Mexican Labor News & Analysis

Fox Names Salazar New Secretary of Labor

President Vicente Fox named Francisco Javier Salazar Sáenz the new Secretary of Labor of Mexico in June. Fox charged Salazar with improving Mexico’s competitive position, maintaining labor peace, and reforming the Federal Labor Law. That is to say, continuing the program of his predecessor.

Salazar is taking the place of Carlos Abascal Carranza who has been promoted to Minister of the Interior (Gobernación), the top cabinet position in Mexico, and often a stepping-stone to the presidency. President Fox charged Abascal with maintaining social peace as he had labor peace.

Abascal, a militant Catholic and right-wing conservative, was a notoriously aggressive and abrasive Secretary of Labor whose high-handed involvement in the reform of the Federal Labor Law wrecked any chance at a democratically negotiated reform. Salazar, a chemical engineer who has served as both a Federal congressman and a senator may be somewhat more flexible than his rigid predecessor.

At the first opportunity, Salazar called for reform of the Federal Labor Law, arguing that times of conflict between capital and labor were in the past and that we are now in an era when all parties seek negotiations that will lead to a “win-win” result. Mexican unions and workers who have suffered frustrations, defeats and demoralization may well wonder what “win-win” refers to. Still this could indicate a somewhat less aggressive and malevolent approach than that of Abascal.

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Zapatistas Issue Red Alert

[Since other publications devote themselves to reporting on the Zapatistas and publishing their documents, we do not usually do so. However, given that this is the first major political declaration by the EZLN in some time, and readers may be curious as to what exactly it said, we publish it here in translation.]

The Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) issued a red alert in June, though it was not clear exactly what had prompted the announcement nor what it means for Chiapas or for Mexico. What was clear was that after a long period of withdrawal from the Mexican political scene, Subcomandante Marcos and the Zapatistas intended to focus attention on their movement and its critique of Mexico’s government and political parties.

Various commentators attributed the alert to operations by Mexican Army troops involved in suppressing the growing of marijuana in the area, while others saw it as an attempt by the EZLN to influence the July 2006 elections. The Mexican government denied that any new military operation was taking place in Chiapas.

Subcomandante Marcos, the EZLN spokesman, issued a statement in which he reiterated criticisms of Mexico’s three major political parties, the National Action Party (PAN), the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), and the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD), condemning them all as corrupt. He concluded his statement with the words, “Now is the time to begin to fight, so that all of those groups discussed above render accounts and pay up.” Whether that rhetorical offensive meant that the EZLN was going on a social, political or military offensive was not clear.

ZAPATISTA COMMUNIQUE ANNOUNCING RED ALERT

June 19, 2005

To the People of Mexico:

To the Peoples of the World:

Brothers and Sisters:

As of today, the Zapatista Army of National Liberation has declared, throughout all rebel territory, a

GENERAL RED ALERT

Based on this, we are informing you:

First - That at this time the closure is being carried out of the Caracoles and the Good Government Offices which are located in the Zapatista communities of Oventik, La Realidad, Morelia and Roberto Barrios, as well as all the headquarters of the authorities of the different Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities.

Second - That also being carried out is the evacuation of the members of the different Good Government Juntas and the autonomous authorities, in order to place them in shelter. Now, and for an indefinite time period, they will be carrying out their work in a clandestine and nomadic manner. Both the projects as well as the autonomous government will continue functioning, although under different circumstances than they have been up until now.

Third - That basic community health services will continue functioning in the different Caracoles. Civilians will be in charge of these services, and the CCRI-CG of the EZLN is distancing them from any of our future actions, and we are demanding that they be treated as civilians and with respect for their life, liberty and goods by government forces.

Fourth - That there has been a call-up of all members of our EZLN who have been engaged in social work in the zapatista communities and those of our regular troops who have been in their barracks. In a similar fashion, all broadcasts by Radio Insurgente, The Voice of Those Without Voice, in FM and in short wave, have been suspended for an indefinite period of time.

Fifth - That, simultaneous with the publication of this communique, national and international civil organizations that are working in peace camps and in community projects are being urged to leave rebel territory. Or, if they decide freely of their own volition, they remain on their own and at their own risk, gathered in the Caracoles. In the case of minors, their departure is obligatory.

Sixth - That the EZLN announces the closing of the Zapatista Information Centre (CIZ), not without first thanking the civil societies who have participated in it, from the time of its creation until today. The CCRI-CG of the EZLN formally releases these persons from any responsibility for the future actions of the EZLN.

