Kathmandu: UNI Apro Graphical & Packaging unions committee meeting was held in Tokyo at the National Printing Bureau in a hybrid format on 10 June 2026. The Meeting focused on defending democracy, strengthening organizing, building sustainable unions, and preparing workers and unions for technological change.
Delegates heard a detailed report from Nepal on escalating attacks on trade union rights, including efforts to weaken unions’ legal status and shut them out of key decision-making bodies. In response, the committee adopted a solidarity resolution urging UNI Apro to step up international support for the Nepali trade union movement, including backing plans for an international delegation to engage the government and reinforce unions’ demands for the protection of fundamental labour rights.
A major focus of the meeting was the ongoing organizing work in multinational packaging companies, with updates on the Tetra Pak campaign in India and Pakistan and the Amcor campaign across Malaysia.
The meeting also examined the question of financial sustainability, with discussion led on union fee setting, fee increases, best practice in fee collection, and member retention. Delegates discussed a target of around 1-2% percent of workers’ salaries for union fees as part of a broader effort to ensure unions have the resources needed to organize effectively and for workers through their unions to have the resources to improve their lives.
UNI Apro Graphical and Packaging President, from UNI affiliate Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU), Tony Piccolo said unions need a long-term commitment to organizing in the graphical and packaging sector, particularly in major multinational workplaces such as Tetra Pak, DIC and Amcor. He added that unions “must not only organize but also collect fees at a level that makes their organizations effective, including having the resource strength to confront the far right and defend workers across our industries.”
The meeting went on to address the rapid spread of artificial intelligence and digital transformation across the graphical and packaging sectors. Delegates discussed AI’s impact on work, the use of digital tools for union efficiency and organizing, the need for more training and capacity building, and the importance of defending workers’ rights as new technologies are introduced.
UNI Apro Regional Secretary, Rajendra Acharya said the meeting underlined that international solidarity is essential in a period of mounting pressure on workers’ rights across the region. “When unions in one country come under attack, it is a warning to all of us – and a reminder that our strongest answer is to act together across borders,” he said.
All Printing Bureau Labour Union in Japan (PLU) President, Tadashi Abe remarked that the discussions showed the importance of deeper regional cooperation as the sector continues to change. “This meeting has shown the need for even closer coordination between unions across the region to stay ahead of rapid changes in the printing, packaging and related sectors, and to make sure workers’ jobs, rights and livelihoods are protected during this period of rapid change,” he said.
