In response to the growing demand for critical minerals for the energy transition, Secretary-General António Guterres is leveraging the convening power of the United Nations to bring together a diverse group of governments and other stakeholders in the value chain of these minerals. Their goal is to develop a set of common, voluntary global principles to safeguard environmental and social standards and integrate justice into the energy transition.

A recently established Critical Minerals for Energy Transition Group, co-chaired by South African Ambassador Nozipho Joyce Mxakato-Diseko and European Commission’s Director-General for Energy, Ditte Juul Jørgensen, will address issues related to equity, transparency, investment, sustainability, and human rights.

230 groups of Indigenous Peoples, unions, and organisations dedicated to climate, environmental justice, and human rights have come together to draft a series of recommendations for this UN Critical Minerals Group, advocating for a fair global energy system that benefits everyone.

Read the civil society recommendations here:
https://pwyp.org/es/recomendaciones-de-la-sociedad-civil-para-el-panel-del-sgonu-sobre-minerales-criticos-para-la-transicion-energetica/

We urge the group to carefully consider and integrate these recommendations into their draft. Civil society actors eagerly anticipate the group’s outcomes and support a robust set of applicable principles leading to a just energy transition for all.

What Are the Ingredients for a Just Energy Transition?

1. Equitable Demand Reduction: Countries in the Global North overconsume resources. The first step is addressing this issue and achieving a more equitable distribution of resources.

2. Protect People and the Planet: Prevent and mitigate the impacts generated by the transition. Ensure the participation of affected communities and the rights of Indigenous Peoples.

3. Support Equitable Development and Fiscal Policies: Support the development of resource-rich countries and ensure that benefits reach the populace.

4. Promote Fair International Trade and Investment: Cancel the debt of low-income countries and find mutually beneficial agreements between the Global North and South.

5. Ensure Firm UN Action on Transition Minerals: Governments must rely on voluntary standards and principles to create binding regulatory frameworks that respect human rights, Indigenous Peoples, and the environment.

What do you think is most important to consider for a global energy transition? Contributions from organised civil society, universities, think tanks, and others can still be made to the Group through this link until July 30:
https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/panel-on-critical-minerals-submissions

What is the Link Between Critical Minerals for the Energy Transition and the Fair Electronics Campaign?

For years, the Fair Electronics campaign has been highlighting the social and environmental impacts of the value chains of our electronic devices, with a particular focus on communication technologies.

Among these impacts are the damages caused by the extraction of the raw materials needed to manufacture our devices, such as gold, silver, coltan, and lithium. A smartphone can contain more than 60 elements from the periodic table, requiring intensive material extraction from the Earth.

With the growing digitalisation of life globally and the need to move away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy sources, the demand for these metals and minerals is increasing exponentially, along with the associated risks and impacts of their extraction. Green or low-emission technologies are also intensive in their use of these materials.

The promotion of private electric vehicles, for instance, is driving demand much more than turbines for electricity generation or solar panels for solar energy. This is why it is so important to review how this energy transition is being planned; under what values and principles.

We envision a future where electronics and technology, in general, serve people, improving the quality of life in harmony with the planet’s biophysical limits and ecosystems. This means not using more resources than we have and making responsible use of everything we manufacture throughout its entire lifecycle.

• More than half of the 103 workers at the factory, including some of the deceased, were workers on temporary contracts.

On 24 June, a huge explosion set fire to a lithium battery factory in South Korea, killing 23 women workers. The fire started at 10:31 a.m. local time after a series of batteries exploded inside a warehouse containing about 35,000 units. The fire spread through the factory run by battery maker Aricell in Hwaseong, a major industrial cluster about 90 minutes southwest of the capital Seoul. Established in 2020, Aricell makes primary lithium batteries for sensors and radio communication devices. Park, Aricell’s CEO, said the company had fully complied with safety, paperwork and training, but more than half of the 103 workers at the factory, including some of those killed in the accident, were contractual workers, hired through a man power company.

Officials reported that the victims probably succumbed to the extremely toxic gas derived from the fire. Among the 23 dead workers, 17 were Chinese, 5 were South Korean and 1 was from Laos, of whom 17 were women and 6 were men.