Seventh - That the EZLN releases from responsibility for any of our future actions all persons and civil, political, cultural, citizens and non-governmental organizations, solidarity committees and support groups who have been close to us since 1994. We thank all of those who have, sincerely and honestly, throughout these almost 12 years, supported the civil and peaceful struggle of the Zapatista indigenous for the constitutional recognition of indigenous rights and culture.

Democracy

Liberty

Justice

From the Mountains of the Mexican Southeast.

By the Clandestine Revolutionary Indigenous Committee & General Command of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation.

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Letter From FAT: Thanks for International Solidarity in Halting Labor Law Reform

June 22, 2005

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

We are writing to you on behalf of the Authentic Workers Front and National Union of Workers to thank you for the solidarity you have shown in defense of the Rights of the Men and Women Workers of Mexico, which has succeeded in halting the Labor Law Reform promoted by Abascal for the time being.

This past April the regular sessions of the Mexican House of Deputies and Senate were concluded, and with that the threat of passage of legislation which would have been harmful to workers, that could have meant the loss of rights consecrated in the law as the result of historic struggles by the trade union movement of our country.

During the month of May, the possibility of an extraordinary session in the House was put forward which, according to statements by the Federal Government, was to be used to move the structural reforms forward.

Yesterday the extraordinary session began; however, labor law reform was not included on the agenda.

By virtue of the preparations that are being made by the political parties for the elections next year, we believe that it is unlikely that the present government will continue to insist on this reform, due to the high cost that it could have for the political parties.

We believe that this success is due to the actions we have taken on a national level and to the strong solidarity you provided in pressuring the Deputies and federal Government with your letters and other actions.

In the name of those who are in struggle in the Authentic Workers Front and National Union of Workers, please receive our deepest thanks and solidarity.

We are certain that with global actions we will continue to successfully halt neo-liberal policies.


In Solidarity,
The National Leadership of the FAT
Benedicto Mártinez O./ Beatriz Luján U.

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Demonstrators Demand Action on Juarez Killings

Dozens of organizations and thousands of demonstrators marched in June at the presidential residence in Mexico City and in many cities and states throughout Mexico to demand that the Federal government and the government of the State of Chihuahua stop the murder of women in the City of Juarez. More than 400 women have been killed there in the last 12 years, many of them in ritual murders. Many of the young women worked in maquiladoras, in services or in entertainment in the border city.

Among the organizations participating in the simultaneous national demonstrations were: Mujeres por México (Women for Mexico), Justicia para Nuestras Hijas (Justice for our Daughters), Grupo 8 de Marzo (The Eighth of March Group), Red Ciudadana (Citizens Network), and Mujeres Barzonistas (Barzón Women), the women’s section of the debtors union.

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CROC, an Official Union, Splits; New CMS Union Emerges

The Revolutionary Confederation of Workers and Peasants (CROC), the second largest labor federation in Mexico, split in June, and a new labor federation, the Mexican Union Confederation (CSM) emerged.

The story behind the split is simple and political. Alberto Juárez Blancas, longtime leader of the CROC recently stepped down for reasons of health, leaving the CROC in the hands of Isaías González Cuevas. The transition was recognized by the Mexican Secretary of Labor, a key step in establishing the legal competence of the new general secretary. The CROC under González supported the Institutional Revolutionary Party and its leader Roberto Madrazo.

One of the leaders of the CROC, Roberto Ruiz Angeles of the State of Mexico, created the new CMS to that he could support Arturo Montiel, governor of the State of Mexico, also from the PRI, in his bid for the Mexican presidency.

The CROC/CMS split continues a series of organizational splits and mergers that have taken place within the last 10 years in response to the economic crisis and the fall of the PRI from power.

(For more on the Mexican labor movement’s organizational changes see:
Dan La Botz, “Mexico’s Labor Movement in Transition,” Monthly Review, Vol. 57, No. 2, at: http://monthlyreview.org/0605labotz.htm)

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10,000 Miners in U.S., Mexico, and Peru Protest Grupo Mexico

More than 10,000 miners in the United States, Mexico and Peru carried out a simultaneous protest against Grupo Mexico in June to demand that the company stop violating workers’ rights.
The protest was organized by the United Steel Workers of America (USWA) in the United States, the Federation of Metal Workers of Peru (FETIMAP), and the National union of Miners and Metal Workers (SNTMM) of Mexico. The international solidarity against the Mexican mining company was backed by the International Metalworkers Federation (IMF).

