The INTO's decision to allow Coca-Cola act as part sponsor of their conference in Tralee was criticised by delegates yesterday.
They also criticised the presence of a Coca-Cola stand at the entrance to the conference hall, where delegates are given information about school tours to the company's bottling plant in Dublin.
The high profile given to Coca-Cola at the conference surprised many delegates because of the company's alleged anti-trade union activities in Colombia.
The Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) conference will this week discuss a motion condemning Coca-Cola for its anti-trade union policies. The company has been accused of failing to provide protection for trade unionists executed in Colombia, a charge the company vehemently denies. There has been called by many trade unions for an international boycott of Coca-Cola.
The company is listed as one of the sponsors of the INTO conference in Tralee. It provides free beverages to the 600 delegates, something it has done for the past six years.
Coca-Cola has also been criticised by teachers for its promotion of what is seen as a very unhealthy, sugar-filled product. Mr Maurice Hurley (Dublin North West) accused the company of exploiting an under-resourced primary education sector to gain a foothold for its products.
The free tour of the Coca-Cola bottling plant is popular with schools. Few vacant places are available until the next school year in September. Over 30,000 primary and second-level children take the tour every year, which rivals Dublin Zoo as one of the most popular outings for schools.
Mr Hickey said the company was pumping money into schools through the sponsorship of GAA and other school sports. "They want to get the kids when they are young. But schools should resist this advertising in schools." Young children, he said, were bombarded with enough advertising and marketing outside the school gates.
Yesterday, the company was handing out posters to delegates. One read: "Agam, agat, aige, aici, againn, agaibh, a Coca-Cola - everyone needs a refresher course."The INTO general secretary, Mr John Carr, released a letter sent to Coca-Cola earlier this year in which he said that calls for an international boycott are "wrongly conceived".
But he also demands that the company takes "overall responsibility for guaranteeing basic worker rights" in its worldwide operation. Mr Carr said yesterday that his union was complying with ICTU policy towards the company.
In response, the Managing Director of Coca-Cola Bottlers Ireland, Mr Alfie Leyden, wrote that "respect for labour and human rights are fundamental" to the company's operating principles.
He also writes that the company deplores and condemns all acts of violence committed in Colombia or anywhere else.