In recent decades, many people from China have migrated to South Korea in search of work, as have other migrants from Southeast Asian countries: they often end up in factories or in physically demanding and low-paid jobs that South Koreans do not want to take on. In the electronics industry, the most vulnerable groups in terms of labour rights violations are migrants, women and young people, and contractual workers.

The chemicals used in the manufacture of batteries are highly flammable, and it is therefore essential that strict safety measures are applied. It is clear that the safety of Aricell workers was neglected. This incident highlights serious lapses in safety protocols, with fatal consequences.

A foreseeable and preventable accident

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) has condemned the incident as the worst chemical explosion and the largest industrial accident involving migrant workers in the history of South Korea. They stressed that this disaster was foreseeable and preventable, given the history of lithium battery explosions and inadequate safety measures at the factory. Despite numerous safety checks, no effective countermeasures were implemented.

KCTU has called for immediate and comprehensive support for the victims and their families, transparent communication about the cause of the accident, the involvement of the victims’ families in the investigation of the accident, and strict implementation of the Major Disaster Punishment Act to ensure severe penalties for those responsible.

The National Metal Workers’ Union echoed the events, highlighting the factories’ repeated failure to prioritise workers’ safety over profit. They noted that the fire and subsequent explosions at Aricell highlight systemic issues within the industry, especially the exploitation and inadequate protection of migrant workers. The Union calls for a complete overhaul of industrial safety systems and a thorough investigation to prevent a recurrence of such accidents.

Justice and reparation

From SETEM Catalonia, we want to express our condolences to the families of the victims and our support to the people affected. We also stand in solidarity with the organisations and working groups that are calling for immediate help for the families of the deceased and the injured workers. We demand swift justice for those who have lost their lives at their workplace. The South Korean government must hold Aricell accountable for this gross negligence and ensure that these violations of occupational health and safety rights are properly sanctioned in accordance with national laws. This tragedy underlines the urgent need for strong safety standards and their strict enforcement to protect all workers, regardless of their nationality, gender or employment status. The safety and health of workers must be the top priority, and systemic changes are essential to prevent future tragedies.

We endorse the statement of the Asian Network for Worker and Environmental Victims’ Rights (ANROEV), denouncing the gross negligence and violations of workplace health and safety rights that led to the tragic deaths of the 23 workers in the fire, demanding:

– That the government assumes its responsibilities for the safety of the workers.

– Due compensation and support to be provided to the families of the workers killed and those injured in the fire.

– A full judicial investigation of the factory fire and prompt information to the public, especially the families of the victims.

– Justice for the Aricell workers.

– The Serious Disaster Punishment Act to be enforced, ensuring that Aricell and all its officers involved in this gross negligence of occupational health and safety standards are held accountable and given appropriate penalties under the law.

Sources:

– News story to South China Morning, published on 24 June.

– News story in Reuters, published on 25 June.

When Jessica first started working in an electronics factory in the Philippines, received no safety training and no information about the health risks involved in her new job. After over a decade of doing soldering work at the factory, she was diagnosed first with a trigger finger. Then, an ovarian cyst. Before she was finally transferred to another unit doing lighter work, she had to undergo various surgical interventions and, ultimately, it was necessary to remove her uterus. Jessica is only one of many women working in electronics factories in the Global South whose health and well-being is traded for the profit of multi-million dollar electronics companies.

920 electronics companies and 261 manufacturing establishments. 

SETEM Catalunya, within the Electronic’s Faire Campaign, presents the investigation “Working conditions in Philippine electronics factories from a gender perspective“, where the working conditions for women workers in electronics factories in the Philippines are brought to light. The report has been prepared with the collaboration of various entities of Philippine’s civil society, which are dedicated to accompany, advise and defend workers, from interviews of their representatives, as well as other workers from different factories in the sector.

 

Gender-based violence in the electronics industry

Most electronics factories in the Philippines are located in the Special Economic Zones, which are governed by rules other than the rest of the country, and facilitate companies to violate women workers’ rights. However, the electronics sector is among the sectors where there is the greatest risk of modern slavery according to the Global Slavery Index of 2023.

Women such as Jessica are forced to work in factories in the electronic sector due to the lack of viable labour alternatives compared to men due to gender inequality, which makes the largest manual labour force in factories fall on women. According to the report, this feminisation of factory work is reinforced by gender patriarchal narratives: many senior officials within this sector consider women to be more docile, less aggressive and less prone to defending their rights than men. For this reason, they prefer them for manual work in assembly chains.

