tie is an international grassroots network of workers and union activists. Rooted both in the global North and South, tie aims to encourage, organize, and facilitate international consciousness and cooperation among workers and their organizations in various parts of the world.
tie supports an international exchange of information and experiences among labour activists, women’s and human rights groups. tie’s activities are geared to enable workers to engage in a process of self-organisation, to develop their own strategies for better working and living conditions, and to facilitate international solidarity.
In Germany, the tie network is represented by “tie – Internationales Bildungswerk e.V.†which is a politically independent non-profit organization. In keeping with the overall objectives of tie, tie Germany has the following work priorities and projects:
- Production of the publication Ränkeschmiede; research on social movements; cooperation with the monthly union paper "express"
- Presentation of various education programs for workers, workers representatives, and works council members
- Support of national and international workers networks in auto industry, retail sector, chemical industry, and public sector
- Support of various European workers’ and union initiatives
- Project Working Without Pain in Brazil, Europe, and North America
- Project New Strategies against Management by Stress
- Project ExChains - Solidarity along the supply chain: from production to retail, workers unite! in Asia and Europe
- Project Workers Education and Exchange
- Project to support independent and democratic unions in West Africa
- tie Germany also supports the establishment of new tie offices in Senegal and Turkey.
Since 1993, tie Germany has been organizing the international tie conferences taking place every two or three years. These conferences are being attended by representatives of all tie offices and their most important project partners to discuss current and future work and strategies. The last conference has taken place from November 27th to 30th, 2003 in Oberwesel, Germany.
