A-Infos (en) VICTORY IN NICARAGUA!

["Shawn Ewald" <shawn@wilshire.net>]

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VICTORY IN NICARAGUA! 
Nicaraguan Workers Gain Union Recognition at Chentex Garment Factory
February 19, 1998

The 2,000 workers at the Chentex Garment Factory in Managua's Las Mercedes
Free Trade Zone held another day-long work stoppage on February 16th during
which they received word that their union had been granted legal recognition
by the Ministry of Labor.  The workers were protesting the company's
violation of the agreement reached at the end of their first stoppage on
January 26th.  This strike at the Taiwanese-owned factory was supported by
the entire production workforce.  The company had been firing workers and
had formed a small committee of line supervisors who called themselves "the
workers against the union."  These supervisors were handing out leaflets
claiming that the union leaders were accepting bribes and committing other
treacherous acts.  
 
As a result of the negotiations led by Garment and Textile Federation leader
Pedro Ortega, a bi-partite commission with representatives from management
and workers was formed to address the issues of mistreatment of workers.
Now that the Chentex union has received its legal recognition, union
officers are talking with all the workers in the factory to get their input
for the set of demands that the union will take to collective bargaining
talks with management.
 
In separate news, another union has just been organized in the Free Trade
Zone, this time in the U.S.-owned Mil Colores Factory.  Papers requesting
legal recognition were submitted to the Labor Ministry late last week and
word on recognition from Ministry officials was expected in less than the
two week period established by law.  Factory management, however, has fired
three union leaders: Luis Rivas, Erasmo Ruiz and Isabel Cano Urbina.  If
they are not re-hired, the union may call for international solidarity
support which has proved key to previous victories in the Free Trade Zone.

For more information, contact the Nicaragua Network: (202) 544-9355,
<nicanet@igc.org>.

Labor Alerts: a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
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------- Message History -------
Date:          Thu, 19 Feb 1998 23:01:32 -0800 (PST)
To:            clr@igc.org
From:          Campaign for Labor Rights <clr@igc.apc.org>
Subject:       VICTORY IN NICARAGUA!

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