11 Aug 2017

The IndustriALL Global Union mission to Indonesia in solidarity with workers fired for striking at PT Freeport and PT Smelting, has revealed a human rights crisis, with workers losing access to food, housing, education and basic healthcare.

More than 4,200 workers at U.S.-based Freeport-McMoRan’s PT Freeport, which operates the massive gold and copper Grasberg mine in West Papua, have been sacked for striking, while some 300 workers at PT Smelting in Gresik were fired after striking in January…

“The mission has been informed that after firing the workers, the company has forcibly ejected the workers from company housing, denied them access to company hospitals and company schools, and has worked with local banks to restrict workers’ access to credit. We received the disturbing report that several workers and their family members who were denied medical care have died as a result. Many of the workers who lost their housing are now living in tents or the union’s offices,” said the IndustriALL mission in a statement on 11 August…

“These actions are clear violations of the workers' rights to organize, bargain collectively, and strike, established in ILO Conventions,” continued the statement…