Workers on Dole Flower Plantations Win Historic Victories in ...

Quarterly newsletter of the U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project
Fighting for worker justice in the global economy
<strong>Workers</strong> on Dole Flower Plantations
Win Historic Victories in Colombia!
“Victory is sweetest when you’ve
known defeat” –Malcolm S. Forbes
After four years of struggle, of
small advances and significant losses,
workers on two of Dole’s Colombian
flower plantations are celebrating unprecedented
victories this fall, and
looking toward a future that looks a
little brighter.
In late July, the independent unions
at both the Splendor El Rosal plantation
and the La Fragancia plantation came to
agreements with the Dole Food Com-
Stella Orjuela, a leader of the Sintrasplendor
flower worker union, takes a break during a
2006 rally. She later lost her job when Dole
closed the Splendor El Corzo plantation
in 2007.
USLEAP
pany and signed contracts that include
significant improvements for workers.
While the company fought hard against
almost every article of the new contracts,
it eventually acquiesced, leading
to the two strongest independent union
contracts in Colombian floriculture.
Splendor Contract Increases
Pay for Remaining <strong>Workers</strong>
At the Splendor El Rosal plantation,
the victory will only begin to make
right the company’s long persecution
of the Sintrasplendor union. As re-
Fall 2008
Issue #3
ported in previous
newsletters, Dole
closed the larger
of the two Splendor
plantations in
2007, destroying
the largest and strongest flower union in
the country. The remaining workers at
the smaller plantation were hesitant to
associate with the union as the closing
was widely believed to be connected to
the union struggle for improvements in
wages and conditions.
The one positive to come out of the
New USLEAP Report on Guatemala
Finds Weakened U.S. Worker Rights
Leverage under CAFTA
In August, USLEAP released a report
based on a July fact-finding mission
to Guatemala. The mission was
undertaken in response to the rise of
violence against trade unionists in
Guatemala and a call for international
support.
The report concludes that in the
last year there has been a notable rise
in violence against trade unionists, near
total impunity, and a host of worker
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continued on page 2
rights violations, including firings, continuing
obstacles to approving the legal
recognition of unions, dysfunctional
tribunals, and a failure to develop effective
enforcement mechanisms for
existing labor laws.
Initial expectations that the government
of President Alvaro Colom
would open a new era for the ability of
workers to exercise their basic rights
are fading fast. The new government
continued on page 6
New Board Members Welcomed ................................ p. 2
Major Maquila Victory; Two Losses ............................ p. 4
Colombia FTA Still Possible in 2008 ........................... p. 5
Colombia 2008 Murders Top 2007 ............................. p. 8

Board of Directors
Beth Myers (Chair)
Executive Director
STITCH
Gail Lopez-Henriquez (Vice Chair)
Labor Attorney
Henry Frundt (Secretary Treasurer)
Former President, Local #2274
American Federation of Teachers
Bama Athreya
Executive Director
International Labor Rights Forum
Noel Beasley
Executive Vice President
UNITE HERE!
Tim Beaty
Director of Global Strategies
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
Clayola Brown
President
A. Philip Randolph Institute
Gabriel Camacho
Project Voice
American Friends Service Committee
Laura Carter
Assistant to the General Secretary (Policy)
ITGLWF-FITTVCC
Teresa Casertano
Program Director, Americas Region
AFL-CIO Solidarity Center
Martha Farmelo
Fund-raising consultant
Paul Filson
Director
Connecticut State Council, SEIU
Stan Gacek
Associate Director
International Department, AFL-CIO
Brent Garren
National Lawyers Guild
Lisa Haugaard
Executive Director
Latin America Working Group
Gabriela Lemus
Executive Director
Labor Council for Latin American
Advancement
José Oliva
Worker Justice Coordinator
Center for Community Change
Ron Oswald
General Secretary
IUF-UITA-IUL
Rod Palmquist
International Campaigns Coordinator
United Students Against Sweatshops
Edgar Romney
Executive Vice President
UNITE HERE!
Alan Spaulding
Director of Global Strategies
UFCW
Jeff Vogt
Global Economic Policy Specialist
AFL-CIO
Stephen Coats
Executive Director
*Some organizations listed for
identification only
2
<strong>Workers</strong> on Dole Flower Plantations...
continued from page 1
closure, in which hundreds of workers
lost their jobs, was the legal requirement
that the company negotiate with
remaining workers. This amounted to
severance negotiations for the hundreds
of workers at the larger plantation,
Splendor El Corzo, and contract negotiations
for the workers at the remaining,
smaller plantation, Splendor El Rosal.