The high demand for work by women is used by employers for their own benefit, imposing poor working conditions for jobs in factories: short-term contracts instead of safe employment, low wages, excessive working hours with minimum or non-existent rest days, or the absence of maternal leave. At the same time, most supervisory posts are assigned to men. Patriarchal narratives and gender stereotypes impose the notion that these functions require perceived qualities as “masculine”, such as assertivity and leadership, and are therefore more suited to men. In addition, in factories there are various health risks, not only because of extensive and repetitive manual work, but also because of the manipulation of toxic chemicals without prior training or adequate safety measures.

In this way, women concentrate on the lowest paid jobs, more intensive in manual and more dangerous work in factories.

 

 

Union repression and persecution of labour rights defenders

The people who lead or join the unions are besieged, persecuted, stigmatised, or even attacked or murdered. The Philippine human rights organization Karapatan has documented 427 extrajudicial executions between July 2016 and December 2021, including several cases affecting workers’ rights defenders. People who oppose exploitative practices of companies, such as labour activists and union leaders or lideresses, face abuse and strong harassment in the Philippines. The practice of “red tagging” (accusing someone to be a communist rebel and to have a relationship with terrorist groups) has led to the very life of activists being threatened and, ultimately, to the murder of workers who have denounced abusive working conditions.

Union busting and persecution of activists do not just occur in the Philippines, but in all countries where electronic devices are assembled, preventing progress on labour rights issues in the electronics sector. As a result, any electronic device we buy has probably been assembled at the cost of forced labour and abuse, specially for women workers.

 

 

The report shows that, in order to improve working conditions for women in the Global South, unions and civil society organisations have to be strengthened and effective policy action needs to be taken. Only if companies are held accountable for the well-being of all workers throughout the supply chain can the electronics industry become fair and ethical.

EU campaigning pays off with promising new repair rules, but we need many more products to be covered

After years of intense campaigning by right to repair advocates, EU lawmakers have finally agreed upon new repair rules (1). The Right to Repair Europe coalition, representing more than 140 organisations in 24 European countries, celebrates that the new law will pave the way for better access to affordable repairs for selected products. There are finally rules on reasonable prices for original parts as well as a ban of software practices which prevent independent repair and the use of compatible and reused spare parts. This is a step in the right direction for affordable repair.

However, with the adoption of the law, a major chance is being missed to create a truly fair repair market in Europe and to ensure affordable repair solutions for the majority of products on the European market. The scope of products covered remains very narrow and many loopholes were introduced. A swift implementation of the rules is needed, including Commission guidelines on the definition of “reasonable” prices for spare parts, a solid execution of the ban on anti-repair practices and the introduction of national financial incentives for repair by EU Member States.

EU countries will have two years to incorporate this directive into their national legislation. It is vital that the next EU Commission (post-EU elections in June 2024) continue working on legal acts setting repairability requirements (2) for additional product categories to swiftly expand the scope of these new repair rules.

 

1. Better access to repair for a selection of products

The new rules will be set to improve European consumers’ access to repair for a selection of products. The scope is limited to goods purchased by consumers and to products already covered by repairability requirements under EU law. The scope will automatically be expanded by the European Commission within 12 months after the adoption of any new legal acts setting repairability requirements.

Producers will for the first time be required to offer repair options beyond the legal guarantee period of two years, for a duration of up to 10 years. These repairs will need to be carried out for free or against a “reasonable price”. Consumers may be offered a replacement product during the repair period. Parts and tools also need to be sold to independent repairers “at a reasonable price that does not deter repair”. However, the rules do not provide any indication of what a “reasonable” part price actually means. It will be crucial for the repair movement to take manufacturers that sell spare parts at unreasonably high prices to court.

Another important feature of the law is the ban on “contractual clauses, hardware or software techniques that impede the repair” for the products in scope. Right to Repair worked persistently to bring these unfair practices to the policymakers’ attention. However, it remains to be seen to what extent loopholes will persist, as the text adds an exemption to the ban that leaves the door open for manufacturers to continue enacting anti-repair practices by stating it is “legitimate” under the law. Regrettably, the law also fails to offer broader access to more repair information and more spare parts.

