Labor & Employment Law

AFL-CIO on Colombian Labor and Human Rights

By admin

The AFL-CIO issued this statement today on the congressional benchmark document  on Colombian labor and human rights. 

The Colombian Labor and Human Rights document released by Reps. Jim McGovern, George Miller, Rosa DeLauro, Mike Michaud, Jan Schakowsky and Linda Sanchez is a detailed, thoughtful, and powerful document. 

We thank these representatives for their tireless efforts to outline the numerous essential steps that must be taken, on the ground in Colombia, before the U.S.-Colombia trade deal should be considered by Congress.  We hope that the Obama administration will insist that the Colombian government comply with all the recommendations contained in the letter, especially those that focus on ending violence and impunity and undertaking comprehensive labor law reform prior to sending the agreement to Congress. 

Colombia remains the most deadly nation in the world in which to be a trade unionist.  In the past 25 years, more than 2,850 trade unionists have been murdered in Colombia.  Last year alone, 51 trade unionists were murdered, an increase over 2009.  The conviction rate for murders and other forms of violence remains intolerably low. 

 As the document clearly indicates, the only acceptable situation in Colombia is one in which these murders have ceased completely and a new climate of safety is sustained over time.  The Colombian government must also address the large backlog of unresolved cases and ensure that all parties responsible for the violence, including intellectual authors, are brought to justice and prosecuted.

In addition, Colombia?s labor laws, regulations, and practices require serious reform.  For years, the International Labor Organization has identified serious flaws with regard to freedom of association, the right to bargain collectively and the right to strike.  Further, the widespread use of indirect forms of employment, such as cooperatives, which are used for the purpose of stripping workers of their fundamental rights, must end.

The AFL-CIO remains strongly opposed to the U.S.- Colombia Free Trade Agreement.

Full post as published by AFL-CIO NOW BLOG on March 17, 2011 (boomark / email).