The three unions accused Grupo Mexico of having a policy of repression, exploitation and unwanted involvement in union affairs.

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Mexican Mine Workers Union Penalizes PRD Members

Two members of the National union of Miners and Metal Workers (SNTMM) of Mexico were removed from their posts and deprived of their union rights because they are members of the PRD, it was reported in June.

César Reyes Carvajal and Inocencio Alcocer Solares, both of whom had been executive board members of Local 271 of the SNTMM, were tried by the union’s political council and penalized by losing their executive board positions and union rights because of their membership in an opposition party and for having criticized union problems. Each of the men had worked for their respective employers, SICARTSA and Mittal Steel, and been a union member for more than 13 years. The two men had criticized irregularities in the union-management administration of their contracts.

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Mexican Railroad Retirees Accuse Union Leader of Fraud

Mexican railroad retirees have filed suit accusing Victor Flores Morales, head of the Mexican Railroad Workers Union (STFRM), of having defrauded retired union members of more than 30 billion pesos (more than 30 million dollars). The head of the Railroad Retirees, Alfonso Martínez Orozco, accused Flores not only of fraud, but also of having bribed government officials and judges.

The retirees argue that in the course of the privatization of FERRONALES, the Mexican National Railroad, tens of thousands of retirees were deprived of benefits that had been accumulating in the workers’ mutual welfare fund (sociedad mutualista Prevision Obrera) since 1932. More than 14,000 cases involving 70,000 workers have been filed against the terms of the privatization of the railway.

Railroad retirees have been fighting Flores for years, not only filing legal cases, but also participating in protests, in legislative hearings, and when possible taking their case to union meetings. Flores has, on various occasions, sent thugs to drive away the retired workers.

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FAT Obtains First Secret Ballot Election; International Observers Report on Experience

by Robin Alexander

SITESABES is an independent union of adult education workers which, with the assistance of the Frente Autentico del Trabajo (FAT), has been fighting to gain the right to represent adult education workers in high schools and universities throughout the state of Guanajuato for several years. These workers are employed by a state-funded program called SABES.

On May 30 - 31st, a team of nine international observers participated in the first secret ballot election ever ordered by a labor board in Mexico. The decision by Lic. Libia Gómez Padilla, the president of the Junta Local de Conciliación y Arbitraje in León, Guanajuato to hold an election by secret ballot was unprecedented and a major step forward. The general practice in Mexican labor board elections is that workers are required to express their choice out loud in front of the labor authorities and representatives of the employer and competing unions. This is obviously an extremely intimidating and often risky proposition, as workers are subjected to psychological and often physical violence.

Sadly, the independent union, SITESABES, lost the election. The vote was 571 to 374 with 237 ballots challenged by SITESABES because the workers had been hired after the date the election petition was filed -- the legal cut off date under Mexican law. The election took place in four major cities and SITESABES won a majority in two, but lost in the two larger cities where there was a major presence both of SABES (the employer) and STESABES (the incumbent union).

This defeat was not surprising under the circumstances: the long delay between the time the petition was filed and the actual election; the discharge of 27 leaders and activists; and some serious procedural deficiencies in the election process.
Yet the fact that this election took place by secret ballot, that turnout approached 80%, that there was no physical violence, that the voting took place in private and that the vote count occurred with great care and transparency and with no allegations of fraud are to be celebrated.

This was a complex election involving four sites. Despite a late start, the election itself was well-organized and showed a high level of commitment and enthusiasm by election officials, representatives of both unions, and voters alike. Particular credit should go to the president of the labor board and the teams of election officials -- younger men and women -- who are apparently assigned by the state on an as-needed basis to cover all types of elections. Their professionalism was impressive.

Nevertheless, the election was tarnished by some deficiencies, particularly with respect to the provision of voting lists and the appearance of the ballot, and various aspects of the election were handled differently in the four locations. While it is not surprising that such irregularities occurred in the first election of this type, all of these items could be effectively dealt with by the creation of uniform guidelines or a manual covering election procedures. We will address these issues in our report, which will be issued shortly.

It is our hope that this secret ballot election will usher in a new phase, setting the stage for democratic union elections throughout Mexico. This requires both building on the success of this first election and correcting the irregularities to ensure just and fair elections for the future.

