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MWB-FGTB METALWORKERS OF WALLONIA-BRUSSELS
Mwb-FGtbMetalwoRKeRs oF walloNIa-bRUssels
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MWB-FGTB IN BRIEF
Since 21 April
2006 the metal workers
of the ABVV are represented
by three entities :
a Brussels entity
a Walloon entity
a Flemish entity.
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The Walloon and Brussels entities have united to form a common trade union organisation named
“Métallurgistes Wallonie-Bruxelles” (metal workers Wallonia-Brussels) or simply the MWB-FGTB. The
objective of the MWB is to develop its trade union activities entirely autonomously in function of the
reality in the field and in compliance with the institutional powers in the country.
MWB-FGTB is a progressive union organisation. It defends the interests of workers in Wallonia and
Brussels, whether employed or unemployed, in the following sectors:
Steel industry (Joint Committee 104)
Nonferrous metals (Joint Committee 105)
Structural steel work, mechanical and electrical engineering (Joint Committee 111)
Fabrications métalliques (Joint Subcommittee 111.1)
Entreprises artisanales du Métal (Joint Subcommittee 111.2)
Monteurs de ponts et charpentes métalliques (Joint Subcommittee 111.3)
Garages (Joint Committee 112)
Reclamation (Joint Committee 142)
Metal reclamation (Joint Subcommittee 142.1)
Miscellaneous reclamation (Joint Subcommittee 142.4)
Related sectors (Joint Committee 149)
Electricians (Joint Subcommittee 149.1)
Bodies (Joint Subcommittee 149.2)
Precious metals (Joint Subcommittee 149.3)
Metal trading (Joint Subcommittee 149.4)
Big retailers (Joint Committee 311)
Civil aviation other than Sabena (Joint Committee 315.2)
Temporary workers (Joint Committee 322)
Other manual workers included in the Auxiliary Joint Committee for workers
(Joint Committee 100)
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FGTB FEDERAl INTERPROFESSIONAl
Centrale Générale350.000
affiliated members
SETCa356.000
affiliated members
Public utilities284.000
affiliated members
CMB Centrale des Métallos160.000
affiliated members
ABVV-Metaal80.000 affiliated members
MWB-FGTBMetalworkers of Wallonia-
Brussels80.000 affiliated members
BrabantProvincial Federation
liège-luxembourgProvincial Federation
HuyWaremme
SeraingFlémalle
HerstalChênéeSclessin
liège Verviers
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BrusselsProvincialFederation
WalloonBrabant
ProvincialFederation
luxem-bourg
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FGTB FEDERAl INTERPROFESSIONAl
Food distribution100.000
affiliated members
Textiles42.000
affiliated members
UBOT Transports38.000
affiliated members
Research Department and AdministrationComprising 18 people reporting to the General Secretary
Secretariat: once every two weeksExecutive: once per monthWallonia-Brussels Regional Committee: twice per yearSupervisory CommitteeCongress: every 4 years
Hainaut-NamurProvincial Federation
SecretariatExecutive
Provincial CommitteeSupervisory Committee
Congress
Charleroi Namur CentreMons-
BorinageWesternHainaut
Regional Committee:All regional representatives1 union official1 president elected from the representatives
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MWB-FGTB & ITS BODIES
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The statutory bodies
of MWB-FGTB are:
the Congress
(statutory or extraordinary),
the Regional Committee,
the Executive Committee,
the Secretariat,
the Supervisory Committee.
CoNGRess MWB-FGTB holds a statutory congress every four years.
The Congress elects a General Secretary and a Deputy General Secretary.
The Congress takes decisions on the MWB-FGTB’s political line, developments,
orientations and cooperative links.
In addition, extraordinary congresses can be held by decision of the Executive
Committee or the Regional Committee or at the request of the Walloon or
Brussels entities.
The Congress comprises:
the members of the Regional Committee,
Representatives in the proportion of one representative for every
500 members appointed by the provincial bodies.
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exeCUtIve CoMMItteeThe Executive Committee comprises the MWB-FGTB General Secretary and Deputy
General Secretary, the Presidents of the three provincial federations and seventeen
members appointed by the provincial federations.
The liège-luxembourg Provincial Federation appoints 7 members.
The Hainaut-Namur Provincial Federation appoints 7 members.
The Brabant Federation appoints 3 members, one of whom is appointed by the Walloon
Brabant sections.
The Executive Committee’s role is to manage and consider all matters concerning MWB-
FGTB within the scope of that organisation’s remit.
The Committee meets as often as the MWB-FGTB’s interests require and in principle at
least once per month.
It may decide to hold coordinating meetings for individual sectors.
These will deal with work problems specific to their sector.
Any packages of demands they may draw up will come within the context of the general policy
established by Congress and will be subject to the approval of the Regional Committee.
ReGIoNal CoMMItteeThe Regional Committee comprises the Executive Committee and one representative for every 1,000
affiliated members.
The Regional Committee is the sovereign authority between statutory congresses.
