A Belgian has been appointed acting head of the world's largest trade union federation, one month and a half after its former leader was fired for alleged involvement in the Qatargate corruption scandal.
In a press release published on Friday, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) announced that 61-year-old Luc Triangle will be made its Acting Secretary General.
"It is a great honour to be entrusted with guiding the ITUC through this phase," Triangle said. "As we focus on the key issues of integrity, transparency and internal democracy, the ongoing work of defending workers' rights and campaigning for the new social contract will continue and intensify."
Triangle's predecessor — the 54-year-old Italian Luca Visentini — was sacked in mid-March after he admitted that he had accepted up to €50,000 in payment from disgraced Italian former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri. Visentini has denied that the money constituted a bribe and has maintained that he is innocent of corruption.
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The ITUC added that Triangle will take up the position this coming Labour Day (1 May). He is expected to remain as Acting Secretary General until a permanent leader is elected at an Extraordinary ITUC World Congress at the end of September.
Triangle most recently served as General Secretary of IndustriAll European Trade Union, a federation of trade unions representing European industrial workers. According to his official biography, he has been involved in union activities since 1982.
The ITUC represents 200 million workers across more than 160 countries and territories.
