Locked Out Workers Launch International Campaign to Get Rio Tinto 'OFF THE OLYMPIC PODIUM'

LONDON, April 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A new global campaign calling on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to drop resource firm Rio Tinto as an official supplier of the 2012 London Games will be unveiled on Monday (April 16th) in London.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080131/DC12982LOGO)

WHAT:              Int'l Launch of Campaign to Pull Rio Tinto as Olympic Supplier
WHEN:              Monday, April 16
                         7pm BST (London time); 2pm EDT (Toronto time)
WHERE:           Amnesty International UK's Human Rights Action Center
                        17-25 New Inn Yard, London, UK, EC2A 3EA

The campaign by the United Steelworkers union, which represents thousands of Rio Tinto workers, targets the firm as a supplier of gold for the Olympic medals.

The controversial mining giant is under scrutiny for a range of alleged environmental, human rights and labour violations at its operations around the world.

"Our campaign will detail just how badly Rio Tinto is in violation of its obligations under the Olympic Charter," Steelworkers spokesman Daniel Roy said. "It's time to get Rio Tinto off the Olympic podium, and we plan to do just that in the coming weeks."

More Information:

Adam Lee, alee@usw.ca, +44(0)795-862-4511 (London mobile)

Guy Farrell, USW, gfarrell@usw.ca, +44(0)514-949-5139 (London mobile)

Joe Drexler, USW, jdrexler@usw.ca, +1-416-434-7907 (Toronto mobile)

Bob Gallagher, USW Communications, bgallagher@usw.ca, +1-416-434-2221 (Toronto mobile)

NOTES TO EDITORS

The United Steelworkers is the largest private sector union in both Canada and North America with more than 225,000 members in Canada and more than 800,000 members continent-wide. The USW is Canada's most diverse union, representing men and women working in every sector of the economy.

Rio Tinto is one of the world's largest mining companies, with over $65B in revenue in 2011. With its HQ in the UK and Australia, Rio Tinto operates in 40 countries, mining and processing metals, diamonds and other minerals.