James, our YCW brother yesterday, today and forever
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It is with great sadness that the International YCW announces the passing of our brother, friend and comrade in arms, James Denteh.
James, a member of the YCW Ghana national movement, outgoing member of the IYCW International Team who assumed responsibility in the African continent over the 2012-2016 period, contributed to the dreams of many working-class youths around the world through his experience as an activist, and he leaves his footsteps and thoughts so that we can continue our struggle for a world with more dignity and more justice.
James, you are not gone; you are here in our lives and in the heart of each YCW member.
James, you are not gone; your ideas, your thoughts and your dreams are with us in our day-to-day struggles.
James, our YCW brother yesterday, today and forever.
ILC 2017: IYCW & WSM Joint Statement on Labour Migration
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As it does every year, the IYCW attended the 106th session of International Labour Conference held in Geneva in June 2017. Below is the IYCW-WSM joint statement on labour migration, read by Antonio Zela, a YCW activist from Paraguay and continental coordinator.
“I thank you on behalf of the International Young Christian Workers (IYCW) and World Solidarity (WSM) for giving me the opportunity to make a joint statement to this Committee. We would also like to thank the Office for the report prepared for this general discussion.
May Day Celebration in Laeken: Cardijn is still relevant today
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Each year since 1977, from 24th April to 1st May, the IYCW has been organizing a series of actions and activities during the International Week of the Young Workers which ends with the traditional May Day celebration. The year 2017 could not be different. All over the world, young workers and YCW leaders carried out actions against job precariousness and instability, against all sorts of inequalities they may face in their daily life. They exposed the social, political, economic and cultural problems which keep affecting the working and living conditions of millions of young women and men throughout the world.
This year in Brussels, to close the International Week of the Young Workers, the IYCW took an active part in the May Day celebration in Laeken, remembering the 50th anniversary of Joseph Cardijn’s death and proclaiming enthusiastically that “Yes, Cardijn is still relevant today”.
This celebration took place in the church of “Our Lady” in Laeken. It gathered nearly 600 people - current and former YCW leaders, as well as many former members from Belgium but also from France, the Americas, Africa and Asia.
International Domestic Workers’ Day: A Testimony from Pakistan
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“I am Fatima Hussain from Pakistan. I am 24 years old. I live in Lahore. I applied for many jobs in different factories but in vain. In our society, it doesn’t look good for a girl to have a job, people don’t like women workers.
I ended up deciding to work as a domestic worker because it is easier to get a job in this sector. But domestic workers are not paid well. They are paid PKR 1,500 per home (US$ 15). I was very disappointed by the low pay and the volume of extra work. I had to fulfill tasks that were not related to my job.
One day I met the YCW – that was a very beautiful day. In a meeting, I shared my experience as a domestic worker and the extra work.
We as YCW group wrote a letter to the Labor Council and requested it to increase my wage and make restrictions for no extra work for domestic workers. After a month, the management of the housing society where I work received a letter from the Labor Council saying that domestic workers had to be paid PKR 2,000 per home (US$ 20) instead of 1,500 and could not be given extra work. Now I earn PKR 8,000 for 4 homes. Although it is not enough to meet my daily needs, I am very happy and I attend the YCW meetings on a regular basis, hoping that I can do something more to change my life and that of other workers.
Migrant Workers: The Voice of an Overseas Filipino Worker
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My name is George Verzosa, I come from Calbayog City (Southern part of the Philippines). I have never completed my college education because my parents could not afford to send me and my siblings to school. I migrated to Manila to find work and I worked in a sack factory as a machine operator under a contractual agency. I worked with the minimum salary, while some of my co-workers were below the minimum wage. When I had overtime hours and received extra pay, I sent it to my relatives and family way back in my province.
We were required to work rapidly because we had a “quota” to achieve and they wanted surplus production. When we did not meet the quota required for the day, it was deducted from our salary. However, when we exceeded the production quota, there was no compensation.
In 2014, my work became more precarious. I worked only three to four days a week. It was a “no work, no pay” policy, so the days I had no work, I had no income. It was extremely difficult for me to help my family and even to support my own needs, I was renting an apartment too.