This process, which began in 2006,
proved to be long and difficult. The
company was unmovable, agreeing to
almost none of the workers’ demands.
Eventually negotiations broke down in
early 2007, leading the two parties into
a mediated process with the local Ministry
of Social Protection.
In violation of local laws, the Ministry
refused to respond to the union’s
request for an arbitration tribunal for 10
months. Finally in January of 2008, the
USLEAP is pleased to welcome the
following new members of the board:
• Clayola Brown, President, A. Philip
Randolph Institute
• Jose Oliva, Worker Justice Coordinator,
Center for Community Change
• Ron Oswald, General Secretary of
the International Union of Food, Agricultural,
Hotel, Restaurant, Catering,
Tobacco and Allied <strong>Workers</strong>’ Associations
(IUF); and
• Rod Palmquist, International
Coordinator, United Students Against
The U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project is an independent non-profit organization
that supports the basic rights of workers in Latin America, especially those who are employed
directly or indirectly by U.S. companies. USLEAP is funded by individuals, foundations,
trade unions, and religious groups. This newsletter is published four times a year for donors
and available upon request.
P.O. Box 268-290 , Chicago, IL 60626, Tel: 773.262.6502 , Fax: 773.262.6602
info@usleap.org; www.usleap.org
U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
Ministry sent a response to USLEAP,
though it never communicated directly
to the union. The Ministry reported that
the union had turned in a piece of its
documentation one day past a deadline,
which the union adamantly denies.
The following month, after his
office was briefed by USLEAP, Representative
George Miller (D-CA) intervened,
resulting in a court order for
the initiation of the tribunal. This intervention
came in the context of the
U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement,
which has generated significant Congressional
attention on Colombia, and
the flower sector in particular, over the
past 18 months.
The July victory is the fruit of this
tribunal. The new contract, which will
cover all workers at the plantation who
do not intentionally opt out, lasts two
continued on page 3
A Warm Welcome to our New Board
Members; Grateful Good-Bye to Others
Sweatshops (USAS)
We also extend our deep appreciation
to members who have rotated off
the board in the past year, including
Angela Berryman of the American
Friends Service Committee, Jeff Hermanson
with Writers Guild of America
west, and attorney Jennifer Hill, all of
whom served for over ten years on the
board, and Zack Knorr, previous USAS
international coordinator, who served
for three years.
Fall 2008

years and includes many new benefits
for workers, including a $200-$400
bonus for not having received a raise
for two years, a raise of $14 per month
above the legal minimum, vacation
time, and improvements in sick time.
Fragancia <strong>Workers</strong> Plan
To Educate Children with
New Subsidies
The Untrafragancia union was
formed in early 2006, and has claimed
wide representation on the plantation
ever since. <strong>Workers</strong> here also faced a
major anti-union campaign, including
the formation of a company union to
prevent workers from signing a legitimate
contract.
In April of this year, Dora Acero,
the Secretary of Education for Untrafragancia,
came to the U.S. on a speaking
tour sponsored by USLEAP. Like most
workers in the industry, Ms. Acero explained,
La Fragancia workers suffer
from repetitive stress injuries related to
high work quotas, become ill from pes-
ticide exposure, have highly restricted
access to bathrooms and drinking water
during their long shifts, and endure degrading
and humiliating treatment from
management.
She also highlighted one of the major
concerns for women on her plantation:
on a flower worker salary, most
single mothers are unable to send all of
their children to school at once, and are
forced to do an annual rotation, allowing
one child to study each year. This
has a disproportionate affect on girls,
who are often kept out of school so they
can care for their siblings and do housework
while their mothers are away at
work.
The new contract signed in July
addresses this problem head on. Now,
workers with children will receive an
education subsidy that covers books
and uniforms, allowing flower workers
to educate all of their children, boys and
girls. In addition, workers will receive
a 6% pay increase, bonuses for punctuality,
and additional pay for fumigation
Though the flower worker campaign continues, take a moment
and thank Dole for signing these contracts. Please add,
however, that you hope Dole will respect the rights of the
rest of its flower workers in Colombia, as well as the rights of
workers who are organizing on any of its operations, including
banana workers in Latin America whose campaign against
Dole also continues.
