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Thai railway unionists dismissed
29 October 2009
Managers of the state railways in Thailand have dismissed six union committee members and plan to sack a further eight union leaders in an escalating row over rail safety. Among the eight due to be dismissed is ITF railway section vice-chair for the Asia Pacific region and SRUT vice-chair Pinyo Rueanpetch.
The move is the latest development in a dispute between members of the ITF-affiliated State Railway Workers’ Union of Thailand (SRUT) and managers of the railways, which followed a serious rail accident that led to fatalities. The union organised nationwide industrial action, which began on 16 October, in protest over managers’ failure to implement safety measures; management responded by stating that “human error” was to blame for the accident and that plans to restructure the sector would be speeded up. Management is also suing the union for 70 million baht for loss of earnings during the industrial action.
The SRUT filed charges against management for violating the union’s collective bargaining agreement, which obliges management to carry out maintenance and repairs to ensure trains are safe. The union claims that managers failed to comply and instead criticised workers who refused to drive trains that had not been made safe.
In a letter to Yutthana Thapcharoen, ITF inland transport section secretary Mac Urata stated that the ITF supported the union's demand that the employer should implement agreed safety regimes. "Blaming workers for structural failures in standards is totally unacceptable,” he said.
A coalition of unions in transport, public services, utilities and other industries and the ITF coordinating committee of Thailand have met to discuss how best to support the SRUT.
Meanwhile the ITF is urging affiliates to send a message of protest. Click here to find out more.
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