Three Years of Non-Compliance: Obama-Santos Labour Action Plan PAL

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1 Agencia de Información Laboral ENS Labour Information Agency (AIL) Summary for the Month of April 2014 This month AIL issued 13 news items. Here we summarise the five most relevant ones: Balance of Obama-Santos Labour Action Plan (PAL) after three years: three years of noncompliance, say Colombian trade unions and United States AFL-CIO. President Santos flunks year with workers and in labour and trade union areas for period. Sintracarbon broadens range of action, now not only present in open-pit mining but also in traditional mining inland. Still a long way to go for collective reparation to take place in country s trade union sector. Once again Prosegur Multinational imposes Collective Agreement by buying off or threatening workers. April 7 ****************** Three Years of Non-Compliance: Obama-Santos Labour Action Plan PAL Of the 37 measures that the Colombian government promised to adopt prior to undersigning the Free Trade Agreement (PAL) with the United States, 7 have not been implemented and several of the other 30 adopted can be classified as partial and insufficient, quotes the PAL report prepared by CUT and CTC trade unions, in Colombia, and the AFL-CIO, the main trade union confederation in the United States, which counted on technical support from the National Trade Union School ENS and the Colombian Action Network on Free Trade (Red Colombiana de Acción frente al Libre Comercio Recalca). The report alleges that the Colombian Administration has been more interested in siding up with the U.S. Administration and Congress, than in implementing public policies that might transform our country s dramatic labour and trade union realities: high informality, labour insecurity, anti-trade-union practices, anti-trade-union violence, and impunity surrounding crimes committed against trade union members (73 murders during the PAL s three years of existence). These aspects have remained unchanged in the last three years, and in fact some have even become worse. To sum up, little has the PAL benefitted Colombian workers and their trade union organisations so far. The PAL report was accompanied by a policy statement signed not only by the trade unions mentioned but by the Workers Trade Union (Unión Sindical Obrera USO), IndustriALL-

2 Américas, UNI-Américas, UITA-Américas, ISP-Américas, the Colombia-Europe-United States Coordination, The Colombian Platform of Human Rights, Democracy and Development, Colombian Chapter, Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), the Latin America Working Group (LAWG), the International Labour Rights Forum (ILRF), and the Viva la Ciudadanía Corporation. On the other hand, Colombian trade unions and the AFL-CIO reiterated their objections to the FTA signed between Colombia and the United States. They believe it merits serious revision, as almost three years after it came into effect, the macroeconomic damage it has caused in Colombia is profound. During its first year alone, Colombian exports to the United States fell by 15.5%, while imports from that country grew by almost the same percentage. Furthermore, those drafting the report express their indignation at the way the Colombian Administration sold the PAL. It was presented as an effective way to guarantee workers their rights, but actually the political will to ensure that the Plan is fully applied has never existed. PAL committed the Colombia Administration to adopting 37 measures designed to solve the problems concerning the frailty of the institutions in charge of investigating and punishing labour intermediation via the widespread and illegal use of Associated Work Cooperatives; the lack of control of Temporary Work Agencies, SAS, and other forms of outsourcing; the use of Collective Agreements against trade unions; the massive violation so trade union rights which were never sanctioned or re-established; the murder and harassment of trade union leaders and the impunity surrounding thousands of crimes committed against trade union members. As a response to this panorama, the trade unions undersigning this report consider it urgent for the Colombian and United States Administrations to undertake the following three commitments: - Extension of the follow-up on PAL implementation to four years. - Creation of independent commission whose function would be to monitor compliance with the 37 measures in the PAL, made up of representatives from both Congresses, the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas, key trade unions in the United States and Colombia, and non-government organisations working in the areas of labour and trade union rights. - Presentation by Colombian Administration of a full balance of PAL implementation, and its submittal to public debate and analysis before the Permanent Consensus Commission for Salary and Labour Policies (Comisión Permanente de Concertación de las Políticas Salariales y Laborales CPCPSL). ***************************** April 30 President Santos Flunks Year with Workers Labour and Trade Union Balance for the Period Prosperity for All (Prosperidad para todos), President Santos Development Plan, had as its expressed goals a 6.2% rate of growth for the economy, growth in incomes and a decrease in the unemployment rate of one whole digit, apart from the creation of 2.4 million new jobs plus the formalization of informal jobs, by After four years of government the panorama is discouraging. According to reports produced by trade unions and ENS just before May 1, inequality, informality, outsourcing, labour uncertainty, lack of social protection, anti-trade-union practices, anti-trade-union violence