Send letters to:
Send Dole a Thank You!
David DeLorenzo
President and Chief Executive Officer
Dole Foods, Inc.
One Dole Drive
Westlake Village, CA 91362
Tel: 818.874.4000; Fax: 818.874.4593
Fall 2008 U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
continued from page 2
workers who are exposed to high levels
of hazardous chemicals.
New Union Registration
“Speedily” Approved
In what USLEAP hopes is a trend
for new unions in Colombia, the Ministry
of Social Protection approved the
legal registration for the new union at
the Flores Papagayo plantation in under
four months.
This is a change from past experience,
in which most new unions have
been repeatedly denied legal registration
and wait months or years for a response
from the Ministry. Though the
company, which is nationally-owned
but ships all of its products to the U.S.,
is appealing the union’s registration, the
approval may be a result of the growing
strength of Colombia’s flower unions.
Congratulations to workers at Splendor
El Rosal, La Fragancia, and Flores Papagayo
for these exciting gains!
These amazing advances would not
be possible without your support. We
thank you for the letters, emails and donations
that have sustained our work.
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3

Major Maquila Victory in the Dominican Republic
In the most important maquiladora
worker victory in Latin America in several
years, workers at a Hanesbrand
factory in the Dominican Republic
won a collective bargaining agreement
in mid-August. But in Guatemala the
last maquiladora with a union contract,
Choishin, closed in mid-July and in
Mexico a violent group took unlawful
control of the union at Mexmode,
formerly Kuk Dong, site of one of the
most important victories of the student
anti-sweatshop movement.
Last Unionized Maquila in
Guatemala Closing
The mid-July closing of Choishin
leaves Guatemala without a single
unionized maquiladora with a contract,
following the closing of its sister plant,
Cimatextile, in September 2007. The
Choishin union is demanding that the
plant re-open, and has secured a court
ruling declaring the closing illegal.
Meanwhile, the company is offering
workers as little as 29% of what they are
legally entitled to for severance.
<strong>Workers</strong> at both plants won collective
bargaining agreements in 2003 after
a two-year struggle marred by violent
attacks on union members. Supporting
4
the two unions, which are affiliated to
FESTRAS, was a key part of USLEAP’s
agenda in the early years of this decade.
At five years, the Choishin union has
had a contract longer than any maquila
union in Guatemala.
While owner Choi & Shin says it
has shifted its work to a unionized facility
in Nicaragua, the Sitrachoi union
says it has evidence that Choi & Shin is
starting up a new, non-union factory in
Guatemala, which would prompt an aggressive
response from the international
community if confirmed.
Liz Claiborne, a long-time client of
Choi & Shin, has over the years been
extensively engaged in seeking to address
union concerns, first in responding
to anti-union violence back in 2001
and, more recently, to the company’s
complaints about relatively high labor
costs, agreeing last year to pay somewhat
more for its work in order to maintain
some production in Guatemala instead
of shifting it all to Nicaragua.
USLEAP has been in frequent communication
with Liz Claiborne about
the closing, as well as with U.S and
Guatemalan government officials. Other
key customers Macy’s and Ralph Polo
Lauren have yet to respond to requests
Policy Brief Shows “Systematic Deficiencies”
In Mexican Labor Law
A new report from the AFL-CIO’s
Solidarity Center, “<strong>Workers</strong>’ Freedom of
Association Under Attack in Mexico,”
raises serious concerns about respect for
the rights of Mexico’s workers.
The August 2008 document highlights
a number of issues, including government
control of independent unions,
misuse or manipulation of Mexican labor
law, and employer-dominated elections.
In part as a result of these violations, the
report argues, wages in Mexico have
remained extremely low, and the wage
gap between workers in the U.S. and
those in Mexico is widening.
“The repression of independent
unions is a key component of Mexico’s
fundamental economic policy: to promote
exports through a combination of
low wages and macroeconomic stability,”
says the report.
The report highlights cases previously
reported in the USLEAP newsletter,
including the struggles at the
Vaqueros Navarra jeans factory and the
Mexmode factory (see above story), both
in the state of Puebla.
In both cases, the local government
attempted to undermine the activities of
an independent union. In the case of Vaqueros
Navarra, the independent union
prevailed until the jeans factory was
U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
for intervention. Unless it is reversed,
the closure will mark a sad chapter in the
rights of maquila worker organizing in
Guatemala. See the USLEAP website
or contact the office for the latest suggested
action.
