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14 August, 2005ICEM News release No. 01/2004
A global call for support and attention directed at one the world's leading glass producers halted a Colombian labour dispute, giving ICEM affiliate Sintravidricol a new two-year collective agreement with that country's number one glass maker.
Peldar, a wholly-owned subsidiary of leading US glass manufacturer Owens Illinois agreed to the labour contract at its four plants on the eve of a strike and after ICEM and affiliates lodged official protests to the company over negligent labour practices in Colombia.
Sindravidricol had a collective agreement in place with Peldar since 1999 but following Owens Illinois purchases of other glass operations, Peldar refused to negotiate a current contract. The Colombian glass union had continuously requested dialogue on social issues, but the efforts were rebuffed.
Last week, ICEM General Secretary Fred Higgs contacted Peldar's management urging resolution, and that came after a pointed letter arrived at the firm's Colombian headquarters from ICEM's Latin America/Caribbean regional office.
Simultaneously, the Flint/Glass Industry Conference of the United Steelworkers of America and other US glass unions, meeting in Pennsylvania, protested directly to Owens Illinois co-CEOs Terry Wilkinson and Thomas Young.
"In spite of the company's positive financial results, Peldar refuses to discuss the union's ideas and initiatives to improve working conditions," wrote Flint/Glass Conference Chairman Timothy Tuttle. "Our respective organizations in North America have always enjoyed a productive and progressive working relationship that has been mutually beneficial. It is beyond my comprehension why you would not embrace the same relationship with Glass Workers in Colombia."
The attention-plus Sintravidricol members commencing plans for strike actions-convinced Peldar to negotiate. The union lauded the agreement reached 9 January that gives workers a first-year 8.8% wage increase (retroactive to 21 November 2003) and a second-year hike equal to the Colombian consumer cost index plus 1%. In addition, Sintravidricol won bonuses for education and for health.
"We're thankful for the support of the workers, their conviction and their strength to defend their rights in the face of extreme circumstances," said Sintravidricol's Peldar Unit President Luis Fernando Peláez Montoya. "In the same way, we recognize and thank most sincerely the international and national organizations who brought support. There is not doubt that this agreement is a triumph for workers and for the union."
Peldar is the leading glassmaker in Brazil, Peru and Colombia, as well the second biggest in Venezuela, Ecuador and Puerto Rico, and its brands comprise the largest supply chain of glassware and tableware in Latin America and the Caribbean.
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