2. Improved attractivity of repair under the legal guarantee

To improve the attractivity of repair, the guarantee will be extended by 12 months if consumers opt for repair. This will result in a total of 3-year legal guarantee coverage in most EU countries, while there is no extension if consumers opt for replacement.

3. One step closer to national financial incentives for repair – but we still need to make it happen

EU lawmakers also require Member States to implement at least one national measure promoting repair. They propose a non-binding list (3) of financial and non-financial options such as support to community-led repair initiatives or information campaigns. It will be crucial for the right to repair movement to keep up the momentum via national campaigns and knowledge sharing on successful national initiatives. Based on the data collected so far, it is essential that financial incentives for repair are introduced in all countries.

4. Online matchmaking platform and European repair form

The EU Commission will introduce a European online platform with the aim to increase the visibility of repair options and transparency for their costs. While it is generally a good idea to increase the visibility of repair services and make it easier for consumers to find suitable service providers, this will only be effective as long as there is an adequate repair infrastructure that is also visible on the platform.

5. Missed opportunities

Considering the limited scope and ambition, the opportunity was missed to make this initiative into something that would actually merit the title ‘Right to repair directive’. In essence, the regulation’s main effect will be to somewhat increase the chances that the small number of products that already had to be repairable anyway, will actually end up being repaired. It would be very optimistic to expect that these measures will make a dent in the use of resources and the production of e-waste.

The list of missed opportunities is long. For example, Right to Repair had suggested a mandatory priority for repair over replacement under the guarantee along with strengthening the independent repair sector by allowing them to perform repairs under the guarantee. None of this made it through final negotiations.

There are also many ambitious provisions which the Parliament had agreed upon, only for them to be thrown out in favour of the Council’s drastically less ambitious stance during the trialogues. Among them are:

• The right for the consumer to have a product repaired unless this is factually or legally impossible (with the producer not allowed to refuse the consumer’s request purely due to economic considerations such as the costs)
• The right to have access to all spare parts and all repair-related information and tools, including diagnosis tools for a period corresponding to at least the expected lifespan of the product
• The obligation for producers to publish all information related to repair on their websites
• The possibility for legislators to add products to the list even if not covered by Ecodesign or other requirements

It is regrettable that in the end, the voice of our democratically elected representatives did not prevail. The Right to Repair Coalition will continue to push for ambitious repairability requirements for as many additional product categories as possible, as well as working with members focused on the implementation of the directive in each member state, to ensure that this and other pieces of legislation actually make a difference for European consumers and for the prevention of e-waste.

 

The original article was published by Right to Repair Europe. This is an abridged version.

 

Contact

Cristina Ganapini

Coordinator of Right to Repair Europe

Email: info@repair.eu

 

Notes

(1) legal text of the directive

(2) EU lawmakers also agreed on a new EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). This framework regulation will enable the EU Commission to set minimum repairability requirements for further product categories. Our coalition managed to put energy-related products, ICT products and other electronics as part of their next priorities.

(3) Member States’ measures promoting repair can include information campaigns, support to community-led repair initiatives, repair vouchers, repair funds, supporting or creating local or regional repair platforms, organising or financing training programs to acquire special skills in repair and taxation measures. These measures can be taken at a national, regional or local level.

 

In our everyday lives, we are constantly surrounded by electronic devices, the presence of which is becoming more and more normalized to us. Yet, we rarely think of the materials which were used to make them. Raw materials such as cobalt and copper are required to produce electronic devices – and with more devices being produced and consumed every day, the demand for such materials, which are mined in resource-rich regions, only increases.

The first image that comes to mind in the context of mining is usually a large industrial site full of heavy machinery. However, almost 90% of the world’s mining workforce do not work in such large-scale industrial mines, but rather in what is called artisanal mining (ASM) – small-scale extraction of resources using rudimentary tools and basic equipment. Artisanal mining usually takes place in informal and often illegal settings in countries of the Global South, where settlements are rapidly established around mining sites. ASM is especially attractive to the rural poor of those regions, to whom it offers a rare opportunity of comparably well-paid employment.

