Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions

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**IFTU**
Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions
ألاتحاد العام لنقابات العمال فى العرا
Founded	2003
Country	Iraq
Affiliation	Independent
Key people	Rasem Hussien Abdullah, president
Office location	Baghdad, Iraq
Website	www.iraqitradeunions.org/

The Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions (IFTU) is the largest union federation in Iraq and the only officially recognised Union. It was formed in the aftermath of the Iraq War by several groups, most prominently the Iraqi Communist Party, who wished to break away from the old Ba'athist federation.

The IFTU was formed on 16 May 2003 at a meeting of the Workers Democratic Trade Union Movement (WDTUN) atennded by 350 Iraqi trade unionists.^[1]

Although initially targeted by the U.S.-led forces, the federation was later given exclusive rights to unionise public sector workers in the country. The union has since been attacked by sections of the Iraqi insurgency and former leader Hadi Saleh was assassinated in January 2005.

It often finds itself in competition with the Federation of Workers Councils and Unions in Iraq and the Federation of Oil Unions in Iraq neither of which are officially reconised. One of the issules that devides these Unions is how they relate to the occupation authorities.

The IFTU, which is linked to parties that are part of the Iraqi government, opposed the war but claims they have been forced to work with the occupation forces following the invasion. The FWCUI takes a harder line toward the occupation authorities, calling for imidiate troop withdrawal .

However, all three Unions have agreed a common statement stating that; "The occupation must end in all its forms, including military bases and economic domination" and that "The war was fought for oil and regional domination, in violation of international law, justified by lies and deception, without consultation with the Iraqi people." The statement also condemned the occupation’s economic program stating its "opposition to the imposition of privatization of the Iraqi economy by the occupation, the IMF, the World Bank, foreign powers"^[2]