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WAC Strengthens its International Ties
In November-December, Roni Ben Efrat of the Workers Advice Center spent ten days visiting trade unions in Europe. A principal topic was WAC's decision to establish a department for on-the-job safety.
On November 30, accompanied by Ester Lifsitz-Erlich of WAC, Ben Efrat took part in a convention of the Fundacion Paz Y Solidaridad (FPS) in Barcelona. FPS is linked to CC.OO, the Confederacion Sindical de Comisiones Obreras. Here the topic was international cooperation. Attending were academics and trade unionists from Spain and the wider world. Ben Efrat talked to the group about WAC's experience as a union-in-the making, surrounded by a neoliberal economic regime and an ongoing national conflict. Ben Efrat and Lifsitz-Erlich later visited in Santander, where they met with Javier Puentes, the General Secretary of Cantabria's CC.OO branch. He told the story of CC.OO, which began in the time of the Franco dictatorship as underground workers' councils. It was not until 1976 that they emerged from hiding, and today CC.OO is Spain's biggest union, with 1,200,000 members. In early December Ben Efrat went on to Denmark, where she was hosted by 3F, the United Federation of Danish Workers. An amalgamation of the General Workers' Union and the Women Workers' Union, 3F is the country's biggest labor organization. Ben Efrat began in Silkeborg, Jutland, where the head of the branch is Christian Juhl. He set up a very rich program for her, including a visit with union representatives from the Danfoss factory. She was extremely impressed by the union's level of achievement and by the position it has in the public life of Denmark. Ben Efrat also visited the union's main branch in Copenhagen, where she met Sune Bogh, who is in charge of international relations, and Palle Larsen, responsible for on-the-job safety. She spoke with them about the possibilities for future cooperation. During a visit to Denmark's parliament, Ben Efrat met Jeppe Kofod, a member of the Social Democratic Party. She also met with representatives of the Red-Green Alliance, including Finn Sorenson. She talked with them about the Annapolis Conference and the complexities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict since Hamas took over in Gaza.
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