Venezuela
- FOCUSIN Workers’ Rights Campaign Venezuela launched The Socialist |
| In the eight years since Hugo Chavez’ election as President of Venezuela, very important steps forward have been made in raising the standard of living of ordinary people. Free education, cheap staple foods and free healthcare have been made available to millions. For these steps, Chavez has encountered ferocious criticism from the representatives of big business around the world, from Rumsfeld comparing him to Hitler to Pat Robertson calling for his assassination. However, the class struggle in Venezuela continues – private companies continue to exploit their workers, and deny the basic trade union rights that are guaranteed by the Venezuelan Constitution. That’s why Venezuelan trade unionists launched a campaign for workers’ rights in April 2006 appealing for international solidarity. The campaign is to assist workers in setting up trade unions and other workers’ organisations in defence of their rights. The Campaign stands on a ten point programme including: defending the rights of all workers to be organised in trade unions; the immediate payment of the national minimum wage to all workers; trade union democracy; workers’ control of production; open the books of the companies and for the expropriation of all factories running below their productive capacity. Already, the Campaign is involved in an important struggle to defend the rights of workers in a major pharmaceutical company, RACE. The company has refused to recognise the trade union, Suprofrad which organised the pharmaceutical workers in Caracas. Instead, management have attempted to organise a "yellow" union called Unitrace. The company management has refused to recognise Suprofrad and has refused to start collective wage negotiations or to respond in any way or form to the demands of the workers. Workers on a 12 month contract have not had their contracts renewed when management became aware that they were supporting the union. The company has then forced the workers to sign contracts that don’t comply with labour law. The trade union after consultation with the membership, plans to take industrial action against this company. They are also calling on the Venezuelan State to cancel the contract between the national oil company, PDVSA and the pharmaceutical company. A call has been launched by the Workers’ Rights Campaign Venezuela for trade unionists internationally to send letters of protest to the Ministry of Labour, who can be emailed at: despachoministerio@mintra.gov.ve
and despachovice@mintra.gov.ve keyujsr@yahoo.com - coronilujsr@yahoo.com - suprofard@yahoo.com - suprofard@gmail.com and cwi@worldsoc.co.uk |
