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Doux, the French transnational
corporation that owns the Frangosul group in Brazil, is facing serious economic
problems, generating great concerns among labor and increasing work instability.
Sirel spoke with
Arlete Beatriz C. Schmitz,
president of the Union of Food Industry Workers of the city of Caxias do Sul,
where Doux has a processing plant.
-How many
people are employed at Doux in Caxias do Sul?
-About 860
workers distributed in three shifts.
-Can you tell
us about the problems the workers at this transnational corporation have been
facing in recent weeks?
-The leading
problem has been the failure to pay the workers known as “fasoneros” or
“integrated producers,” who produce independently to supply the plant using
means of production owned by the corporation.
In the
industrial sector there’s a delay in payments of the Share in Profits and
Results program. They should have been paid by January 30, 2011 and have been
postponed to May 20.
The workers are
very concerned over this, and this problem is aggravated by the company’s
announcement that it will be sending workers on involuntary collective leave due
to a lack of raw material for the sausage production division.
-Were there any
delays in the payment of wages?
-Not for the
time being, no. The delay has been in payments to integrated producers and to
certain transportation divisions and the pork division.
-What actions
have been taken and what has the union done?
-With respect
to the transportation division, the workers belong to a different category, so
our union has not been involved as such.
As for the
integrated producers, there was a two-day work stoppage in the city of
Montenegro, which resulted in activities being suspended for two days at the
poultry processing plant due to lack of raw material.
-Have you been
in contact with management?
-Yes. They
argue that they’re currently undergoing a very bad economic situation and they
cannot apply for a loan to cover their debts.
They told us
they expected to see an improvement in their situation by mid April, but so far
we haven’t seen any changes. In the union, we’re very concerned over the huge
number of workers affected, and we see no immediate solution.
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