We also hope that these accomplishments will not be marred by retaliation against those leaders and activists of SITESABES who are still employed by SABES, and that the labor board will promptly and effectively address any allegations of intimidation or retaliation that may arise.

Maureen Casey concluded, “We just witnessed a truly historic event: a secret ballot union election where an independent union won 40% of the undisputed ballots cast. Earlier, SITESABES won its registration as a union and this does not go away. The whole of Mexico saw that a secret ballot really could be conducted in a union election: a precedent is set. The teachers and organizers of SITESABES have been empowered and transformed by this experience. SABES will never be the same. International connections and relationships have been built and we've learned that those can make a huge difference. We will never be the same.... Each of our friends in SITESABES asked me to send their love, their gratitude and their solidarity to the teachers in New York. They are exhausted and sad but did not seem defeated. Our friends repeatedly talked about losing a battle, but not the war.

And Deborah Schwartz spoke of the broader implications: “Teachers in Guanajuato are not the only ones who experience repression for organizing in the workplace. This is a universal story with a local twist. We need to recount this story in our local communities and strengthen ties between worker struggles wherever here and there may be. Ten years after the signing of NAFTA--which has brought numerous labor setbacks-- we finally are beginning to win historic labor gains, thanks to the strategic organizing efforts by our companer@s at the FAT and the solidarity shown by workers in the U.S. As an international electoral observer, but more importantly as someone coming in solidarity, I know that relationships and organizing alliances built throughout the SITESABES struggle will only be strengthened. One thing is for sure: This is only a beginning.”

The team of international observers consisted of the following members:

Eric Duncan, American federation of Teachers AFL-CIO
Deborah Schwartz, CBLOC
Mary Mendez, Enlace
Maureen Casey, New York State Labor-Religion Coalition
Linda Villa-Passione, New York State United Teachers
Richard Neira, New York State United Teachers
Ben Davis, Solidarity Center, AFL-CIO
Ben Cokelet, Solidarity Center, AFL-CIO
Robin Alexander, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE)

They are presently finalizing their report, which we will include in the next issue of Mexican Labor News and Analysis.

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FLOC Staff Member Persecuted in Mexico

By Beatriz Maya, Organizer for the Farm Labor Organizing Committee

We now know that powerful interests in Mexico have instigated the filing of a complaint in the Instituto Nacional de Migracion against Brendan Greene, FLOC organizer in Mexico. This complaint is a thinly veiled attempt to stop the groundbreaking work FLOC is doing in Mexico as part of its efforts to enforce the rights that 8,000 Mexican migrant workers have obtained through FLOC's collective bargaining agreement ( CBA ) with a large agricultural employer association, the North Carolina Grower's Association, Inc. (NCGA), that obtains its workers exclusively with the assistance of Mexican recruiters.

This complaint consists of patently fraudulent charges that appear designed to intimidate and question the legitimacy of FLOC's activities in Mexico.

The sole purpose of the FLOC office in Monterrey is to assist, educate, and inform Mexican H2A workers employed by the NCGA with respect to their rights under the CBA, including hiring in Mexico without discrimination and according to the seniority system specified in the labor agreement. It appears that this hostility to FLOC's vigorous enforcement of the CBA rights of H2A Mexican workers is likely to result in many more attacks against FLOC and FLOC staff members. Without that work, the rights of H2A Mexican employees of the NCGA would quickly disappear.

Due to the high influx of calls into the Mexican embassy's office in DC, Mr. Greene’s initial hearing was postponed several days. Then he was told they would consider the case for two weeks before deciding whether or not to pursue the deportation. The two weeks have passed, and the situation remains unresolved. Brendan has not been deported, nor has he received further information about his status. To date, he has not been provided with the original or a copy of the 30-page written statement of the charges against him or any other written document that purports to identify the witnesses or evidence against him. This fundamental failure cannot be over-emphasized as the charges against Mr. Greene could be converted into a penal case. In order to prevent Mr. Greene's physical detention, FLOC has been forced to both retain the services of a Mexican attorney and to secure an amparo (the quasi-equivalent of a bond under U.S. law) of several thousand dollars.

