Comité Fronterizo
de Obrer@s
CFO
For the labor rights and all human rights of the maquiladora workers
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Comité Fronterizo For the labor rights and all human rights of the maquiladora workers |
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CFOmaquiladoras.org/ April 19, 2006 ILO "strongly urges" Mexico to investigate anti-union activities of Alcoa and labor authorities against independent union in 2002 The Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA) of the International Labor Organization (ILO) presented a report in which the committee requests to be kept informed of developments regarding the Complaint against the Government of Mexico presented by the independent union that 502 Alcoa workers in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, decided to form in June of 2002. The independent union at Macoelmex, a subsidiary of Alcoa, was the product of an intense struggle by the workers that began in Feb. 2002 and culminated in the labor authorities' refusal to authorize legal registration of the union and the firing of 20 union leaders in October of that year. The workers appealed the denial to Mexican courts, and in July 2004 presented a Complaint to the ILO. The Government of Mexico intentionally delayed sending its reply, and only did so begrudgingly in September of 2005. The CFA, in its meeting in March 2006, discussed the arguments of the workers and the government's crude response. In its recommendations the CFA "is concerned that a further appeal submitted by the complainant trade union to the District Collegiate Court of Torreón remains pending" and " deplores this delay of several year." For the ILO, "justice delayed is justice denied." The ILO also " requests the Government to inform it of the implementation of the ruling of the Supreme Court of Justice concerning articles 395 and 413 of the federal Labour Law." This recommendation refers to the charge that the "exclusion clause" of the collective bargaining agreement, which requires workers to join the union (in this case the CTM) and which obliges the company to fire workers who refuse to join or are expelled from the union, was used against the independent union. Although the Supreme Court has ruled these clauses unconstitutional, auricles 395 and 413 of the Labor Code permit them. The CFA also "regrets" that the Government has not sent specific information about the acts of anti-union discrimination and violence related to the establishment of the independent union, and other acts of intimidation and threats on the part of Alcoa, the CTM and labor authorities. The CFA " strongly urges the Government to take measures to carry out an investigation into these allegations and, in the event that the alleged facts are confirmed, that it ensures that reparation is forthcoming for the antiunion conduct." The workers who formed the new union operated for nine months as legitimate worker representatives in the CTM local union in the factory where they worked. They were able to do this thanks to the workers who elected them three times over candidates backed by the CTM, and despite the refusal of both the company and the CTM to deal with them. After being fired in 2002, and having their union registration denied, the leaders of the independent union (in reality what they had legally tried to form was a "plant level union") accepted severance pay during 2003. After an international pressure campaign directed at Alcoa, the company effectively acknowledged its responsibility for what had happened and forced its two top managers in Piedras Negras to resign in January 2003. In a press release in February 2005, the Border Committee of Women Workers (CFO) stated that the principal reasons for bringing a case to the ILO were to set a precedent for future struggles of Alcoa workers, guarantee the right to organize, and clear the path for the continuing advance of union democracy in the country. The workers of Macoelmex (Alcoa) in Piedras Negras had to retreat in the face of the offensive by the company and the CTM, and during 2003 and 2004 there was a pause in their struggle. But in February of 2005, the workers demonstrated their consciousness and collective power during a bold strike which prevented another round of anti-worker measures by Alcoa and the CTM. The next steps are:
Read also: Workers' Demands to Alcoa
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www.cfomaquiladoras.org is produced in cooperation with the Comité Fronterizo de Obrer@s (CFO) |
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