Impuls Agency specializes in hiring senior citizens at subminimum wage on trash contracts. These people simply do not have enough money to retire and have to work, but find it very difficult to get any job. Worse yet, these people often have to wait months to get paid, or quit, having received no money at all. Many workers are owed from 3-6 months' wages.

On November 21, members of ZSP and another union went to the office of Impuls agency to demand that immediate payments be made to ex-workers who hadn't received any money for months. These workers were hired at 80 euro cents per hour and often worked up to 250 hours a month just to make 200 euros.
We went to the office of the agency and demanded that the people be paid everything they were owed immediately. At first the Impuls people claimed that there was no money, even though today they are supposed to pay people. (It was typical that workers would should up on pay day and be told there was no cash and to come back another day.) We said we would not move until they were paid. The action was meaning filmed by a TV crew. After some time, one of the managers came and paid people. The four workers who went today received over 3000 euros in total. Most were owed 3-4 months' salary.
Combined with payments from other actions, people have received about 8000 euros of back pay.

The four years period since the XXIV IWA Congress in Porto Alegre in December 2009 has shown that the need for coordinated international working class action against capitalism has never been greater. Capitalism as a global system remains in the grip of crisis that it is seeking to overcome by attacking the working class.

In country after country governments have been, and are driving down wages, working and social conditions and throws people into unemployment in an attempt to boost the ailing capitalist system. The capitalist rule is “expand or die”, and the crisis is also used as a pretext for slashing public services. In fact this is an expansion for opening of markets and capital for private corporations. The rich shall be richer, and the poor shall be poorer.

Against this, the International Workers Association (IWA) has in the period since the Porto Alegre Congress in 2009 organized International Days of Action and countless Urgent Actions of Solidarity. The websites of the Sections, the IWA website and IWA`s External Bulletin show that the IWA and its Sections and Friends day by day are increasing their mobilizations, presence, activities and direct actions.

These Actions are part of a proud tradition of working internationalism. The IWA was (re)-founded at a Congress that took place in Berlin between December 25- 1922 and January 2- 1923, as such 2013 has marked the 90 Anniversary of this Congress. The IWA was born at a time when capitalism had gone through a period of globalization, and then, as now, capitalism used the forces of globalization against workers.

It was in this situation of today`s capitalism delegates attended the Congress from all IWA Sections, and they came from Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, and Spain. Of the applications which were treated early in the proceedings of the Congress, the ASF (Australia) who was a Friend became an IWA- Section and the Autonomous Workers' Union of Bulgaria and the FAS from Austria became IWA -Friends.

* Serbian workers from "Termoelektro" company in struggle with "Montes del Plata" in Uruguay

The workers from Serbian company "Termoelektro" were subcontracted by their company, and via several intermediaries, to the Austrian firm "Kresta" (under name "Felvok") and they were sent to Uruguay to participate in construction of a large factory for production of cellulose, for the company "Montes de Plata". They haven't received any payment for their work (around 10,000 US$ each). They weren't provided with working but only touristic visas, which expired several months ago - and are forced to pay 20 US$ for every extra day that they are staying in Uruguay. As of this moment, every worker owes state of Uruguay more than 700 US$. As they were struggling for their payment, they were staying in two camps but the bosses have have decided even to kick them out of those camps! Their Mess cards and access to the workplace has been blocked. The workers are without money, food and possibility to return to Serbia. This is when ASI from Serbia has contacted the workers and started a campaign for their support.