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Brussels September 21 1998 (ICFTU OnLine):A new report by the ICFTU shows that the Solomon Islands is able to keep its prices of timber exports low, thereby increasing the country's competitive advantage in world markets because logging companies do not pay their workers decent wages.

The ICFTU's report on labour standards in the Solomon Islands, produced to complement the WTO's trade policy review describes how over the last year the timber logging sector has been hit by a major dispute between the Malaysian-owned logging company, Earth Movers (Solomons) and the loggers’ union, the Solomon Islands National Union of Workers (SINUW). The company has refused to pay the workers a 10% increase, even though the Solomon Islands Trade Disputes Panel has ruled that it must.

The last 10 years has seen a wave of foreign logging companies sweep through the Solomon Islands, to help develop the timber export business. Tariffs on log exports to Japan and Korea now provide much of government revenue. Because the timber sector is such a high revenue earner, the ICFTU is concerned that the lack of workers' rights in this sector could be used to make the country more competitive in world markets.

"Globalisation has once more delivered us a situation where a country accepts a violation of workers' rights because it needs to attract multinational companies in the global market", said ICFTU General Secretary Bill Jordan.

The Solomon Islands has the unfortunate record of having one of the worst rates of ratification of international labour standards in the world. Out of the International Labour Organisation's seven conventions on core labour standards the government has ratified only one - on forced labour.

It has not ratified ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association nor Convention 98 on the right to organise, the two Conventions which form the basis of all labour standards.

The government has not ratified ILO Conventions 100 and 111 on discrimination in employment or on equal pay. While women have equal legal rights according to the Constitution, they are very under-represented in the labour force because of cultural reasons, and only 2.6% of them are managers or administrators. There is no law on disabled workers, and most disabled people have great difficulty in finding employment.

The government has not ratified ILO Convention 138 on the minimum age for employment, and the law allows the employment of children under 12 in light agriculture and in some domestic work. As there is no compulsory education, only 60% of children have access to primary education, and far fewer attend secondary school.

The ICFTU concludes its report urging the Solomon Islands government to ratify ILO Convention 87 and 98 on freedom of association and the right to organise as a matter of urgency, and says it should also take steps to ratify the other core labour standards. In addition it should ensure that companies in the logging section abide by the Solomon Islands decisions on workers' rights, and that companies operating in the Solomon Islands respect international core labour standards.