Why is this case of national and international historical relevance? First, president Bush and the current administration are supporting an expansion of guestworker programs and a limitation of the rights of the workers under these programs. The World Trade Organization (WTO) will be considering the development of a global guest-worker program at its upcoming meeting in Hong Kong later this year as the population in the centers of power age and the corporations need “new blood” from Latin America, Africa and Asia for hard, unhealthy and poorly paid jobs. Second: this is the first labor agreement to gain representation for temporary guest workers in the history of both the United States and Mexico. Third: if the FLOC agreement survives, it can serve as an example of how a guest worker program can be run to secure labor protections and “voz y voto” for the workers. Without the active work of FLOC employees like Brendan and the courage of H2A workers in Mexico who continue to protest against the violation of their rights, this effort will not succeed.

WE ARE ASKING FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS TO:

Demand that the Government of Mexico:
* Respect and safeguard the human and labor rights of guestworkers coming into the US
* Stop the harassment suffered by FLOC staff in Mexico, like Brendan Greene, in enforcing the current agreement with the NCGA * Stop corruption involved in the recruitment of guestworkers in Mexico
* Take action to appoint a migrant worker Ombudsman to investigate current abuses

Please fax Carlos Abascal, Secretario de Gobernación de Mexico, FAX NUMBER: 011-52-55-5093-3414 or 5093-3415.
Phone number 011-5255-5093-3400.

Please send a copy to President Vicente Fox
Fax number 011-52-55-5091-1100 ext 1011 or 1012

It is important that we literally flood the Secretary of Labor with faxes and phone calls at this moment.

In addition, there are two other things that you can do to contribute to this effort:

(a) Contribute whatever funds you can to F.L.R.P./Mexico Defense Fund to pay for legal expenses necessary to defend Mr. Greene. Please send funds to: Farm Labor Research Project Inc.1221 Broadway, Toledo, Ohio 43609 (your contribution to FLRP is tax-deductible).

(b) Indicate whether you have any interest in being a member in a defense committee to develop activities or other actions in support of FLOC, Mr. Greene, and FLOC staff or members around the above demands. Please direct your e-mail or correspondence related to any of the above to Beatriz Maya bmaya1@floc.com, ph (419) 243-3456 fax (419) 243-5655

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PRI, CROC Attack Reporters For Exposing Corruption

By Shannon Young

There is a very serious situation going on here in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Thirty-one press workers with Noticias, the largest newspaper in the state, have been trapped inside of their office building since the pre-dawn hours of Friday, June 17th when busloads of people set up camp in the street and blockaded the entrance and exit points. The crowd is extremely hostile and intimidating and is taking orders from a local politician who is both a representative in the state legislature and union boss with the CROC, a "labor organization" strongly tied to the PRI party since its founding. The crowd also consists of hired thugs ("porros") and plainclothes police. Uniformed transit police, as well as the UPOE (a militarized state police force) are providing security for the shock group outside of the Noticias building.

The crowd has blockaded an entire city block in downtown Oaxaca City with dump trucks filled with Gravel and dirt, set up a giant tent structure (such as used at outside weddings), and brought in port-a-potties. All under the approving watch of state police forces.

At first, the newspaper workers were able to eat the food that was in the company cafeteria, but that is gone now. A number of the trapped workers report gastrointestinal illness and one diabetic is said to be in a delicate condition. The crowd outside is blocking any attempt to deliver food or medicine. In a desperate sounding phone call to the local unlicensed LPFM station, one of the workers said the psychological effects are taking their toll - in particular because the crowd won't let them sleep at night. The crowd gets drunk and belligerent every night and bangs on the doors and windows and has even threatened to set the building on fire. Some of the workers inside are starting to crack under the pressure of knowing that no one has been able to do anything to get them out or to guarantee their safety.

The workers have been literally been left there to starve to death under conditions of collective psychological torture. All the while, the federal government does nothing and the local media is absolutely silent.

This needs to be contextualized in the current climate of press freedoms in Mexico. According the annual Reporters Without Borders report on press freedoms worldwide, more journalists were assassinated in Mexico last year than any other country in the Western Hemisphere - knocking Colombia out of its #1 position.

So far this year, one newspaper owner was killed when ambushed by gunmen while driving home, a radio reporter was gunned down outside of the station where she worked, and another reporter is "disappeared" and is presumed dead after he left his office to interview a source. I'm not even going to list the threats, acts of intimidation, and harassment that have now become common for journalists who touch the subjects of organized crime and government corruption.