Mexico Union Taken Over by
Violent Group
The union at Mexmode, formerly
known as Kuk Dong, has been taken
over by a group known for its history
of violence. On June 20, local labor officials
convened an illegal assembly of
the union in the midst of a campaign of
intimidation against the elected leadership
by the Antorcha Campesina (Peasant
Torch) organization, leading to the
election of their own slate. On July 7,
the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC)
released a report documenting acts of
physical violence against the Sitemex
union and unlawful governmental interference
in the internal affairs of the
union. The report found no wrong-doing
by Mexmode management and noted
that Nike had taken positive steps in
response to the situation.
<strong>Workers</strong> at Mexmode, then known
as Kuk Dong, won a collective bargain-
ing agreement in 2002 after intervention
continued on page 5
closed suddenly in December 2007.
Such repressive labor policies
ultimately contribute to the massive
migration from Mexico, the report argues,
as 14% of all Mexican workers
are currently working in the U.S. While
the low wages are drawing high-paying
jobs away from the U.S., they are also
driving Mexican workers north, a situation
in which workers on both sides of
the border lose.
The full report is available on the
Solidarity Center website, www.solidaritycenter.org.
Fall 2008

Tempered By Big Losses in Guatemala and Mexico
by the WRC and an intense support
campaign led by the AFL-CIO, USAS
and others aimed at Nike, a prominent
Kuk Dong client. Kuk Dong was the
first apparel maquiladora in Mexico with
an independent union with a contract, a
breakthrough that garnered a New York
Times story on the power of the student
anti-sweatshop movement. USLEAP
provided support for the initial Kuk
Dong campaign and, with others, has
sought to secure U.S. congressional
intervention with Mexican government
authorities in response to the unlawful
takeover.
Victory with Hanesbrands
On a happier note, workers in the
Dominican Republic overcame an intense
two year anti-union campaign at
Hanesbrands’ TOS Dominicana plant to
Ecuador Seeks
To Strengthen Worker
Rights Protections
Ecuador remains a comparatively
bright spot in Latin America. The trade
union movement has expressed general
satisfaction with enhanced protections
for labor rights under a new proposed
Constitution that will go to the voters on
September 28, 2008. If the constitution
is approved, protections must then be
incorporated into a new labor code that
is expected to be written in the next year.
Meanwhile, trade unions report some
progress in organizing new unions using
the protections provided by an earlier
executive decree restricting the use of
subcontracting as an anti-union tactic.
The elections of President Rafael
Correa in late 2006 and a new congress
last year have paved the way for consideration
of the new constitution and
new protections for labor. Labor law
reform has been a key objective for the
Ecuadorian labor movement, which
USLEAP has supported by filing worker
rights petitions under the Andean trade
preference program. Petitions on Ecuador
by USLEAP, the AFL-CIO, and
Human Rights remain pending.
Fall 2008
win a collective bargaining agreement in
mid-August that includes a 10% wage
increase, increased funds for education,
and more.
<strong>Workers</strong> at the plant, which produces
in part for the U.S. collegiate
market, organized a union in July 2006.
Management began a well-orchestrated
anti-union campaign that included the
firing of union members, threats, harassment,
unpaid wages, and more, according
a detailed June 2007 report by the
USAS
U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
continued from page 4
WRC and subsequent updates that were
vital to the union’s victory. The union
is affiliated to FEDOTRAZONAS (the
Dominican Federation of Free Trade
Zone <strong>Workers</strong>).
USAS, the AFL-CIO’s Solidarity
Center, the International Textile, Garment
and Leather <strong>Workers</strong> Federation,
the Washington Office on Latin America,
USLEAP (modestly), and others provided
support for the campaign. During the
campaign, Hanes joined the Fair Labor
Association, which then also engaged
the company. For more information, see
the Worker Rights Consortium and the
Fair Labor Association websites.
As a part of their campaign against Hanesbrands, United Students Againgst Sweatshops
developed a website called “Six Degrees of Exploitation.” The site plays off of the game
“Six Degress of Kevin Bacon,” but in this case connects Kevin Bacon to workers at the
company’s TOS Dominicana factory. Kevin Bacon has been a celebrity spokesperson for
Hanes since early 2006.
