ITUC finds violence against unionists on the rise; 101 murdered in 2009

According to an annual survey conducted by the International Trade Union Confederation, 101 union organizers were murdered around the world in 2009 for their union activity. The majority of the killings were recorded in Colombia, Guatemala, and Honduras, but the use of violence to suppress union organizing was reported in 140 countries. Suppression of workers rights, even when it involves murder and other acts of brutal violence, is rarely considered newsworthy by the western, corporate-controlled news media. The survey details the ways in which striking, claiming owed wages, and denouncing unsafe working conditions continue to be met with intimidation, harassment, and violence by employers and government bodies. Most workers around the world still lack the rights and protections that would allow them to organize or bargain over their working conditions without threat to their safety.

International Trade Union Confederation. 101 Trade Unionists Murdered in 2009; Pressure on Workers' Rights Grows as Crisis Hits Jobs. ITUC Annual Survey. June 9, 2010.