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Following a long and exhausting negotiation, the Union of Workers of
Embotelladora Central SA
(STECSA)
signed a
new
collective bargaining agreement
with
Coca-Cola FEMSA, which will be in force until February 2015.
In this way, the union was
able to guarantee protection for hard-earned rights and ensure work
stability, and launched a new round of talks and proposals on issues
that were left out of the collective bargaining process.
The
agreement signed by the parties is now awaiting ratification by the
Labor Ministry, as stipulated under Guatemalan labor legislation to
ensure that the contents of such agreements are not in breach of
national laws.
“The signing of the new
collective bargaining agreement allowed us to protect rights gained
through many years of hard struggle, and to guarantee the workers’ job
stability,” STECSA
general secretary Carlos Alberto Luch
told Sirel.
“We have
also held two meetings with Coca-Cola FEMSA to address some
issues on which we agreed on during the negotiation but which were not
included in the new collective bargaining agreement,” he continued.
Among these
issues, Luch highlighted the implementation of measures to bring
into the Guatemalan market new products that are not being distributed
in the country yet.
“We think
that with these measures we would be able to expand the market and both
contribute to the company’s growth and benefit workers,” the union
leader explained.
In the
context of the IUF Mission to Guatemala, a number
of meetings were held with government authorities, with the
participation of representatives of the Trade Union Federation of Food,
Agroindustry and Related Industry Workers of Guatemala
(FESTRAS) and STECSA.
“We met with
the Labor Minister and laid out our assessment of the situation of the
beverage market and the goals we have set for ourselves after the
signing of the collective bargaining agreement.”
“We also
asked that the agreement be ratified as soon as possible, as we need to
move on with the discussion of new projects,” Luch said.
The general
secretary of STECSA reported that the union is continuing its
training and capacity-building efforts for its members, strengthening
their commitment and sense of belonging, as well as preparing them to
face future union challenges.
Solidarity
Another of
the issues addressed by the union leader was the importance of
management-union dialogue to discuss and solve problems.
“We’ve
demonstrated that we’re open to dialogue and we believe that the best
way to solve any problems is to sit down and negotiate, so we can
discuss what we need to do,” he said.
Lastly,
Luch underlined the enormous role played by international solidarity
throughout the bargaining process, and the importance of the mutual
support shown by the many affiliates of the IUF and the Latin
American Federation of Coca-Cola workers (FELATRAC).
“We must
support each other in our struggle, which must transcend borders and
become global. We have the obligation of giving our solidarity to any
workers whose rights are violated.”
“We’re going
to continue coordinating efforts with IUF Latin America, our
regional organization, so we can keep up to date, carry out solidarity
actions and protest any form of labor abuse suffered by workers anywhere
in the world,” Luch concluded.
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