Colombia Free Trade Agreement
Still Possible in 2008
The U.S.-Colombia Free Trade
Agreement continues to be stalled
by on-going concerns about violence
against trade unionists and human rights
abuses, and Democrats’ unwillingness to
take up the controversial measure before
the elections. Contributing to Colombian
President Alvaro Uribe Velez’s
problems, recent news out of Colombia
has exposed even more connections
between the president’s party and rightwing
paramilitary death squads, making
a 2008 vote on the agreement increas-
ingly unlikely.
In the event that Congress goes into
a lame duck session after the elections,
however, there is some possibility of a
vote before Christmas. Due to this possibility,
Uribe will make another lobby
visit to Washington in September.
Urge your members of Congress
to oppose the Colombia FTA if
you have not done so already.
5

USLEAP
New USLEAP Report on Guatemala...
took office in January 2008.
Especially troubling for U.S. policy
makers and worker rights supporters,
the mission found strong evidence that
U.S. policy and leverage for supporting
worker rights in Guatemala has weakened
significantly with the passage
of the Central American Free Trade
Agreement.
During the contentious debate on
the Central America Free Trade Agreement
(CAFTA), worker rights advocates
expressed strong concern that
U.S. trade leverage to support worker
rights in the region would be weakened
with the passage of CAFTA on the
grounds that weak worker rights protections
under the labor chapter of CAFTA
would replace stronger protections provided
under the Generalized System of
Preferences (GSP). The track record
on worker rights in Guatemala since
implementation of CAFTA in July 2006
bears out the critics’ concerns.
Since implementation of CAFTA
in Guatemala, there has been a deterioration
in the worker rights situation
in Guatemala, with a sharp rise in violence
against trade unionists accompanied
by near-total impunity, with at
least nine trade union-related murders
and two rapes of daughters of trade
union leaders.
USLEAP Executive Director and Guatemalan Labor Minister Edgar
Alfredo Rodriguez at the conclusion of their July 2008 meeting.
6
Trade Unionists Targeted
in 2008
While some have dismissed the
rise in violence against trade unionists
as simply reflective of rising violence
in general in Guatemala, worker rights
supporters and trade unionists disagree,
saying that trade unionists and other human
rights defenders are being targeted
under the cover of general violence. A
July 2008 human rights report by La
Unidad de Protección de Defensoras
y Defensores de Derechos Humanos de
Guatemala (UDEFEGUA) found that
trade unionists have borne the brunt of
attacks the first half of this year, with
well over one third of all assaults on human
rights defenders directed at trade
unionists.
There is no indication that U.S.
trade leverage under CAFTA has been
effective in addressing any significant
worker rights concerns, with U.S. government
officials in Guatemala and
Washington unable to identify effective
responses to the increased violations
or specific advances for worker
rights that could be linked to pressure
provided under the CAFTA labor chapter.
While it is theoretically possible
that the April 2008 filing by the AFL-
CIO and Guatemalan trade unions of a
CAFTA labor complaint on Guatemala
could strengthen
the political hand
of the U.S. government
to press
for advances, the
apparent inability
of the U.S. government
to exercise
effective leverage
up to this
point stands in
stark contrast to
the pre-CAFTA
era when U.S.
trade and worker
rights policy with
Guatemala, and
other countries in
U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
continued from page 1
the region, was governed by GSP.
Fundamentally, as another longtime
trade union leader observed, there
is no incentive under CAFTA for employers
to respect worker rights, point-
Cover Up for Murdered
Honduran Unionist?
Honduran authorities are
claiming that the April 24, 2008
murder of Rosa Altagracia Fuentes,
the general secretary of the
<strong>Workers</strong>’ Confederation of Honduras
(CTH), was common crime,
a claim rejected by the country’s
trade union movement. Members
of a car theft ring have been
arrested but skeptics point out that
her car was riddled with bullets
and that neither a laptop nor money
were stolen.
ing out that under GSP, economic disincentives
were born by the employer
while under CAFTA, the economic disincentives
are borne by the government
(and any fines are simply returned to
another arm of the government).
Trade union leaders also report that
one of the gains from the pre-CAFTA
GSP process is now under attack. As
an outcome of the earlier GSP process,
the Guatemalan government agreed
several years ago to establish a Special
Prosecutor for Violence against Trade
Unionists and Journalists. Now that
CAFTA has replaced GSP, this office
is reportedly being downgraded, rolled
into another unit with reduced staff.
