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Last September, negotiations began between the Food Industry
Union of Campinas, member of the Federation of Food Industry
Workers of São Paulo (FETIASP) and the transnational
corporation PepsiCo. Sirel spoke with Melquiades de Araujo,
president of the Federation, who reported the different steps of
this process, the most difficult negotiation items, the progress
that the Union has achieved by dint of constant mobilization,
and an aberrant assessment system imposed on workers (360 degree
feedback), a "Big Brother ", which is seriously affecting
workers in this company.
-In what stage is the negotiation of the Union of Campinas with
PepsiCo?
-Collective bargaining with
PepsiCo, began last September, we are currently
discussing terms of outsourcing, this item is now in the
Ministry of Labour, because we have not reached agreement
through direct negotiation.
For 8 years we have been struggling to eliminate this method of
recruitment definitely. So far we have managed to reduce the
percentage of contract labor in snacks factories significantly .
At present all factories that are part of the
PepsiCo Group
in Brazil,
are using a high percentage of outsourced labor.
-As for the other items being negotiated, has there been any
progress?
-We are still negotiating, there has been some progress as
regards participation in profits and results (PLR), we obtained
more equitable terms for workers of this transnational
corporation.
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The "360 degree feedback" is causing serious
psychological problems among workers, there have
even been suicide attempts. It's like Big Brother,
everyone against each other. |
For example, previously if a worker was fired after having
worked 11 months in the company he or she was not entitled to
the profit sharing program PLR.
Now such workers are entitled, and in case of death, the
worker's family will receive the corresponding amount.
Still no progress on issues such as the "informal" time bank
that the company implemented for the administrative sector,
without agreement of the workers, and the so-called “360
degree feedback”.
This is a discussion we have had with PepsiCo
for years and not only during the period provided for collective
bargaining, it is a discussion that we maintain all year round.
PepsiCo
is one of the most difficult TNCs to negotiate with, we usually
end up in court. For example, on the time bank we submitted a
complaint with the Ministry of Labor requesting that the company
rectifies the situation with workers by retroactive payment of
overtime.
Regarding the "360
degree feedback”, we
exhausted the dialogue with the company, with no progress.
- What is specifically the "360 degree feedback”?
-This is an evaluation method where after working all year with
a group of people, workers of a certain sector of the company,
must evaluate each other, having to comply with a rating scale
from 1 to 4.
In this assessment at least 10 percent of workers are evaluated
negatively and this directly affects their wages, and discounts
or incentives are made according to the score obtained by each
worker.
This is causing serious psychological problems among workers,
there have even been suicide attempts. It's like Big Brother,
everyone against each other. This is one of the issues most
discussed by the Union of Campinas with the intention that it be
removed. PepsiCo,
however, considers such evaluations are positive.
-What measures has the Union taken, apart from the complaints to
the Labor Ministry?
-We are constantly conducting meetings, pushing the company to
improve working conditions, as well as wages.
The Union continues mobilized and continues negotiations, the
idea is that there is no truce for PepsiCo.
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