13 May 2004 02:18
Lukoil signs agreement with ICEM
MOSCOW. May 12 (Interfax) - Lukoil President Vagit Alekperov, International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and
General Workers' Unions (ICEM) General Secretary Fred Higgs and Lev Mironov, president of the Russian Oil and Gas
Workers Union (ROGWU), signed a cooperation agreement in Moscow on Wednesday.
The company said in a press release that the agreement is aimed at improving labor relations and developing suitable
approaches to production activity in Lukoil Group companies in various countries around the world.
Alekperov said that oil refining projects in Bulgaria and Romania prompted the company to integrate into this
process, which "will help us resolve problems that arise."
The sides confirmed their support for the principles of a UN global initiative and also the main labor and
environmental principles set down in UN and International Labor Organization conventions.
In particular, the agreement deals with the exchange of information between ICEM and Lukoil at an international level
and by trade unions and managers of organizations within the company at a local and national level.
Lukoil and the ICEM have announced that they will uphold human rights in the workplace and also public interests in
regions where the company operates. Lukoil has promised to adopt a socially responsible approach to the restructuring of
its subdivisions and to pay fair wages, meeting industry norms in similar countries.
Alekperov said "today's document is the first global agreement signed by ICEM with a company from Eastern
Europe."
The interests of Lukoil's workers are represented by Lukoil's trade union associations, which include 36
primary and 23 united trade union organizations working in 25 regions in Russia and abroad - Azerbaijan, Ukraine,
Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova. These have about 160,000 members.
ICEM includes 390 industrial trade unions from 120 countries. The organization currently has over 20 million
members.
The ROGWU was set up in December 1990 and has 1.4 million members. The union operates in 63 Russian regions and
unites over 3,200 primary unions, 32 territorial unions and four interregional unions, including the Lukoil union.
[Interfax] |
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