To add insult to injury, weakened
leverage of U.S. trade policy has been
accompanied by the Bush Administration’s
push to rely on the business sector
to police itself abroad. Last year, for example,
the administration provided a $2
million grant to Business for Social Responsibility
to promote improvements
in labor standards in Central America
and the Dominican Republic, and sup-
continued on page 7
Falll 2008

USLEAP
USLEAP and BANANA UNIONS CONSULT
In July, USLEAP staff met in Guatemala
with over twenty members of
the Coordination of the Latin American
Banana Unions (COLSIBA) to discuss
strategy and plans. COLSIBA represents
banana worker unions throughout
Latin America, including Colombia,
Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras,
Nicaragua, and Peru,
USLEAP provided an update of
its recent activities in support of banana
workers, including its mission to
Guatemala in response to the recent
violence against banana workers affiliated
to UNSITRAGUA and SITRABI.
The two Guatemalan union organizations
represent Chiquita and Del Monte
banana workers respectively. Noe
Ramirez, General Secretary of SITRA-
BI, and Daniel Velasquez, international
coordinator for UNSITRAGUA, both
welcomed USLEAP’s mission.
During the meeting, COLSIBA
reaffirmed its call for an international
campaign against Dole, launched in
2006, largely focused on banana workers.
In June, USLEAP joined with 14
other groups, including the International
Union of Foodworkers, the French union
CGT, BananaLink (UK), Bananafair
(Germany), Peuples Solidaires (France),
and the Danish union federation 3F in
sending a letter to Dole Vice President
Sue Hagen detailing on-going worker
rights violations in the region, including
Costa Rica, Peru, and Ecuador.
EUROBAN sent copies of the letter to
European retailers; USLEAP sent copies
of the letter to Kroger, Safeway, Costco,
and Supervalu (owner of Jewel-Osco,
On a Del Monte plantation, the home of Guatemalan banana union leader Marco Tulio
Ramirez. He was shot outside of the house in September 2007. No one has been arrested
for his murder.
New USLEAP Report on Guatemala...
ported various “multi-stakeholder” initiatives
involving collaboration with
the business sector. To date, there is no
evidence that these business-supported
initiatives have improved respect for
worker rights or improved conditions
for workers in Guatemala or anywhere
else in Latin America.
As research for the report, US-
LEAP Executive Director Stephen
Coats and Project Coordinator Charity
Ryerson met with Guatemalan La-
continued from page 6
bor Minister Edgar Alfredo Rodriguez,
representatives of the Public Ministry
(i.e. Attorney General’s office), U.S.
embassy officials, Guatemalan trade
union leaders, and family members of
trade unionist Marco Tulio Ramirez,
the banana union leader murdered in
September 2007. “Worker Rights Under
the New Guatemalan Government:
A Preliminary Report,” is available on
the USLEAP website; single copies
free upon request from the office.
Fall 2008 U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
Albertsons, Cub Foods, and other grocery
store chains.) Dole Vice President
Sylvain Cuperlier responded with a July
8 letter taking issue with the June group
letter, prompting a subsequent rebuttal
from COLSIBA.
Dole’s Peru Problem
Unresolved
One of the clearest concrete issues
illustrating Dole’s failure to address
COLSIBA concerns has been the
company’s response to workers in Peru
who were fired for protesting a Dole
supplier’s failure to pay them for four
years of Sunday labor. Dole defends
the supplier’s claims that the firings
were justified and has made no move to
compensate the unpaid workers, whose
claims have been upheld by an initial
legal finding.
Dole’s poor worker rights record is
not universal in the Latin American banana
sector, however. In Honduras, Dole
banana workers with a strong union have
one of the best contracts in the region
and in August won a new wage increase
of over 10% on top of other increases
negotiated earlier.
Doha Collapse Kills Key
Banana Pact
A collapse of the Doha global trade
negotiations in July scuttled an important
compromise that had been hailed as an
end to the decade-old “banana wars”
regarding rules governing imports to
Europe. The World Trade Organization
(WTO) has consistently ruled that the
EU’s banana regime is discriminatory
against Latin America.
Under the agreement, duties on
Latin American exporters would have
been reduced by 35% over the next seven
years, increasing their competitiveness
compared to exporters from former
colonies in the Caribbean and Africa
who are not subject to any duty. The EU
tossed out the banana agreement when
the broader trade negotiations collapsed.