3 and the impunity surrounding the crimes committed against trade union members all continue thriving. Furthermore, the jobs created have been precarious, not guaranteeing the basic labour rights. Colombia continues to be one of the countries in the Latin American region with the highest inequality index. The absolute poverty rate in 2010 was 12.3%, and in 2013 it was 9.1%, while in the rural area it dropped from 25.0% to 19.1%. In 2013 employment only grew 1.7%, which means new jobs, less than half of the jobs generated in the previous years. And 79.2% of the economically active population (EAP) was mainly to be found working in two categories: as employees in the private sector and as self-employed. The latter represents 42.8% of the whole EAP. This category is part of what the ILO considers vulnerable employment. And as far as income is concerned, 45.33% of the EAP earn a minimum wage or less. Although the number of Associated Work Cooperatives did decrease, the number of workers hired through Temporary Work Agencies and false trade union contracts has increased. If in 2010 those hired through these three atypical forms of employment were , in 2012 the accumulated sum was This represents an actual increase in the rate of labour intermediation. The health sector has promoted the existence of false trade unions in order to be able to hire workers through these fake trade union contracts. In 2013, the female unemployment rate was 12.7%, while the rate for men was 7.4%. The rate of unemployment among the young continues to be higher than average for Latin America, at 15.5%. In 2013, less than half of the EAP had the right to be affiliated to a contributory health system (47.4%). Affiliation to pension schemes shows no significant advances: less than one third of the EAP has this kind of protection. As far as being covered for health hazards in the workplace, the situation is alarming: over 60% of the EAP does not have this type of risk coverage. Violence against trade union members continues to thrive. In the four years of President Santos mandate, 139 trade unionists have been assassinated; there were 57 assassination attempts, 18 forced disappearances and threats. No significant advances in criminal investigations have taken place and no court cases are underway in order to pass on sentences or order arrests. Impunity continues to reign. April 28 ********************** Sintracarbón Broadens its Range of Action: It Now Has Two Regional Officers in Cundinamarca For almost 30 years, Sintracarbón has had jurisdiction over open-pit mining in the Atlantic Coast, especially in the El Cerrejon Complex. This is why its recent fusion with Sintracoal merits attention. Sintracoal is a grassroots trade union of the North American Company Columbia Coal Company, which, with close to 1000 workers, exploits coal in traditional shaft mines in the Towns of Guachetá and Cucunubá, in North Cundinamarca, part of the country s inland region. This fusion did not only require workers affiliated to Sintracoal to approve it, but also the representative of the Presidency of the CTC trade union, being that Sintracoal, before merging, had belonged to this union, while Sintracarbón was part of the trade union CUT.

