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GLOBAL UNION KEY TO SECURING JOBS & RIGHTS: 
Workers Uniting, the world’s first global union that is a partnership between Unite from the UK the United Steelworkers from the US and Canada, today is celebrating the major victory of workers at the R.L. Denim factory in Bangladesh.

“This victory in Bangladesh – for more than 650 mostly young women – is perhaps the biggest victory for workers in the developing world to date,” said Leo W. Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers (USW.)

“The workers will no longer be beaten at work. They will be paid for overtime and maternity leave. They now have toilet paper and other basic needs,” Gerard said. “This is a big win in the fight against the global race to the bottom - not only for the workers in Bangladesh, but for Workers Uniting as we take on battles from a global perspective.”

For years young women at the R.L. Denim factory were trapped under prison-like conditions, forced to work seven days a week, beaten, denied maternity leave and paid as little as 11 cents an hour.
“Our efforts helped hold a corporate exploiter accountable, and showed what’s possible when workers around the world stand together,” said Tony Woodley, Unite Joint General Secretary.

When the factory workers asked for their most basic legal rights, they were attacked, fired and thrown out on the street with nothing. For too many workers in the developing world, this is the only choice they have - either be exploited or starve, said Ken Neumann, USW’s National Director of Canada

INTERNATIONAL INTERVENTION:
In May, Metro Group, the world’s third-largest retailer, announced that after years of profiting from exploitation at the Bangladesh factory, the company was pulling out its work just when the workers were on the verge of winning their legal right to a democratic voice in the workplace.

At that time, Workers Uniting and the German union Verdi signing an unprecedented Joint International Solidarity Statement, in support of the workers. The unions represent some 5.5 million workers.

RESULTS WON:
Now, Metro Group has admitted to its failure to monitor and protect its workers. In a statement the company said it will:
• Immediately return all of its orders to the R.L. Denim factory in Bangladesh.
• Institute significant changes throughout its worldwide supply chain to guarantee that human, women's and worker rights standards are finally respected.
• Open its factory to the respected Bangladesh Center for Workers Solidarity and National Garment Workers Federation to push for continued improvements.
The factory now has child and health care centers, purified drinking water, a dining area, toilet paper and soap, abusive supervisors were fired and pay was corrected.

INTERNATIONAL EXAMPLE:
“This campaign is so significant in that it has broken through the isolation to reach out to some of the poorest and most abused workers in the global sweatshop economy, proving that with the help of international solidarity, workers can now ask for their rights and win,” said Neumann.

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For more information about the global union, visit www.workersuniting.org.

Contacts: Connie Mabin, USW International, 412-562-2616 / cmabin@usw.org
Bob Gallagher, USW Canada, 416-544-5966 / bgallagher@usw.ca
Saba Mozakka, Unite, 020 7420 8916 / Saba.Mozakka@unitetheunion.com