ITF Strike School: Ukrainian Transport Workers Learn About the Right to Strike
On September 8, in the city of Odesa, Labor Initiatives lawyers Kateryna Shvets and Inna Kudinska participated in the ITF (International Transport Workers’ Federation) Strike School at the invitation of the Marine Transport Workers` Trade Union of Ukraine.
The Union initiated this school to educate its members about international labor standards related to the right to strike, with a particular focus on the transportation sector. Ruwan Subasinghe, ITF’s legal director, visited Ukraine and was the main speaker for this school.
Transport workers have a generally recognized right to strike as a fundamental tool for advocating for their labor interests. However, the minimal available restrictions may be imposed to balance this right with the need for public safety and essential services. The Marine Transport Workers` Trade Union of Ukraine had no experience organizing strikes in Ukraine, as workers in the transport sector had been prohibited from striking for many years. Additionally, during martial law, strikes are not permitted in Ukraine. However, this school’s goal was to demonstrate that the right to strike is a fundamental worker right, even with restrictions imposed on providers of essential services.
LI lawyers also shared their legal experience in guiding workers, specifically members of the Independent Trade Union of Aviation Workers, during two historical strikes in the aviation sector in Ukraine, namely at the Aerohandling company and the Aerosvit aviation company.
Note.
In 2019, the “Aerohandling” union declared a strike after numerous violations at the enterprise. In June 2019, the handling service workers’ union, with LI assistance, achieved an agreement with airport management, including a 10% wage increase and a reduction in the number of hours that constitute a shift—from 15–16 hours to 12 hours—in accordance with Ukraine’s labor law.
Another strike, or rather, the prohibition of the right to strike, led Ukrainian aviation workers to the European Court of Human Rights, as seen in the ECHR decision VENIAMIN TYMOSHENKO AND OTHERS v. UKRAINE (Application No. 48408/12).
The case concerned a violation of the applicants’ right to freedom of association due to the ban imposed in September 2011 on a strike by workers and union members of the Ukrainian airline “Aerosvit” (a violation of Article 11). The Court held unanimously that Article 18 of the Law on Transport violated freedom of association guaranteed by Article 11 of the Convention. The Court emphasized that Article 18 of the 1994 Transport Law, which had not been amended since its adoption and concerned only the transport sector, was much more restrictive than Article 24 of the Law on Collective Dispute Resolution of Ukraine: in addition to cases where a strike endangers human life or health, it had to be prohibited “where passenger transportation or maintenance of a continuous production cycle are concerned.”
Only in 2023 was the Ukrainian Law “On Transport” finally amended, removing the ban on strikes at transport companies and fully implementing the ECHR ruling after seven years.
