Welcome our new host and global secretariat!

The GoodElectronics (GE) Network is excited to announce an important development for the future of the network, marking a new chapter of collaboration and stronger global representation.

The GoodElectronics Philippines (GEPh), a coalition of labor institutions, has come together to collectively host the global network. GEPh is composed of Metal Workers Alliance of the Philippines (MWAP), Institute of Occupational Health, Safety and Development (IOHSAD), Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR), Crispin B. Beltran Resource Center (CBBRC), and Ecumenical Institute for Labor Education and Research (EILER), with EILER being the project partner of the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO), to facilitate the transition of the network hosting to partner(s) in the Global South.

Seeds of Solidarity

In the early 2000s, momentum grew to hold the high-tech industry accountable for human rights abuses in its supply chains. At a 2005 gathering in Guadalajara, Mexico, human rights, labour, and environmental groups came together to address the ecological and social harms embedded in electronics production. It was during this meeting that SOMO offered to host what would soon become the GoodElectronics (GE) Network.

Since its formal inception in 2006, the network has grown into a vibrant community of trade unions, grassroots organisations, researchers, and activists. Together, we are united in our mission: to improve corporate and public policies and practices related to human rights and environmental protection across the global electronics supply chain, with a focus on big-brand companies.

SOMO has proudly hosted the network for the past 18 years. After the conclusion of the EU-funded project (2014–2019), SOMO continued to support the network, funding both the International Coordinator and the Regional Coordinator between 2021 and 2024. For some time, members—including SOMO—have expressed the desire to see a hosting shift to an organisation based in the Global South.

The Future of the GE Network

The transition was a key agenda item at the GE Network general members’ meeting in Bogor, Indonesia (November 2023). Following thoughtful deliberation, members in attendance unanimously agreed to entrust the hosting role to our Philippine colleagues, with EILER selected as the most suitable organisation to coordinate the hosting and provide training to key people.

Beginning in October 2024, EILER will lead the transition to a new host for the GE Network, with Laarni Empreso from MWAP stepping in as the Transitional Coordinator, working closely with the GE Network Steering Committee and network members in ensuring the alignment of network’s programs and governance. She is joined by Anna Patricia Santos from CBBRC, taking the role of Campaign and Advocacy Support Staff to provide additional support and focus on mobilizing members and communicating targeted campaigns to influence corporate accountability. Further administrative support is being provided by EILER, headed by its International Officer, Rochelle Porras, also the GE Network Regional Coordinator for Asia and the Pacific.

This transition reflects our collective commitment to workers’ rights and to building a more inclusive, representative, and effective network. It is a testament to how GE members from the Philippines are deeply collaborative and are united in advancing the network’s shared vision, working collectively to strengthen grassroots engagement, amplify workers’ voices, and drive global solidarity.

Meet the Global Secretariat

Laarni is a union officer of the Nexperia Philippines Inc. Workers Union- National Federation of Labor Unions-Kilusang Mayo Uno (NPIWU-NAFLU-KMU), an affiliate of MWAP, an alliance of trade unions and labor organizations in different industrial sectors in the Philippines. MWAP’s national coordinator, Julius Carandang, sits in the GE Network Steering Committee, likewise representing the GE Philippines coalition. MWAP is also affiliated with IndustriALL Global Union, another long-time GE SC member.

Laarni worked as Production Operator for 16 years in Nexperia company. She headed the Cultural Committee as well as the Human Rights committee of the Union. In October 2023, Laarni was one of the eight workers illegally dismissed by the management, the first in a series of illegal dismissal of workers and union members. NPIWU-NAFLU-KMU filed a Notice of Strike (NOS) in the following year, in the middle of the CBA negotiations, on the grounds of unfair labor practices.

Laarni underwent a 6-month training for her role through EILER, under the supervision of the Regional Coordinator for Asia and the Pacific, Rochelle Porras. She has also participated in training sessions of IndustriALL through the years, and both have deeply equipped her with the competence and perspective essential for her new role as Global Coordinator. Laarni graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education.

Anna Patricia Santos is from the Crispin B. Beltran Resource Center (CBBRC), an organization established and dedicated to Crispin “Ka Bel” Beltran, a labor leader and parliamentarian who led monumental campaigns and advocacies for the interest of workers and the labor movement in the Philippines.

CBBRC is another active member of the GE Network since 2011. The resource center has produced publications and advocacy materials to advance workers’ rights in the electronics industry, such as the Rapid Assessment on “Magna Carta of Women and Other Laws for Women in Electronics Industry in the Export Processing Zones,” and “Ripples and Rising Tides: Experiences in Organizing in Philippine Special Economic Zones.”

Pat has a strong background in advocacy, grassroots organizing, policy advocacy and communication.

Laarni and Pat have the full support of the GE SC, and project partners, SOMO and EILER.

The GE Network Governance and Membership

The membership is the highest decision-making body of the GoodElectronics Network. It makes high-level decisions regarding membership, identity, vision, mission, strategies, etc., and meets on an annual basis.

Executive decision-making is delegated to the Steering Committee. The on-going coordination of the network, including day-to-day decision-making, is delegated to the current secretariat.

Following the Annual General Members’ Meeting in 2023, the elected members of the GoodElectronics Network Steering Committee (GE SC) are: