Dear
Friends and Advocates of the Labor Movement of Asia
and the Pacific,
We are pleased to announce that the University
of the Philippines School of Labor and Industrial
Relations (UP-SOLAIR), in cooperation with the Friedrich
Ebert Stiftung (FES), the Asia Monitor Resource Center
(AMRC), the Union Network International/Asia-Pacific
Regional Organization (UNI Apro) and the International
Labor Organization (ILO), is convening an INTERNATIONAL
CONFERENCE ON "A CENTURY OF LABOR STRUGGLE IN
ASIA AND THE PACIFIC" in fitting celebration
of the centennial of the labor movement in the Philippines
and other Asia Pacific countries.
The conference will highlight the contributions of
the trade union movement in the development of labor
institutions and industrial democracy in Asian society.
Likewise, the conference will discuss the twists and
turns in the history of the labor movement as well
as the challenges facing the Asian trade union movement
in advancing the cause of decent work given the dramatic
changes in the economic environment of Asia.
We would like to invite all Asian industrial relations
scholars, trade union leaders and researchers involved
in the Asia-Pacific labor movement, either as labor
leaders or labor analysts, to participate in this
historic Conference by submitting any paper on the
following Conference Tracks:
Track I: The Historical
Experiences of the Labor Movement in Asia.
Track II: Development
of Collective Bargaining and Industrial Democracy.
Track III: Decent Work:
Emerging Problems and Challenges for Labor in the
21st
Century.
Track IV: The Roles of
Non-Government Organizations, the Church and Civil
Society in the Labor Movement.
The deadline for the submission of abstracts has been
extended to August 31,
2002, while the final deadline for the submission
of the full papers has been
extended to October 15, 2002.
Please communicate to UP SOLAIR (c/o
melisa.serrano@up.edu.ph
mcmarasigan@up.edu.ph
, vevpupos@up.edu.ph)
or
AMRC (c/o sfrost@amrc.org.hk
)
or
UNI Apro (c/o uni-asiapacific@union-network.org
)
You may also wish to open the web site of UP SOLAIR
at www.solair.upd.edu.ph.
The venue for the conference is the Rembrandt Hotel,
Quezon City. The registration fees for the conference
are as follows:
- Foreign delegates -- $US150.00
- Foreign trade union participants -- $ 50.00
- Local delegates/participants - P 2,000.00
Registration fees are exclusive
of the hotel accommodation. Paper writers and conference
participants who wish to stay at the said Hotel may
contact the UP SOLAIR at the above e-mail addresses.
Hotel reservation and bookings may also be made through
Hotel Rembrandt’s website at www.HotelRembrandt.com.ph
or
through Tel. No. (632) 373-3333 loc. 201 to 203 and
Fax Nos. (632) 373-2727 and 372-0415.
The Hotel has offered the following discounted rates
for Conference participants (the prevailing exchange
rate as of July 30 is US$1=PhP51):
Standard room P 1,620 net per day
De Luxe (Twin) 1,800 net
(Triple) 2,340 net
We expect your presence in this important meeting.
Manila says MABUHAY to you!
Warmest regards.
Yours truly,
Prof. Juan Amor Palafox Prof. Rene E. Ofreneo, Ph.D.
Dean, UP SOLAIR Chair, Steering Committee
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International Conference
"A Century of Labor Struggle
in Asia and the Pacific"
Learning from a Century of Trade Union Struggle
For Decent Work and Building a Democratic Society
Many countries in Asia have witnessed a century of
labor and trade union struggles. Most of these struggles
originated from the anti-colonial liberation movements
launched by various nationalities at the turn of the
20th century. Since then, he labor movement has played
a major role in society - in securing national Independence,
in deepening democratic polity and in guaranteeing
fundamental labor rights.
It is an opportune time to summarize the major contributions
of the labor movement in nation building and the development
of democratic and fair labor rules.
Such a summing up is also most opportune in the context
of recent developments under economic globalization
which indicate that trade unions are at grave risk
in the new economy - unless radical adjustments in
many areas of traditional trade union work are undertaken
and the rules of global commerce given a human and
labor dimension.
Hence, the overall objective of this International
Conference is to gather an international group of
concerned labor scholars and labor leaders, principally
from the Asia-Pacific region, o to highlight key contributions
of the labor movement not only in the struggle for
nationhood but also, and more importantly, in the
development of institutions of industrial democracy,
principally collective bargaining,
- to distill major lessons from a century of labor
struggle in the Asia-
Pacific Region,
- to identify emerging problems and challenges facing
the labor movement
under globalization, and
- to outline old and new labor empowerment measures.
