The International Transport Workers Federation ITF, supported by the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers Unions (ICEM), has alerted its port worker affiliates about a dispute involving Sultran Ltd. Sultran is a sulphur logistics service company, owned by a consortium which includes the Canadian subsidiary of Shell.
The Canadian International Longshore and Warehouse Union - ILWU, an affiliate of the ITF, is in dispute with Sultran following a move to transfer sampling and testing activities from S.G.S. Ltd and PKB Scania where the union has members to Certape Inc a known non-union operation.
The ILWU and the ITF believe this is a clear case of union-busting. Dockers Section policy agreed at a key meeting in Miami in June 1997 means that ITF dock unions are committed to strongly opposing such moves and providing solidarity where necessary. ICEM has also expressed its support for the ILWU and has warned Shell that it will cooperate closely with the ITF in case international support and solidarity actions need to be organised.
Calling upon unions to step up a letter-writing campaign, dockers Section Secretary Kees Marges said:
" If this expansion of pressure on Sultran and Shell appears to be insufficient we will start compiling information on ships and cargoes which have been handled by Sultran."
The ITF is in the course of drawing up a target list of union-busting companies. If the dispute was not resolved satisfactorily, the Federation could consider whether to include Sultran on this list, Marges said.
