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In
2009, CABCorp (PepsiCo), announced an agreement with PepsiAmericas,
through which it took over the operations in Puerto Rico,
Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago.
By
means of this strategic alliance, both enterprises have carried
out an exchange of shares: PepsiAmericas has obtained 18% of
CABcorp shares, in exchange for all the shares of PepsiAmericas
in those Caribbean countries.
The very well known CABCorp anti-unionism has taken the
affiliated workers to the MSS (according to its
abbreviation in Spanish, the United Labour Union Movement) from
Puerto Rico, to seek contact with other union
organizations of enterprises controlled by this transnational.
To get to know the problems that the Puerto Rican CABcorp
workers are facing, Sirel has dialogued with José
Rodríguez Vélez, president of the MSS.
- Why is it that you and another MSS director, Israel Díaz, are
in Honduras?
- When CABCorp acquired the shares of PepsiAmericas,
we immediately tried to get in touch with other unions of
enterprises controlled by the transnational.
We had a first contact with Rel-UITA (according to its
abbreviation in Spanish, the International Union of Food workers
in the Latin American Region) and then we got in touch with the
STIBYS (according to its abbreviation in Spanish, the
Union of Beverage Industry and Allied Workers).
We are now in Honduras to exchange experiences and
information, because we know that we have the same employer and,
thus, the same problems.
- What kind of problems do you have with CABCorp in Puerto Rico?
-In March 2010 we signed an agreement and as the Management of
the Enterprise has realized how strong the Union is, it has
started to put pressure on us.
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The key word is
solidarity. Solidarity cannot remain abstract, it has to be put into action. The
problems STIBYS may have ought to be our problems and viceversa. |
The main problem that we are having is outsourcing. Outsourcing
is a corporative policy of this transnational and both the
STIBYS and the MSS, have to confront this antiunion
policy.
- How many workers are outsourced in the plant in Puerto Rico?
-At present we are representing around 300 operators and in the
last months CABCorp has tried to outsource the delivery
sector. Until now it has outsourced only six positions, but what
worries us is that it has started a process that has to be
stopped with our struggle.
- Are there any violations of the collective bargaining?
-CABCorp is implementing really severe sanctions to
offenses committed and when there are free places, it prefers to
give them to people from the outside because they give them less
benefits than those stated in the collective bargaining.
Moreover, in October 2010, the Enterprise tried to change many
conditions that we had negotiated and we are getting prepared
for the strike.
Finally it retracted and this result was achieved by our
determination and also because our demonstration was made known
through an interview that Rel-UITA made to us.
-What is the importance of being here to exchange information
and know the work that the STIBYS does?
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The key word is solidarity. Solidarity cannot remain abstract,
it has to be put into action.
The problems STIBYS may have ought to be our problems and
viceversa.
My intention is
to be able to disseminate in Puerto Rico what is happening in
Honduras with the workers of CABCorp (PepsiCo) and protest when
there are problems to put pressure on the employer. So that it
knows we are united.
Besides, it is important that together with UITA we try
to organize workers of the same transnational in other countries
of the region. For us the unionism is a tool to have better life
quality and working conditions.
- Are you interested in knowing in a deeper way what UITA does?
-One of the main objectives of our visit is to get to know
UITA’s work, since in Puerto Rico we also represent
workers of other industries that have to do with foods.
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