Noticias is really the only major media covering the very blatant government corruption in Oaxaca. Although it's really only pointing out the obvious, it enrages the powers-that-be here. The fact that state politicians can so openly attack the best-selling newspaper in the state so openly and with such total impunity is sending a very clear and threatening message to honest and critical journalists throughout the country - "report what we tell you to or there will be serious consequences".

As a reporter, the only thing I can do . . . is to tell as many people as possible. As an international reporter, my media access is somewhat limited. So, I'm asking those of you who have access to the community airwaves to PLEASE BROADCAST THIS INFORMATION. Vladimir Flores and I have audio (all in Spanish), contact info of those inside, copies of communiques, still photos, a video, etc. If you work on a show that has an interview format a nd this sounds like an interesting topic to discuss, contact me.

If you need translations of audio or documents relating to this subject, I will gladly help. Please check mexico.indymedia.org/oaxaca for resources or listen to June 20 and 23 editions of FSRN for more background.

Finally, I would like to ask all of you reading this to ask yourselves, "What would [our station] do if something similar happened to us or to one of our reporters?"

Thank you for your attention,

Shannon Young
Oaxaca, Mexico

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Election Date Set for Lajat Workers - Will it Be Democratic?

This information and request were provided by the Coalition for Justice in the Maquiladoras

June 24, 2005 -- Under increased scrutiny from all sides, the Gómez Palacio Labor Board has set a date for a union representation election (recuento) at the Lajat factory. So far, the CTM union which was welcomed into the factory to undercut the successful organizing of the workers’ coalition, has made little headway, but the workers expect that over the next month there will be many dirty tricks and much intimidation by company and corrupt union.

The workers expect the union election will be between their union which is a national general clothing union (Sindicato Industrial de Trabajadores del Vestido, Confección de Ropa en General, Similares y Conexos de la Republica Mexicana) and a new CTM (Confederation of Mexican Workers) local brought in because the previous CTM local had such a bad reputation with the workers.
If the Lajat workers can get an honest election, it will be a breakthrough for workers throughout Mexico where even the basics of worker rights are often denied.

The Lajat workers are demanding an honest election. That means that at the least it must be:
· By secret ballot
· In a neutral place (for example, the main plaza of Gomez in a tent)
· With permission for neutral observers (including international observers) to witness the voting
· And that Lajat fulfill its promises made to the workers to improve conditions and to be neutral in the union election (a promise it has already broken)

What You Can Do

1. E-mail or fax Lajat customers Mudd Jeans and Levis asking that they keep pressure on Lajat to respect their agreement with the Lajat workers and remain neutral.

2. E-mail or fax the Gómez Palacio Labor Board (Conciliation & Arbitration Board-CAB) demanding a secret ballot election in a neutral place open to observers from Mexico and other countries.
· Send copies to Mexican President Fox and Durango Governor Ismael Alfredo Hernández Deras

3. Donate funds through The Coalition for Justice in the Maquiladoras to help the workers’ organizing. Funds are needed for all of the basics: legal support, leaflets, gasoline, bull-horns, a sound truck to travel through the neighborhoods and more.

· Send checks made out to The Coalition for Justice in the Maquiladoras, 4207 Willow Brook, San Antonio, Texas 78228, with a note that indicates it’s for Lajat workers’ organizing.

SAMPLE LETTER TO LEVIS AND MUDD JEANS

Michael Kobori
Emily Chen
Levi Strauss & Co. Mudd Jeans
mkobori@levi.com chene@muddjeans.net

FAX:415-501-7112
Fax: 212-730-2289

Dear Michael Kobori and Emily Chen:

We are pleased that the Gómez Palacio Labor Board has scheduled a union representation election for July 29. The Lajat workers have come a long way thanks to the insistence on respect for their rights by organizations and by Levis and Mudd. They will continue to need your attention as they enter this final month which could bring them unprecedented respect for their rights if there is a fair and honest election.

Although Lajat President Oscar González agreed on May 23 before the Conciliation and Arbitration Board that he would remain neutral in the union organizing process of the workers, he has in fact permitted the CTM into the plant where it has been harassing workers and telling them that if they vote for the independent union, Lajat will close the factory. Also, González has permitted his own managers to campaign for the CTM.

