Shipping Deputy Minister Marina Hadjimanolis is visiting London to participate in the IMO’s celebrations for the International Day for Women in Maritime. Despina Panayiotou Theodosiou, a Cypriot nominee, will receive the first-ever IMO Gender Equality Award for her work with WISTA International.
A strike by Tesla mechanics in Sweden, one of the country’s longest labor disputes, continues to disrupt operations despite Elon Musk saying the storm is over. The strike has led to sympathy actions from various other workers, causing disruptions in Tesla’s operations. The strike is still ongoing, according to IF Metall, the union representing the mechanics, who are considering ramping up action. Investor pressure is mounting on Tesla, with Norway’s wealth fund, a significant investor, raising concerns about the strike and backing a shareholder proposal on respecting rights to collective bargaining. Some Nordic pension funds have also voiced concerns and one has even sold its shares in Tesla over the issue. The disruption caused by the strike has forced Tesla to find alternative ways to handle its operations, including changing the way cars are brought into Sweden and having employees handle waste and garbage themselves.
Frederick University will host a lecture by Stephen Cotton, the General Secretary of the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF), on March 28, from 6.15-7.45pm, at the University’s Limassol campus. The lecture will focus on the ITF’s mission to protect the rights of transport workers worldwide and the importance of the global labour movement to the world’s seafarers. The ITF is a global union federation representing over 18 million transport workers in 150 countries across various sectors including maritime, port, aviation, road, rail, and urban transport. The event is co-organised by the Department of Maritime Transport and Commerce and Department of Law, and is open to the public and stakeholders in the maritime industry. Stephen Cotton was elected as General Secretary of the ITF in 2014 and re-elected in 2018. He has led the ITF to become a proactive campaigning organisation and holds positions in other significant organizations, including the ITF Seafarers’ Trust and the United Seaman’s Service (USS) governing body. In 2021, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of the UN Global Compact and chaired the Council of Global Unions (CGU) between 2019 and 2023. He received the USS Admiral of the Ocean Sea (AOTOS) Award in 2014.