TRACKS:
Track I:
The Historical Experiences of the Labor Movement in
Asia.
Track II: Development
of Collective Bargaining and Industrial Democracy.
Track III: Decent Work:
Emerging Problems and Challenges for Labor in the
21st Century.
Track IV: The Roles of
Non-Government Organizations, the Church and Civil
Society in the Labor Movement.
Day One
Track I: The Historical Experiences
of the Labor Movement in Asia.
This track will highlight the colorful and historical
contributions of the labor movement in shaping post-colonial
Asia and influencing social development in the region,
particularly in the development of labor laws and
institutions of industrial democracy such as collective
bargaining even during the periods of colonial rule
or in the case of some countries, even during harsh
martial law periods. There are certainly invaluable
lessons to be learned on how trade unionists tried
to cope with the challenges of union survival and
growth in varying politico-economic conditions, especially
in situations of repression and intolerance to trade
union existence.
Track II: Development of Collective
Bargaining and Industrial Democracy
This track will be a sharing of insights and experiences
on freedom of association, collective bargaining and
related institutions of industrial democracy developed
and got institutionalized through the organized efforts
of trade unions. Specifically, what is the influence
of the trade unions in shaping the laws on freedom
of association, CB and industrial democracy and their
translation in the day-to-day life of the unions?
Also, what are the prospects for collective bargaining
in a globalizing Asia? Some countries in Asia are
on the road to greater industrial democracy, while
others are trying to even narrow further the already
limited space for union organizing and
collective bargaining.
Day Two
Track III: Decent Work:
Emerging Problems and Challenges for Labor in the
21st Century
This track outlines the emerging problems and
challenges facing the trade union movement in Asia
in the light of the globalization process, which is
radically changing the ways things are done, the way
workers are deployed and the ways by which employers
are relating to the workers and the unions. This track
is also an invitation for a full-blown discussion
on traditional and non-traditional forms of labor
organizing, advocacy and negotiation, including ways
of organizing and representing new workers such as
the contractuals, the homeworkers and other non-regular
workers as well as the highly-mobile technical and
professional workers such as the IT programmers.
Track IV:
The Roles of Non-Government Organizations, Church
and CivilSociety in the Labor Movement
This track highlights the fact that labor organizing
is not the sole preserve of the trade unions. New
players have entered the labor organizing (and conscientizing)
arena such as the non-governmental organizations or
NGOs, Church and other so-called civil society organizations.
In some societies, the ban on unionism has allowed
these organizations to serve as the refuge of distressed
and vulnerable workers such as the exploited migrant
workers. These organizations have also brought with
them new perspectives on how certain workers’
issues and concerns should be addressed, for example,
launching alternative livelihood programs to supplement
benefits gained from collective bargaining.
Submission of Abstracts/Full
Papers
For participants wishing to submit a paper,
the deadline for submission of abstracts has been
extended to 31 August 2002. The deadline for submission
of full papers is on 15 October 2002.
Abstracts should not exceed two to three pages (maximum
of 1,500 words). Please indicate the preferred track.
The preferred method of submission is through email.
Participants
The Conference will gather around 20-25 foreign
scholars and labor leaders,
mainly from Asia, plus 40-50 scholars and labor leaders
from the Philippines.
Sponsors, Convenors and Steering
Committee
The above activities are being undertaken by the School
of Labor and Industrial Relations of the University
of the Philippines (UP SOLAIR) in cooperation and
with the assistance of the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung
(FES), International Labor Office, various labor groups
and other concerned institutions. Asia Monitor Resource
Center (AMRC) of HK is a co-organizer of this conference.
Convenor: Steering Committee:
Prof. Juan Amor Palafox Chair: Rene E. Ofreneo
Dean, UP SOLAIR
Members:
Marie E. Aganon
Co-Convenor: Carlos Q. Anonuevo
Jose Gatchalian
Dr. Rene E. Ofreneo Gert Gust
Director, Center for Labor and Sarosh Kuruvilla
Grassroots Initiatives Apo Leong
Christopher Ng
Juan Amor Palafox
Ashim Roy
Melisa R. Serrano
Jorge Sibal
Anil Verma
Vera Eileen V. Pupos
University Research Associate
School of Labor and Industrial Relations
University of the Philippines
Diliman, Quezon City
August 6, 2002.
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