Ecuador responded by pressing forward
with legal proceedings at the WTO.
7

More Trade Unionists Killed in Colombia in
First 8 Months of 2008 Than All of 2007
Assassins murdered Alexander
Blanco Rodriguez in front of his coworkers
during a shift change on August
26th, 2008. Mr. Blanco, a leader
in the oil workers’ union, USO, was the
41st Colombian trade union member to
be murdered this year.
In 2007, 39 union members were
murdered, a significant decline from
2006. Unfortunately this trend has
been reversed, with this number already
surpassed in 2008 with four months remaining
in the year.
According to the Escuela Nacional
Sindical (the leading Colombian
NGO on anti-union violence) there has
been an increase in murders of union
leaders over union members, with 15
leaders killed so far this year compared
to 10 last year. In addition, 125 death
threats were registered before the end
of August.
Recent Assassinations
Raw numbers too often hide the
human dimensions. Recent assassinations
include:
• José Omar Galeano Martínez
was killed by assassins on August 23rd.
He was the president of the Colombian
Lottery <strong>Workers</strong>’ Federation, FE-
COLOC. The CUT reports that Mr. Galeano
Martínez was leading a struggle
to defend the rights of lottery workers
against the privatization of national lotteries
when he was killed.
• Manuel Erminson Gamboa
Meléndez was murdered on August
13th. He was 32 years old and the father
of three children. Mr. Gamboa
Meléndez was the vice-president of
the Campesina Asociation for the Defense
of Putamayo and a member of the
National Executive Committee of Fensuagro.
• Luis Mayusa Prada, 46 years old,
was murdered on August 8th in Arauca.
He had taken one of his four children
to a doctor’s appointment and, upon returning
to his house at 8 a.m., was shot
8
by assassins. Mr. Mayusa Prada had
been a member of the leadership of the
CUT in his department.
No Justice
A recent USLEAP analysis of impunity
for these murders shows that
there has been almost no progress, in
spite of the continued functioning of a
special judicial unit to deal with antiunion
violence cases. Looking at murders
of union members since 1991, the
impunity rate continues at 96.5%.
This statistic does not include other
forms of anti-union violence including
harassment, death threats, attempted
murder, and kidnapping. For these
cases, impunity is nearly 100%, with
convictions being achieved in only a
handful of cases.
In July, the Senate completed its
2009 foreign aid bill, including a rough
breakdown of aid to Colombia. While
it will not be voted on in the near fu-
U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT
ture, the bill appears to maintain aid
proportions similar to the 2008 bill,
when Congress approved an important
decrease in police and military aid and
an increase in social and economic aid.
Colombia’s Defense Budget
Up, U.S. Military Aid Down
Meanwhile, the Center for International
Policy reports that the Colombian
government has increased its
military budget, making the U.S. contribution
a much smaller percentage of
the total. In 2002, U.S. aid made up
about one eleventh of the total military
budget. Between the declining value of
the dollar, recent decreases in U.S. military
aid, and the increased budget of the
military, U.S. aid now accounts for only
one twenty-eighth of the total. The current
Colombian defense budget is about
$12.3 billion annually, almost three
times the 2002 level, when President
Uribe began his first term in office.
Trade: Where the Candidates Stand
With presidential elections just around the corner, here is a quick
snapshot of the two major candidates’ positions on trade.
NAFTA
U.S.-Peru FTA
U.S.-Colombia
FTA
CAFTA-DR
Trade Rules
Enforcement
John McCain:
“Free Trade is the best thing
that can happen to our nation.”
Says the US has benefited
from the agreement and
opposes any changes.
Came out in support of the
deal, but never showed up
to vote.
Strongly supportive of agreement
and Uribe government.
Barack Obama:
“The net costs of many of
these trade agreements if
not properly structured can
be devastating.”
Wants to work with leaders
in Canada and Mexico
to amend labor and
environmental provisions.
Voted in favor. Voted against.
Says he will hold “every
nation we trade with to the
commitments they have made
under the agreements we
have signed.”
Supported the deal, but didn’t
vote. Just like McCain.
Will not support agreement
until Colombian government
does more to address murders
of trade unionists.
Says the U.S. should be more
aggressive in filing complaints
against other countries that
violate global trade rules to
keep out U.S. goods.
Fall 2008