Unionism in Latin America takes the offices and leaves the streets

In Latin Americaunionism has left the streets to take over offices and has weakened in recent decades, among other reasons, due to informality laborthe “restrictive legal conditions in which they operate and the hostility of the majority of the entrepreneurship”, according to what experts told EFE.

“(The unions in Colombia) today they have a membership that does not exceed 5% of the labor force, one cannot speak of a representation of the broadest interests of the entire population”, Sociologist Édgar Augusto Valero Julio from the National University of Colombia told EFE.

Precisely, this May Day in Colombia has the particularity that for the first time the left is in power, with President Gustavo Petrowho will lead an act with workers to promote the social reforms presented by his government to Congress, which have encountered a lack of majorities, for which this week he changed seven of his ministers.

office unionism

For their part, in Brazil, the unions usually schedule events that border more on the festive than on the vindictive and, as a sign of the good harmony between them and the Government, the president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva plans to attend the “party” organized in Sao Paulo.

The largest union in the country, the Single Confederation of Workers (CUT)is an arm of the Workers’ Party (PT), of which Lula is a part, and during the first PT governments (2003-2016), the unions took advantage of their proximity to power to negotiate their demands in offices.

According to the most critical voices, a similar situation occurs in Mexicowhere, despite the fact that unionism was reformed in 2019, the changes only managed to disguise the so-called “charrismo”, as the phenomenon of union leaders elected by employers and the Government is called.

“(The labor reform) was a make-up of charrismo and in the worst case it constituted the legitimization of union charrismo in Mexico,” exposed to EFE Susana PrietoMexican deputy of the ruling National Regeneration Movement (Morena) and prominent defender of labor rights.

Absent trade unionism and informality

In Argentina, trade unionism, historically Peronist, and therefore of the same political sign as the Government of Alberto Fernandez, avoid making general strikes. For this reason, the trade union General Confederation of Labor (CGT) She is accused of “union bureaucracy” and of supporting “the economic disaster” that the majority of workers are experiencing.

Unemployments do not occur in this country despite the fact that inflation reached 104.3% per year last March, purchasing power fell and poverty increased to 39.2%, in addition to labor informality.

In Peru, a nation marked by a rate of labor informality which is around 80%, unionism, by its very definition, has a very difficult time protecting workers, with a situation aggravated by the pandemic.

One of the causes of social conflict in the country is associated with the absence of formal and strong unions, organizations, federations or associations that lawfully represent the interests of workers, communities or collectives.

Labor claims

If there is something in which all countries agree, it is to demand labor improvements. Brazil, still with the lowest unemployment recorded since 2015, is facing a bleak outlook, with high interest rates cooling the economy.

Likewise, in Colombia interannual inflation in March reached 13.34%, the highest in 24 years, which is destroying the purchasing power of workers.

And it will not be the only one. In 2023, the economies of Latin America will continue to face high inflation, according to the global economic outlook report from the International Monetary Fund (IMF)published this April.

The rights conquered

However, not all bad news. Chili has made considerable progress in recent times in labor matters and this May Day is marked by the gradual reduction of the working day, from 45 to 40 hours a week, and the increase in the minimum wage last year.

“Improvements such as 40 hours are essential to get closer to a new Chile, a fairer one, and a fuller life,” said the president gabriel boric after seeing one of his main campaign promises fulfilled on April 11.

Source: EFE Agency.