There are, however, various issues surrounding ASM. Due to the informal nature of the work, working conditions are poor and dangerous, environmental pollution is rampant and toxic substances used in processing ore pose a serious health risk.

Women in the ASM sector face even more severe difficulties – and yet, many women are compelled to work in artisanal mining, since viable employment opportunities for women tend to be scarce, especially for those who are socially stigmatised, such as single mothers. Thus, as the scale of mining decreases, the role of women becomes more important. Around the world, women are involved in small scale mining as processors, panners and ore carriers, but also as providers of services within the mining community such as cooking, cleaning and domestic duties.

Most women in ASM earn only a fraction of what men are making. In combination with the unequal distribution of care work, this results in women having to work up to 8 hours more per day than men. Despite this, profits from artisanal mining almost always go to men, as most of the land, the shops and the tools are owned by men.

In addition, the combination of processing work and domestic duties exacerbates dangers to health caused by toxic substances. For example, in places where mercury is used to extract gold from ore, many women perform this task in their own home. Exposure to mercury is especially dangerous to pregnant women, since it increases the danger of miscarriages.

Another major issue is forced prostitution. In many cases, promises of money and well-paid work are used to lure young women to mining settlements and subsequently force them into prostitution. Additionally, since most mining settlements are outside the control of the law, there is also a high risk of sexual violence and drug abuse.

At the same time, the presence of women is essential for community stability and morale. Since women are in charge of domestic duties and provide many essential services within the communities, they are vital to the functioning of all mining settlements. Despite this, in most countries where ASM takes place, there is no special protection for women, legislative or otherwise. Policies concerning ASM and those who work as artisanal miners continue to be gender blind, as do many development initiatives, leaving women vulnerable to danger and oppression. Responsibility for women’s safety is thus relegated to NGOs, mining cooperatives and civil society organisations.

Still, the solution is not to prohibit ASM, which would push artisanal miners into illegality and insecurity and deprive poor regions of an important source of income. Instead, it has to be better regulated to guarantee the safety of workers, and workers have to be organized. There are already successful cases of women workers coming together in cooperatives to demand better safety equipment and better pay. To improve the situation and bolster the agency of women in artisanal mining, such organisations have to be strengthened and the networks between cooperatives, NGOs and civil society organisations have to be expanded. Just as importantly, gender mainstreaming needs to be incorporated into all relevant policy frameworks and development initiatives, both in the Global South and in the Global North, where most companies profiting from exploitation of women in ASM are based.

Within the context of the Electrònica Justa campaign, SETEM Catalunya is working towards achieving those goals by pushing for responsible public procurement and stricter due diligence laws, by raising awareness about the conditions faced by women in ASM and by working together with other initiatives and organisations advocating for fair working conditions in the mining sector. To end exploitation, technology companies need to be held accountable – and a different vision of digitalisation needs to be built, centred not on profit and consumption, but on the well-being of human beings.

 

Sources:

LandLinks: Gender Issues in the Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining Sector, 2020, https://www.land-links.org/issue-brief/gender-issues-in-the-artisanal-and-small-scale-mining-sector/

Bester, Vidette: Breaking gender stereotypes. The role of women in artisanal mining, SLR Consulting 2023, https://www.slrconsulting.com/insights/breaking-gender-stereotypes-the-role-of-women-in-artisanal-mining/

Eftimie, Adriana; Heller, Katherine et al.: Gender Dimensions of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining. A Rapid Assessment Toolkit, World Bank 2012, https://documents.worldbank.org/en/publication/documents-reports/documentdetail/644761468157780524/gender-dimensions-of-artisanal-and-small-scale-mining-a-rapid-assessment-toolkit

Hinton, Jennifer; Veiga, Marcello et al.: Women and Artisanal Mining. Gender Roles and the Road Ahead, in: The Socio-Economic Impacts of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in Developing Countries, Swets Publishers 2003, https://prod-edxapp.edx-cdn.org/assets/courseware/v1/6913dd84795c217cc1c8c05358d8e782/asset-v1:SDGAcademyX+NR001+2T2019+type@asset+block/Women_and_artisanal_mining_-_gender_roles_and_the_road_ahead.pdf

Image source:

Laura Lartigue, Technical Writing Specialist for USAID/Guinea, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Guinea_Siguiri_miner_woman.jpg