Six young Swedish trade union members from the large local government union Kommunal visited Tamil Nadu, India to learn about the importance of solidarity support and the vital role that Swedish union development cooperation plays in supporting unions in South Asia.  They shared information about their union structures and struggles with a particular focus on the lack of trade union rights for public service workers in India.  Young members from the Tamil Nadu Government Officers Union (TNGOU) met with the delegation and discussed the challenges facing young workers in the two countries and shared tactics on how to get young workers to join unions.

In a rural area 650 km from the capital city Chennai, the Swedish trade union members met with the local council and discussed the improvements they were making to public services, taking environmental issues into account, providing jobs for young workers and strengthening industrial relations.  At a well attended press conference following the meeting, the Swedish delegation appreciated the work that the local council was doing but also drew attention to the fact that good industrial relations was not possible without the trade union rights to organise, strike and bargain collectively.   This message was promoted widely by all parts of the media, giving a boost to the current trade union rights campaign being piloted in Tamil Nadu by PSI and the affiliates.

The General Secretary of NOGE, the union confederation that represents local government workers, explained how the Swedish project over the last three years had assisted them in organising 10 local government corporations and 148 municipal council unions, placing them in a strong position to support the campaign for trade union rights.  They expressed their heartfelt appreciation to SEKO, the Swedish union that supports the ongoing project to campaign for trade union rights for public service workers in India.

The mission was organised by Kristina Olsson, Kommunal International Secretary, and Kannan Raman, PSI Trade Union Rights Project Coordinator.  PSI thanks all the Swedish affiliates for the valuable support they have been giving the PSI development cooperation projects around the world.

Related Files

Report of Kommunals visit to India (PDF File)
Press cuttings (PDF File)