UE General President Scott Slawson sent a letter today to members of the Metal Workers Union of the Argentine Republic (UOM), expressing UE’s solidarity with UOM members after the government removed their democratically-elected leaders. In May, the National Labor Appeals Court ordered a 180-day judicial intervention in UOM, annulling the re-election of General Secretary Abel Furlán.

Slawson writes, “The right of rank-and-file union members to democratically choose their own leaders is a right we hold dearly, and we fully condemn the actions of the labor court. Labor court judges Víctor Pesino and María Dora González are no friends to the working class, having endorsed the labor legislation introduced by Argentina’s right-wing President Javier Milei, legislation that severely restricts the rights of union members to take action, including strike action, to defend their rights.

“This unconscionable attack on the UOM comes in the middle of collective bargaining, and is clearly aimed at strengthening the hands of employers and weakening the ability of the union to defend and improve the wages and working conditions of Argentina’s metalworkers. Since Milei’s party won control of government, wages have declined, more than 200,000 private-sector jobs — including 25,000 in the metal sector — have been destroyed, and 25,000 companies have closed.

“We feel a particular sympathy with UOM given the history of the U.S. government’s attacks on national and local UE leaders during the Cold War, including attempts to deport UE Director of Organization James Matles and to remove UE Local 506 President John Nelson. The Argentine government has intervened in the UOM twice in the union’s 83-year history, during the dictatorships of 1955 and 1976. We are confident that Argentina’s metal workers will prevail against this intervention; your struggle in our struggle.”