Over 1,200 trade union delegates from every corner of the globe are meeting in Copenhagen 18-20 June, 2012 to form IndustriALL Global Union, representing workers in 140 countries in the mining, energy and manufacturing sectors.

"Among the delegates are heroes who have been on the front-line of the fight for democracy and workers' rights," stated Jyrki Raina, the in-coming general secretary of IndustriALL Global Union.

"Workers and their unions, members of IndustriALL, have been at the forefront of the Arab Spring fight for democracy, the struggle against despots.

"In Copenhagen we will form a new union family of heroes, with strong bonds, ready to stick together through thick and thin - a new force in global solidarity taking up the fight for better working conditions and trade union rights around the world.

"IndustriALL will challenge the power of multinational companies like Rio Tinto and BHP," Jyrki Raina said. "We will negotiate on a global level with the global giants.

"IndustriALL will fight for a new model of globalization, a new economic and social model that puts people first, based on democracy and social justice."

IndustriALL will be founded in Copenhagen on 19 June 2012. The new organisation will bring together affiliates of the former global union federations: International Metalworkers' Federation (IMF), International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM) and International Textiles Garment and Leather Workers' Federation (ITGLWF).

IndustriALL Global Union will represent workers in a wide range of sectors from extraction of oil and gas, mining, generation and distribution of electric power, to manufacturing of metals and metal products, shipbuilding, automotive, aerospace, mechanical engineering, electronics, chemicals, rubber, pulp and paper, building materials, textiles, garments, leather and footwear and environmental services.

The new website, http://www.industriall-union.org/, will go live at 14:00 on 19 June 2012.