Russian union takes on Ford: News You Won't Find on CNN as it laments the Rise of "Czar Putin"

To PA Blog Readers,
While the press is filled today with accounts of Vladimir Putin" victory," along with Hugo Chavez "defeat," the positive gains of Venezualan workers under Chavez and the huge losses of Soviet aka Russian workers since the fall of the Soviet Union are invisible in these accounts(except in regard to the point that Putin, with a lot of
oil money, has trickled some of it down to the Russian masses while building his state capitalist political machine, unlike Chavez, who has used oil money to advance major social reforms of a socialist character.

This call from Labourstart in Britain is evidence that there are still workers and trade unionists engaged in struggle in the New Russia. I am sending it to our readers because these workers merit our support

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Russia: Union takes on Ford - calls for help

Workers assembling the Ford Focus at a plant near St. Petersburg have been on strike since 20 November -- a rare event in a country where most strikes are of very limited duration. They are demanding that Ford negotiate their wages and conditions, but Ford is refusing to do so. Instead they've reacted by escalating the conflict, leading to the injury of one worker by police. Ford does recognize unions in many countries -- probably in your country -- so it's especially important to put pressure on the global management of the company. The same rights to trade union representation that are enjoyed by Ford workers in the USA, Canada, Britain and elsewhere should be enjoyed by the workers in St. Petersburg.

Click here to send on your message to Ford
<http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=926849&msgid=59624&act=QPHS&c=154875&admin=0&destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.labourstart.org%2Fford>
-- and please: forward this email message on to your fellow union members!