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Fourteen young workers and leaders of YCW Egypt gathered in Alexandria from August 31 to September 2, 2017 to live together and discuss their future. There were 10 young men from el Khranfish base group working in different sectors such as tuk-tuk drivers, gold makers, shop workers, and factory workers, three young women from El Sagood base group who work in the service sector as teachers and nurse in a private institution, and one person from El Osairin base group who is a student. They have been supported by former YCWers and collaborators.
Through the YCW methodology, young workers were able to analyze their past and current reality and to discover their own future. In the “see” part, they were tasked to draw what their future could be. Most young workers found it difficult because they do not have the luxury to draw on the past and some of them have no future prospects.
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Today, November 25, as we commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, we the International Young Christian Workers raise our voices to denounce the widespread violence and discrimination that young women workers experience every day at work and in the society. One of them is Mary, 28 years old, from Nicaragua.
“I am working in a free trade zone for Hansae Nicaragua SA, a garment factory. I have worked there for one year as a machine operator.
In our country, gender-based violence is a problem we face every single day at home, in the way they educate us to assume household tasks because we are women, e.g. cooking, washing, housecleaning, taking care of kids… When I leave my home and go to work, I am faced with sexual harassment in the street every day. The society downplays this practice as something harmless, but in my opinion, it is also gender violence and I really feel harassed as I walk among the people.
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The National Congress of KAJ Flanders that took place last November 14-15, 2016 at the Generation Europe youth hostel was a great success. It was attended by around 35 young people coming from different regions of Flanders. The two-day congress was fun, filled with dynamic activities and debates on the reality young people and the movement are facing today.
The National Congress worked on four different themes: (1) strengthening the base groups and actions of the different regions; (2) equal opprtunities for everybody; (3) respect for life and solidarity among people; (4) decent life at work and school. These four themes are the main campaign of KAJ Flanders for the coming four years (2017-2020).
It is interesting to note that the young people have found their motivation as a base for their plan of action. One group said that the KAJ campaign is addressing their reality as young people, e.g. the divorce issue and problems at school. This campaign started a few years ago, and there is a need to continue and reach out more young people and other sectors such as young people with disability and poor families. The KAJ is everyone’s movement. One member said that the KAJ is his second home.
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Today is 8th March, the International Women's Day. This day reminds us of the long history of the struggle for women's rights which has been carried out until today. It reminds us especially of the demand for women’s suffrage, one of the demands brought forward in several countries as this special day historically evolved into a collective, international symbol.
“I was born in an indigenous community in Guatemala and my parents had to migrate to the capital city. I had to start working at the age of 14 to put myself through school. I have worked for two years at Coransa, a textile maquila (which later changed its name to Denimatrix), in the laundry section where I have a production target of 2,500 trousers that need to be revised to ensure they have no defects. Through the continuous process of education and action of YCW Guatemala we have seen the high level of exploitation and the workers’ rights being trampled on; they have long working hours and unpaid overtime. When I first started, the company had 3,200 workers, it currently has 1,800 and the company has used mass dismissals. – Nadia (YCW Guatemala)
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The International Young Christian Workers is about to open an International Exchange and Seminar together with the Future of Work Network in Bandung, Indonesia this coming August 12-24, 2018.
We welcome all our delegates from national movements of YCW from Latin America, Africa, Europe and Asia-Pacific, as well as delegates and guests from our network the like of Justice and Peace-Germany, International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), International Movement of Catholic Agricultural and Rural Young (MIJARC), International Coordination of Young Christian Workers (ICYCW), International Movement of Christian Workers (MMTC), World Solidarity and many others.
The International Seminar 2018 in Bandung is a dynamic activity to exchange the reality on the life and work of young workers, our culture and our action. By coming together we are writing the history of young workers in the context of World of Work (wow) and by then we are putting a stone-mark of vision of the Future of Work (fow).
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The International Young Christian Workers (IYCW) is declaring March 15 International Day against Police Violence and State Repression. We have experiences from all around the world of increasing incidents involving the use of force by police and the military to suppress the demands of the population for Just Work, Equality and Dignified life.
For instance, the Walloon YCW noted that in recent months, following the attacks in Brussels and Paris, the Belgian government had decided hastily the implementation of a range of security measures and racistic laws that attack the foundations of democracy in the country. “The evacuation and arrest of undocumented people last September 19, 2016 in Molenbeek, which took place with an extraordinary deployment of police forces (helicopters and heavy weapons) is symptomatic of the way the government is criminalizing undocumented migrants by turning them into potential terrorists. We can also see an intensification of raids carried out in working-class districts and in areas of exploitation of undocumented workers, in particular in Matongé and Saint Josse. In the post-terrorist context, the instrumentalization of fear enables the public authorities to put in place policies and safeguards that lead to mass surveillance.”
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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.
