For some months our affiliated food and beverage workers’ federation in Guatemala, FESTRAS, and its affiliate in the Embotelladora Central, STECSA, have faced a difficult collective bargaining situation in negotiations with PANAMCO, Coca-Cola’s principal bottler in Latin America.
Negotiations are deadlocked around company demands which would erode the conditions currently protected by the existing collective agreement.
In addition, the company is pursuing a legal process to dismiss eight union representatives from the plant, in violation of the collective agreement which guarantees time-off to union representatives in the plant for union activity
In these circumstances the union has announced its intention to take legal strike action to advance the negotiations and to prevent the dismissal of the eight union representatives. The IUF has informed Panamco that we expect the company to abandon these dismissal cases in order to provide an environment in which the the deadlocked collective bargaining process might move forward.
PANAMCO, however, has now filed a court action asking that STECSA be denied the right to conduct a legal strike, alleging that the workers’ vote authorising strike action should have included confidential and management employees. Panamco is asking the court to declare unconstitutional a section of the labour code that specifies that confidential and management employees are not included in the majority vote of all workers required to call a legal strike. Tthis specific provision was approved by the Guatemalan legislature in 2001 following a signed agreement to that effect reached by two union confederations with CACIF, the association of Guatemalan employers. This agreement was part of an overall package of reforms intended to bring Guatemala into conformity with ILO Conventions.
We are therefore asking trade unionists and all defenders of trade union rights to contact Coca-Cola and Panamco to urge the company to:
Withdraw the dismissal cases against the eight local union representatives;
Show a willingness to reach a fair settlement in the negotiations with STECSA which fully respects the rights achieved by the union through previous collective bargaining processes (often conducted in extremely difficult and dangerous circumstances);
Stop interfering with the workers’ constitutional right to democratically decide on whether or not to take strike action if required.
The letters to Panamco and Coca-Cola below may serve as model messages. Please send copies of any messages you might send to the IUF secretariat. We thank you in advance for your solidarity and support.
Model Message to Panamco
Fax to Carlos EduardoTrigueros: + 502 442 0966
E-mail: mpaizpanamco-tica.co.cr
Dear Mr Trigueros,
Concerns: Ongoing conflict at the Embotelladora Central plant in Guatemala
We have been informed by the IUF of a continuing legal process aimed at dismissing eight of the local union’s plant level representatives. We are deeply concerned that current negotiations towards a new collective agreement are therefore taking place under the threat of these dismissals and would ask that the company withdraw these pending cases immediately to allow further negotiations to take place in an atmosphere of conciliation rather than coercion.
We are also deeply concerned by the apparent unwillingness of the company to find a fair and just settlement to the outstanding bargaining issues that respects workers conditions that have been previously negotiated often in difficult and dangerous circumstances and that had led to a relationship between the company and the union that previously represented something of a positive model for employer/union relations in Guatemala. We would ask that the company make every effort to respect these previously negotiated rights and to show sufficient flexibility to allow a fair and reasonable settlement to emerge from the currently deadlocked negotiations.
We also ask that you withdraw the legal action that seeks to deny union employees at EMBOCEN their constitutional right to democratically decide on whether or not to engage in a strike by requiring that management and confidential employees be included in that voting process.
We are closely following developments and very much hope to hear of signs of positive progress in the near future to avoid the situation becoming even more serious than it currently is.
Yours sincerely,
Model Message to Coca-Cola
Fax to: Douglas Daft CEO, The Coca Cola Company
Fax: +1 404 676 8005
Dear Mr. Daft
Concerns: Ongoing conflict at the Embotelladora Central plant in Guatemala
We have been informed by the IUF of a continuing legal process aimed at dismissing eight of the local union’s plant level representatives. We are deeply concerned that current negotiations towards a new collective agreement are therefore taking place under the threat of these dismissals and would ask that the company withdraw these pending cases immediately to allow further negotiations to take place in an atmosphere of conciliation rather than coercion.
We are also deeply concerned by the apparent unwillingness of the company to find a fair and just settlement to the outstanding bargaining issues that respects workers conditions that have been previously negotiated often in difficult and dangerous circumstances and that had led to a relationship between the company and the union that previously represented something of a positive model for employer/union relations in Guatemala. We would ask that the company make every effort to respect these previously negotiated rights and to show sufficient flexibility to allow a fair and reasonable settlement to emerge from the currently deadlocked negotiations.
We are also concerned that EMBOCEN/PANAMCO has filed a legal action that seeks to deny union employees at EMBOCEN their constitutional right to democratically decide on whether or not to engage in a strike by requiring that management and confidential employees be included in that voting process
We would therefore ask that The Coca-Cola Company exercise its undoubted influence over its Latin American anchor bottler Panamco to bring this currently deadlocked situation to a fair and just end as quickly as possible.
We are closely following developments and very much hope to hear of signs of positive progress in the near future to avoid the situation becoming even more serious than it currently is.
Yours sincerely,
