade Unions
1-5 Leyds Cnr Biccard Streets
Braamfontein, 2017