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Samoa First Union

Samoa

About Samoa First Union

The Samoa First Union is a Union organising workers in Samoa, particularly in the private sector, fisheries, and RSE workers travelling to New Zealand and Australia.

Samoa First Union was formed to educate and organise workers in the Private Sector in Samoa. For many years, SFU tried to organise workers in the workplace copying the model of unionisation in New Zealand and Australia. However, this strategy did not succeed in achieving the union’s goals of building significant influence and power within Samoan society.
 
Private Sector workers are the lowest paid in the country and often don’t earn enough to have extra money after their basic needs. They need to give their small earnings to their families, which makes them unable to afford the union fees and hesitant to join.
 
Local employers are poor but are not as anti-union as foreign employers. This means that recruiting union members is not the only pathway to organising  workers, but community education, engagement in union values and organising is essential.
 
This method has worked well with Samoa’s seasonal workers who go to Australia and New Zealand, as they are more easily organised by the unions there. This is because SFU does the education and organising in Samoa in our own language and culture, helping explain the big differences between working here and in a foreign country.

Current Project

When we unite, we win. As a Kiwi Solidarity member, you’ll join our growing community of New Zealanders who are backing workers and their whānau across the Asia-Pacific to fight back against exploitation and build strong, independent unions.

Together, we put resources directly in the hands of local union partners who know exactly what their communities need. From garment workers in Fiji demanding better wages and conditions to fishing crews in Indonesia organising against forced labour – our solidarity makes their collective action possible.

Kiwi Solidarity Membership

Past Project

Stories from Samoa First Union

Advice centre for Samoan workers

February 27, 2023 No Comments

For the first time a Worker Advice Centre focussed primarily on private sector workers has been established in Apia by Samoa First Union (SFU). Research showed that these workers lacked

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