It is very important that Levi’s and Mudd’s representative intervene and demand that Mr. González respect the universal right of freedom of association, the Mexican Federal Labor Law and the code of conduct of Levi’s. Mr. González must be accountable to Levi Strauss and Mudd Jeans, and the Lajat labor practices should be in compliance with Levi’s code of conduct, as Levi’s is one of its major clients. The Lajat management must stop meddling and intimidating workers during this process.
We also are calling upon you to prevail on Lajat to guarantee that the union election will be by secret ballot and held in a neutral place outside the factory as these practices are in keeping with internationally agreed upon democratic principles.
Sincerely,

(Your name and organization, if any)

Lic. Francisco Cobarruvias, President
Junta de Conciliación y Arbitraje (Conciliation and Arbitration Board)
Gómez Palacio, Durango

Phone /Fax 0 11 52 [871] 7231612 [Say: “tono de fax por favor”]
Email: franciscojaviercobarruvias@prodigy.net.mx

Estimado Lic. Cobarruvias,

Tenemos conocimiento de que la Junta de Conciliación y Arbitraje que usted representa negó por segunda ocasión el registro del sindicato de las y los trabajadores de Lajat con argumentos ridículos. Al no tener otra alternativa demandaron el recuento sindical por el contrato colectivo de Lajat a través del sindicato nacional de la industria del vestido. Sabemos que las elecciones del recuento se efectuaran el 29 de julio, por lo que estamos exigiendo que se realicen en un lugar neutral y con voto secreto. Así como que la empresa Lajat permanezca neutral en el proceso de elecciones y se permita la entrada de observadores internacionales. Sabemos que el gobernador Ismael Alfredo Hernández Deras pugna por una transparencia la cual no se ha proyectado aun en la Junta de Conciliación bajo su cargo. Por lo tanto exigimos transparencia en el proceso de elección de sindical de Lajat. Elecciones sindicales en un lugar neutral, con voto secreto y la presencia de observadores internacionales. Esta será una oportunidad para que el gobierno pueda demostrar su posición de transparencia en este proceso democrático.

Atentamente

(This is the translation of the above letter. Please send the Spanish version with copies to e-mails below to the Governor of Durango, President Fox and the Labor Secretariat - STPS)
Dear Mr. Cobarruvias

It has come to our attention that the Conciliation and Arbitration Board which you represent denied for a second a time the union registration to the Lajat workers with ridiculous arguments. Having no other alternative, the workers filed for union elections to earn the right to collective bargaining through a national garment union. We know that the union election will take place on July 29 and that is why we demand that this take place in a neutral place and by secret ballot. Similarly, we demand that the company keep neutral in the election process and allow entry to international observers. We know that the governor, Ismael Hernandez Deras, wants transparency which has not been seen yet in the Conciliation and Arbitration Board under your charge. Thus, we demand transparency in this election process of Lajat; union elections in a neutral place, with secret ballot and in the presence of international observers. This will be an opportunity for the government to demonstrate its transparent position in this democratic process.

Sincerely,

(Your name and organization, if any)

Cc: Gobernador de Durango, Ismael Alfredo Hernández Derasparti@durango.gob.mx

President Vicente Fox, foxcontigo@presidencia.gob.mx
Secretaria de Trabajo y Previsión Social STPS, Francisco Javier Salazar Sáenz correo@stps.gob.mx

(For background on this situation, please view previous issues of MLNA or contact the Coalition for Justice in the Maquiladoras).

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Social Statistics

Real Wages Falling

The Mexican Secretary of Labor reports that so far this year as a result of contract negotiations workers’ real wages have fallen 0.1 percent.

A study by the Center of Multidisciplinary Analysis (CAM) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) has found that in the last twenty years teachers at the university have lost 54.8 percent of their purchasing power.

Maquiladora Employment Falls

Between 2000 and 2005 the maquiladora industry has laid off 198,700 workers, according to a study by Laura Juárez Sánchez of the Workers University of Mexico (UOM). The number of plants has fallen from 3,245 to 2,684, a loss of 439 factories.

Class Struggle

The Secretary of Labor reports that in May there were 269 strike notifications, of which only 7 or 2.3 percent resulted in a strike. Some 634 contracts were signed, covering some 76,826 workers in the film industry, textiles, cement, mining, and metal. The average worker’s nominal wage increase was 4.5 percent.

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Resources

An article by Dan Labotz and Robin Alexander entitled “The Escalating Struggles over Mexico's Labor Law” appears in this month's issue of NACLA: http://www.nacla.org/art_display.php?art=2566

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Back to Table of Contents of Mexican Labor News & Analysis articles.

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