Congress of Energy Workers

Congress of Energy Workers 

-Swadesh Dev Roye

WORLD Congress of Energy Workers, held on 29-30 November 2012, this time had an added attraction as it was being held in Venezuela after the massive electoral victory of Higo Chavez as the country’s President. Congress report greeted the people of Venezuela stating, “We extend our warm fraternal greetings to the people of Venezuela for voting Comrade Hugo Chavez again to the Presidency of Venezuela, the great country of people’s successful struggle against imperialist machinations and the disastrous doctrine of neo-liberalism…The victory of Chavez in the elections is not merely over his conservative ‘united’ opposition candidate; but it is a victory of alternative path of people oriented economic development policies and rejection of finance capital driven neo-liberalism.”

Inaugural Session: 

More than 100 delegates from 30 countries of all continents, including Latin American countries, India, China, South Africa, France, Romania, Greece, Sudan, Algeria and others; and representing all segments of energy sector - oil & natural gas, coal, electricity, water and petro-chemical - attended the Congress. A 9-members Indian delegation from Petroleum & Gas Workers’ Federation of India and Electricity Employees’ Federation of India was led by Swadesh Dev Roye. In the inaugural session, attended by large number of local electricity workers, general secretary of electricity workers federation of Venezuela, Angel Navas welcomed the delegates and Swadesh Dev Roye delivered his presidential speech explaining about US-led imperialists’ hegemonic designs in the oil-producing countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America concentrating on the global energy centre – the Middle East and Central Asian region; about the urgent task of energy sector trade union movement for campaign against and exposure of such imperialist designs and of the dictatorial puppet regimes of the oil reach countries; about the support to the liberation struggle of the people of Africa and Middle East for genuine, popular and democratic rule drawing lessons from the anti-imperialist struggle of the people of Latin America.

Congress Report: 

The Congress report, presented by the secretariat of Trade Union International in Energy Sector (TUI-Energy), dealt about established oil reserves, production scenarios, consumption profiles, exports and imports. The report stated that in oil consumption, United States was way ahead of the rest of the countries. United States, with just 4.5% of world population, consumes 25% of the world’s petroleum every year. Today, USA imports 51% of its total crude oil need. According to Energy Information Administration, by 2020 USA will import 64% of its crude oil requirement or 25.8 million barrels per day. U.S. foreign oil import consequently led to fall in its domestic production below 39% from the peak production in 1970. U.S. reliance on foreign oil import could increase to almost two-thirds of its total gasoline and heating oil consumption by 2020.

Congress report contains data of top 30 crude oil producing countries depicting the emerging world geo-politics of crude oil situation. According to latest OPEC data, at the beginning of 2011, highest proved oil reserves, including non-conventional oil deposits, are in Venezuela (20% of total global reserves). President Chavez said, “We have oil for 200 years.” Regarding oil price he said, “$50 a barrel – that’s a fair price, not a high price.” Such bold declaration on crude oil price stability counters the volatility of oil price.

On emergence of new players and new centres, the report focused on a new strategy that is establishment of ‘Refining Hubs’ based on total import of crude oil and total export of refined products; and based on exploitation of cheap labour. Chinese oil company SINOPEC with 37.5% and Saudi oil giant ARAMCO with 62.5% share holdings have jointly been constructing a gigantic oil refinery at reported cost of $8.5 billion which will be operational by 2014. Egypt is building its largest oil refinery with investment from China. Latest China’s agreement with Nigeria is to construct three gasoline refineries in Nigeria at an investment of $23 billion.”

Venezuelan Development: 

The report noted that oil industry in Venezuela, under Chavez, has witnessed huge changes in policy perspective. Government’s authority in the oil industry of the country was established, first by reducing the stake of private oil companies and ultimately by enacting Hydrocarbon Act, 2006 for full Government control. ‘Prior to the new arrangement, Venezuela was a US oil colony,’ Chavez strongly denounced, ‘the previous deals as a part of drive to attract more investment into the country’s oil industry...are foreign oil companies too much and the government too little.’

Another bold step was in diversifying oil export from USA to mainly China, India, Japan and other countries on which Venezuelan Minister said, “we are neither subject to the problems of the US and European economies, nor to the devaluation of the dollar.”