4 In the words of Miguel Morantes, CTC President, the fusion was made considering the importance for the trade union movement of grouping together workers in large industrial sectors, allowing them to defend their rights and vindications under better conditions. Sintracoal, on the other hand, was a small trade union, the only one in the coal sector which was part of the CTC. The goal of Sintracarbón, which now has two regional officers in the inland section of the country, is to become empowered and increase its membership: The step that Sintracarbón has taken will allow it to advance in its trade union activities in the Provinces of Cundinamarca and Boyacá, added to the historical work it has carried out in the Provinces of La Guajira and Cesar, in order to create a great coal trade union, pointed out Carlos Bustos, Coordinator in Colombia of the Industri-All Global Union. On his part Jairo Quiroz, President of Sintracarbón, believes it is very important for this trade union to extend its range of action to Cundinamarca and Boyacá, where approximately grassroots miners in small and middle-scale enterprises work under very exposed labour conditions and there is very little trade union presence. April 9 ******************* Still a Long Way to Go To Get Collective Reparation For Trade Union Sector in Colombia Commemorating this day, which has been declared the National Day of Memory and Solidarity with Victims, is a good time to examine how the subject of reparation for trade union victims is being advanced, these victims understood to be not only individuals and families who have suffered human right violations, but also trade union organisations as collective subjects and victims, and who therefore must be the objects of reparation. The trade union sector allocates priority to collective reparation, insofar as it understands violence to have detracted systematically from trade union conquests, weakening trade unions not only in their numbers but in their negotiation capacity. Trade unions have been made to disappear, collective conventions have been annihilated, strikes and mobilisations have been interrupted, and an anti-trade-union culture has gradually consolidated in the country, which has limited union capacity to oppose laws and reforms against the interests of millions of male and female workers. The most serious thing, however, is that the trade union sector in Colombia has been robbed of the possibilities to promote proposals that might have transformed the realities of workers in Colombia, men and women alike. Trade unions should be able to generate agreements, draft proposals and carry out deep debates on issues that are still pending. Which is the universe of victims that can claim reparation? What circumstances around which victims do we seek to repair through this process? How do institutions understand anti-trade-union violence? If collective reparation is to be consistent with the damages previously caused, its challenge is to contribute to the reconstruction of trade unions in Colombia. This aspiration, although partially contemplated under Law 1448 of 2011, exceeds the law s legal framework and requires serious commitment and genuine political will from the Administration. It necessarily implies acknowledging the systematic presence of anti-trade-union violence in Colombia, which cannot just be explained by way of the existence of an armed conflict.

5 The characterisation of collective damage and the collective reparation of trade unions must be formulated taking into account the various levels of damages caused: to workers of both sexes, and to different trade union organisations, specifically, taking into account the regions, confederations and trade union movement in general, with the participation of trade union organisations who have been the victims of human rights violations. In Colombia 483 trade unions have been affected by violence committed against them. It is expected that the procedure unfolding will take into account the broad scope of antitrade-union violence, extending its bases so that trade unions not represented by spokespeople from specific trade union organisations, but which were nevertheless victims of violence, can also participate. It is important that there are no victims without a voice, and that all expressions related to victims be guaranteed representation within the trade union movement. March ******************** Once Again Prosegur Multinational Imposes Collective Agreement By Buying-Off and Threatening Workers The Spanish multinational Prosegur once again manages to impose its Collective Agreement, by buying-off and threatening its workers. This time the company offers one thousand dollars to each worker who belongs to the trade union and agrees to quit it, also reneging on the collective convention and instead accepting the Collective Agreement that Prosegur renovated last December. The complaint was filed by Fidel Hugo Alfonso, President of Sintravalores, Prosegur s grassroots trade union. He filed a criminal complaint before the Attorney General s office against Prosegur s legal representative, for violation of the right to trade union association, something which is typified as a crime in Colombia s Penal Code. Likewise, he also filed an administrative complaint (yet another one!) before the Labour Ministry, for discriminatory behaviour, hindrance of the right to association and violation of the company s previous Collective Convention. This is yet another episode in the longstanding labour conflict drawn out by the Company (one of the largest companies in Colombia s security sector) since 2010, the year in which, by resorting to legal tricks, it refused to negotiate the collective convention with the trade union, and instead imposed its own Collective Agreement. As a result of Prosegur s anti-trade-union stance, Sintravalores became weaker and then crumbled. From having 550 workers who benefitted from a collective convention, it now has 134. This is a sorry state of affairs for an organisation which has existed during 47 years. Prosegur, one of the largest companies in the country s vigilance and security sector (it is an entrepreneurial group having over workers, according to Alfonso), saves no effort, no matter how far-fetched it might be, to finish off what is left of the trade union Sintravalores.