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10 October, 2024The National Independent Union of Industrial and Service Workers (SNITIS) has been on strike for a year at Caterpillar in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, seeking to obtain a fair collective bargaining agreement.
Workers from SNITIS, also known as the 20/32 Movement, went on strike on 22 September last year after exhausting all of the collective conciliation processes provided under Mexican law without reaching an agreement that met the workers' demands.
A year later, SNITIS is still on strike as there have been no meaningful negotiations with Caterpillar to find a solution to the workers' broader demands. Workers initiated the strike to demand that Caterpillar respects their union rights after union leader Victor Manuel Vergara was unfairly dismissed – he has since been reinstated in response to public pressure.
The union says that Caterpillar is trying to break the strike and has discriminated against union members. SNITIS says that the company has used tactics like intimidation, retaliation and exclusion against union workers, in violation of international labour standards and Mexican labour law. According to the union, these tactics are intended to weaken workers' collective power and undermine their right to organize and to collective bargaining.
The workers are calling for:
- a constructive dialogue between Caterpillar’s management in Mexico and SNITIS to ensure that workers' demands are met
- that anti-union practices to be immediately halted
Caterpillar reported global earnings of more than US$9 billion for 2023, so the workers feel that a pay rise is a reasonable and justified demand – and one that is affordable for the company.
IndustriALL mechanical engineering director Patrick Correa says:
“IndustriALL and the Caterpillar global union network are fully committed to supporting these workers in their struggle for justice. We urge Caterpillar to take the necessary steps to resolve the matter promptly. We are open to a constructive dialogue, in keeping with the principles of fairness and respect for workers' rights, so that a solution can be found to this dispute.
"We also call on all international trade union organizations to remain active and support the workers’ struggle for social justice, which goes beyond Mexico. They are an example for workers around the world who are fighting for their rights."