Spotlight On Guy Ryder, the new ICFTU General Secretary

Living and working conditions are increasingly determined at an international level. Hence the pressing need for ongoing trade union action linking local and global concerns.

In this interview Ryder sets out how he sees a more coherent global governance developing. And he aims to reform the ICFTU internal decision-making processes, to make them more dynamic and more open to women in particular.

He also stresses that union recruitment remains the biggest challenge if unions are to stay relevant. Targeting young people in what are called atypical forms of work is part of this approach. He discusses how trade unions can act to help make transnational corporations accountable and how public opinion can be a force against the seemingly ungovernable corporate giants.

(Trade Union World; no. 7-8, July-August 2002)