INTERNATIONAL LABOUR-INDONESIA/SPAIN:

SOLIDARITY WITH INDONESIAN HOTEL WORKERS:

Molly has mentioned this campaign before, but there has been a renewed call for solidarity with workers employed at the Jakarta Gran Melia Hotel in Indonesia, owned by the Spanish hotel chain Gran Melia. The IUF is a worldwide union confederation united people employed in service industries in many countries. Here is their appeal.

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Stop Repression of Workers Rights at Jakarta Hotel Gran Melia! :
Major Spanish-based hotel chain Sol Melia has moved to squash workers' rights in their flagship Indonesian hotel, the Jakarta Gran Melia. In 2005 the hotel signed a collective agreement with the IUF-affiliated SPM Gran Melia, but management has systematically refused to implement what they've signed and agreed to. Management has targeted union members, officers and activists for dismissal, withheld money owed the union from the dues checkoff and service charge, barred union representatives from the premises and installed invasive and humiliating surveillance equipment in order to intimidate the union and its members. You can support the union's ongoing struggle by writing to Sol Melia CEO Gabriel Escarrer, using the form below.

THE LETTER:

PLEASE GO TO THIS LINK TO SEND THE FOLLOWING LETTER IN SPANISH AND ENGLISH:

Señor Director:

Me dirijo a usted para expresarle mi profunda preocupación por los atropellos a los derechos de los trabajadores/as y del sindicato en el Gran Meliá de Yakarta. En el año 2005, el hotel suscribió un convenio con la organización sindical SPM Gran Meliá, pero ese convenio negociado no ha sido respetado. Los miembros y dirigentes sindicales han sido víctimas de despidos discriminatorios y la gerencia ha retenido el Fondo de Asistencia Social y las cuotas sindicales deducidas por el empleador. En lugar de negociar, la gerencia instaló una vigilancia sistemática mediante videos de los miembros y de las actividades del sindicato, en un evidente intento de intimidar al sindicato e impedir que funcione libremente.

Le recomiendo encarecidamente que usted actúe de inmediato para asegurarse que la gerencia del Gran Meliá de Yakarta suspenda todas las medidas represivas y entable negociaciones inmediatas de buena fe con el sindicato, a los efectos de resolver todos los asuntos pendientes. De no hacerlo así, habrá de perjudicar inevitablemente la imagen y reputación del Gran Meliá de Yakarta y de todas las marcas de Sol Meliá.

Atentamente,

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Dear Sir

I write to express my deep concern over abuses of worker and trade union rights at the Jakarta Gran Melia. In 2005 hotel management signed an agreement with the SPM Gran Melia union, but that negotiated agreement has not been respected. Union members and officers have been the victims of discriminatory dismissals, and management has withheld the Welfare Fund and dues checkoff. Rather than negotiating, management has installed systematic video surveillance of the union's members and activities in a clear effort to intimidate the union and prevent it from functioning freely.

I urge you to act immediately to ensure that Jakarta Gran Melia management ceases all anti-union measures and enters into immediate, good faith negotiations with the union to resolve all outstanding issues. Failure to do so will inevitable damage the image and reputation of the Gran Melia Jakarta and all Sol Melia brands.

Sincerely

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To participate in other IUF campaigns, please click here: http://www.iuf.org/cgi-bin/campaigns/currentcampaigns.pl