Under Chavez, Venezuela established a shining example of spending money, earned from oil revenue, for true economic development of the country and the people. According to UN agencies, Venezuela made tremendous strides since Chavez first came to power in 1999. Unemployment dropped from 14.5% in 1999 to 7.6% in 2009. Per capita GDP rose from $4,104 in 1999 to $10,801 in 2011. The population, living below poverty line, in 1999 was above 23% which dropped to 8.5% in 2011. Infant mortality rate has also gone down substantially. Most importantly, the U N data declared, “Venezuela has the least unequal society in Latin America.”

The Challenges: 

The major energy sources are afflicted with ills of different dimensions - oil & natural gas sector is victim of imperialist hegemonic design, the coal sector has almost been grabbed by giant MNCs, while the electricity – generation, transmission & distribution – has reached to the height of anarchy due to privatization, restructuring and total departure from people orientation to private profit orientation.

The consequence of the disastrous privatization of coalmines and that too in the major countries of established reserves with dangerous degree of monopolistic concentration is a big challenge before the trade union movement. The ‘quick buck’ philosophy of private monopolies has created human, environmental and sustainability of coalmines.

Electricity sector are most wide-spread and literally global. In the matter of access and affordability, the situation is deceitful and worsening. The USA itself is a glaring example as to how restructuring and privatization has plunged the US people into repeated darkness. Both, the workers of the industry and the people in general are victims of neo-liberal policies in power sector. Therefore, trade union movement of the sector must join hands with the people and unleash long drawn united movement.

Common to entire energy sector is the menacing contractorisation of employment which has become most exploitative labour practice and must be fought with top priority all over the world. It is not merely fighting against exploitation of a section of workers, but must be perceived as a huge danger to the trade union movement itself. This attack of capital must be understood ideologically and fought as a class battle.

Struggle Experience: 

The discussion by the delegates covered all segments of energy and continents. Speeches of Latin American delegates were stimulating because of their rich experience of struggle against US imperialism and for people-oriented alternative policy to the finance capital driven neo-liberal economic path. In the face of intense neo-liberal drive, Latin American countries witnessed vast increase in political mobilisation of the working class. Under pressure of mass movement, discredited governments in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador and Argentina were compelled to resign. Grassroot movements across the region defeated such governments’ attempts to privatise public services and natural resources; withdrawal of the state from its basic social duties concerning everyday life such as housing, nutrition, childcare, education and other productive work. In Latin American countries, under pressure of mass movement, the discredited USA’s puppet governments were repeatedly defeated in electoral battles one after another. According to a New York Times editorial, out of 365 million people in Latin America, 300 million people have come under the rule of Leftist or of Left-oriented governments.

Delegates from Arab Region narrated the sordid state of affairs of the energy industries plagued by techno-economic-political domination of the MNCs and the pathetic plight of the workers of the industry in the countries under subservient regimes to US imperialists. As the peoples of these countries are denied of their fundamental rights, including the right to elect the governments of their choice, so also the working class is denied of free and unfettered trade union rights. However, as magnitude of exploitation of workers is increasing, so also the anger of the exploited workers is heightening and the struggle is widening.

The Congress discussion also narrated about the increasing struggles of workers in energy sector against the onslaught of privatization and against attack on rights of workers. Struggles have been continuing and intensifying, in varying degrees, from capitalist outposts, epicentres of current capitalist crisis, to the countries of developing economies, who are pursuing neo-liberal policies,.

Tasks Ahead: 

The tasks, adopted by the Congress, include - Conducting continuous world-wide agitation and propaganda against the hegemonic onslaught of imperialist powers centering round the energy sector; - Exposing the machinations of different vested interests in creating volatility in crude oil pricing; - Contractorisation, casualisation of employment and out-sourcing of jobs must be strongly opposed and all categories of non-regular workers must be organized into trade unions; - While strengthening the central functioning of TUI (Energy) in observing democratic organisational principles, continent-wise regional centres should be established by constituting regional secretariats and also unleashing segment-wise activities.

Leadership: 

The Congress unanimously elected a secretariat with Martin Esparza of Mexico as president and Simon Mofokeng of South Africa as general secretary and Aldemir De Carvalho Caetano of Brazil as assistant general secretary. General secretary of Electricity Employees’ Federation of India (CITU) Prasanta Nandi Chowdhury was elected one of the vice presidents.