The Regional Committee meets at least once per year, at the decision of the Executive Committee when
the situation requires or at the request of a provincial federation.
Provincial bodies wishing to place items on the agenda must do so by writing to the General Secretary
not less than one month before the Regional Committee meeting.
Regional Committee resolutions, decisions and motions are passed if at least 60 % of those present
vote in favour.
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sUpeRvIsoRy CoMMItteeThe Supervisory Committee comprises three members appointed by the provincial federations.
The Supervisory Committee is vested with autonomous and independent responsibility for financial
inspection and control.
Its members are appointed for a four-year term. It is not possible to be a member of the Supervisory
Committee and the Executive Committee at the same time.
The Supervisory Committee audits the entity’s accounts and cash whenever it deems necessary and
at least once per year. Any oversights, irregularities or other findings are immediately brought to the
attention of the Executive Committee, which will propose a penalty if appropriate.
As well as the report to the statutory congress, the Supervisory Committee draws up an annual report
on its work for the MWB-FGTB Secretariat.
seCRetaRIatThe Secretariat comprises five members, namely:
the General Secretary,
the Deputy General Secretary,
the President of the Hainaut-Namur Federation,
the President of the liège-luxembourg Federation,
the President of the Brabant Federation.
The Secretariat meets every two weeks.
Experts may be called in if need be.
The Secretariat oversees the work of the MWB-FGTB.
It is authorised to take special measures in an emergency and must render
account of them to the Executive Committee.
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MWB-FGTB & ITS SERvIcES
MWB-FGTB assists the provincial
federations in their day-to-day work.
It also organises working meetings,
inter-headquarters meetings and
technical committees to defend the
interests of the affiliated members as
effectively as possible irrespective of
status (working, not working, male,
female, young, in early retirement,
retired, cross-border, permanent
contract, fixed-term contract, temporary
worker, etc.).
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The MWB-FGTB team consists of 19 people.
INteRNatIoNal aFFIlIatIoNMWB-FGTB is a member of the EMF (European Metalworkers’ Federation)
and the IMF (International Metalworkers’ Federation).
political secretariat
political advisers
administration department
Finance department
iT department
research department
Training department
Nico Cue
Michel Goldmann
Jean-Michel Hutsebaut
Jean-Francois Tamellini
Michel levecq
Sophie Musette
Valérie lebrun
Victor Fabry
Frédéric Pricken
luc Grossen
Gaëtano Cutaïa
laurent Colyns
Benoit Gerits
Selena Carbonero
Jessica Di Santo
Yannick Bovy
Patrick Michaux
Gery Jacquet
Thierry lecocq
General Secretary
Deputy General Secretary
Adviser to the General Secretary
Principal Private Secretary
Administration Manager
Administration Secretary
FSE 111 Secretary
Finance Manager
Finance and Accounts
IT Manager
IT Assistant
Adviser
Adviser
Adviser
Adviser
Adviser
Adviser
Adviser
Adviser
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MWB-FGTB & ITS FEDERaTIONS
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MetalwoRKeRs oF walloNIa-bRUssels:
3 pRovINCIal FeDeRatIoNs
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pRovINCIal FeDeRatIoN lIèGe-lUxeMboURG
Fully integrated with overall MWB policy, the Metalworkers of liège-
luxembourg have historically been at the forefront of various fights,
notably the federalist demand theorised in the mid-twentieth century
by trade unionist André Renard (who died in 1962), the issues of
worker control and matters relating to cuts in working hours.
The MWB Metalworkers of liège-luxembourg are also significant
and essential players in all thinking and concrete directions relating
to the restructuring of liège’s economy.
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As a region with a long industrial tradition, liège was hard hit by the crises in the heavy industries. Today,
the region is in the process of adapting to a new future and in this context the metalworkers can play an
important part in terms of stimulating the industrial fabric.
A lot of steel metallurgy is still carried on in liège, on both hot and cold lines. The ArcelorMittal Group
is the main operator in the region, employing nearly 4,000 people. The decision taken in 2003 to shut
down the whole of the liquid phase was revoked by the company in 2008 after a long fight in which the
FGTB was on the front line.
As well as the steel industry, liège also has significant mechanical engineering and structural steel work
enterprises. The best known of these are Herstal SA (formerly FN, a world leader in light weaponry),
Techspace Aero (parts supplier to the world’s two leading aeroengine manufacturers), Magotteaux
(ingots) and CMI (metallurgical engineering and maintenance). In addition, there is a fabric of medium
and small enterprises which have developed specific expertise and moved into specialised niches, in
some cases being numbered among the world market leaders in their sector.
liège’s assets include a tradition of skills, industrial expertise acquired from many years of working
practice and passing on of trade know-how, efficient research centres and long experience of industrial
innovation.
Its location at a major communications crossroads between France, the Netherlands, Germany and
luxembourg has also made liège a logistics hub. The metalworkers defend the interests of workers at
the regional airport site, where the biggest employer is TNT, which provides nearly 1,800 jobs.
The Metalworkers of liège-luxembourg, organised into seven regional bodies, cover the territory of the
whole of the two provinces, including the German-speaking community. The current president is Francis
Gomez.
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pRovINCIal FeDeRatIoN HaINaUt-NaMUR
The Hainaut-Namur Metalworkers’ Federation operates in a region
that was the cradle of heavy industry in this country and one of the
big centres of metallurgy in Europe. It would be insulting to overlook
the contribution made by our predecessors who toiled, in some cases
to the detriment of their health, in the ironworks and steelworks of the
time, such as laminoirs de Jemappes, Boël, Cockerill, Providence,
Hainaut Sambre, etc.
Implacable economic necessity then plunged our region into a
painful restructuring process which has left a legacy of industrial
wasteland to this day.
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But this area, in which trade unionism and workers’ cooperatives were rooted, demonstrated its capacity
for reconstruction and the ability to build a new future. The steel industry, having entered a new era
characterised by recourse to the private sector, global strategic agreements and specialisation, is still
a backbone of Wallonia’s economy today. Companies like Industeel, the world leader in special steels
and stainless steels, laminoirs du Ruau, Thy-Marcinelle, Carsid and Duferco have found their niche in
the modern global economy.
The Federation has spared no effort to be at the forefront of the often desperate fight to save heavy
industry, but it has also worked for the setting up of local investment tools and has enabled the deployment
of smaller enterprises that generate skilled jobs. The metal manufacturing sector has succeeded in
creating an economic framework which is both flexible and efficient, comprising leading producers in the
sector alongside small and medium enterprises focussing on growth markets or specialised segments.
The region is home to aeronautical specialists such as Sabca and Sonaca as well as the biggest
Caterpillar plant outside the United States.
With the benefits of accumulated know-how, a historical tradition of a high level of skill, an enviable
location at the heart of Europe, more than 300 projects supported by the Objectif 1 programme since
2000 and the expected results of the Marshall Plan, there is light at the end of the tunnel for these
provinces.
Through its fights and its expertise, the Hainaut-Namur Metalworkers’ Federation has made this
redeployment possible. We will never give up. Our organisation covers the two provinces. The current
Hainaut-Namur Metalworkers’ president is Antonio Di Santo.
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pRovINCIal FeDeRatIoN bRabaNt
The Brabant Metalworkers’ Federation’s territory is the Brussels-
Capital Region and the province of Walloon Brabant. Based in
Brussels, it comprises the Brussels, Nivelles and Tubize sections.
Alongside the Metalworkers of Wallonia, the Federation is fully
integrated with the MWB-FGTB union project.
Our industrial area has undergone some big social and economic
changes in recent decades. The workers were very badly affected by
the social and urban crisis. Although our main sphere of action is in
business and industry, alongside the workers, the organisation also
tries to be present in all areas of social conflict.
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The main provider of employment in our sectors is the Audi plant, which employs nearly 2,200 people.
Maintaining a factory that makes cars in a city like Brussels is a seemingly impossible challenge.
Moreover, the end of 2006 could have seen the closure of the car manufacturing site for ever, in the wake
of VW’s decision to transfer activities elsewhere. However, the MWB Brabant metalworkers, backed up
by the authorities and our colleagues at IG Metall, succeeded in securing the viability of the production
site by highlighting its assets.
As well as the automotive industry there are other manufacturing enterprises operating in the metal
construction sector, such as Twin Disc, in steel metallurgy with Duferco and in aeronautics with Sabca.
Nevertheless, the service sector accounts for the greater part of metalworking activity, comprising the
electricians (in particular, Axima), lift engineers (such as Kone) and the garage sector (D’Ieteren, etc.).
There are also quite a number of small and medium enterprises which are breeding-grounds for
expertise and jobs.
Vocational training is another of our priority issues. Changes in the technologies used in the industry
require training products tailored to employees’ training needs, not forgetting the jobseeker integration
aspect, which remains a priority for our union organisation. The Brabant Metalworkers therefore support
initiatives that promote employment, notably through training. One concrete result of this union drive has
been the setting up, in partnership with representatives of employers in the metal construction sector, of
a Reference Centre for the Metal Construction and Technology Industry (Iris Tech), headed by Manuel
Castro, also currently the president of the Brabant Metalworkers.
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Visitour Websitewww.
metallos.be
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wHeRe CaN yoU FIND Us ?Rue de Namur 49, 5000 Beez
Tel. +32 81 26 51 11Fax +32 81 26 51 [email protected]
Provincial Federation liège-luxembourg
Place Saint-Paul 9-11, 4000 liège
Tel. +32 4 221 95 59
Fax +32 4 221 95 62
E-mail [email protected]
Provincial Federation Hainaut-Namur
Boulevard Devreux 36-38 (3e étage), 6000 Charleroi
Tel. +32 71 64 12 42
Fax +32 71 30 66 27
E-mail [email protected]
Provincial Federation Brabant
Place Rouppe 3, 1000 Bruxelles
Tel. +32 2 519 72 11
Fax +32 2 519 72 04
E-mail [email protected]
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