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Setting up a new trade union in Colombia is not an everyday occurrence, particularly given the climate of hostility that usually accompanies such actions. As a rule, this would be carried out in the utmost secrecy in order to avoid the standard reaction of employers which is to dismiss the founders of a trade union.



In this particular case, the opposite happened. The trade union was actually set up with the support of the company itself in line with its policy of corporate social responsibility. In practical terms, this has meant applying the global agreement with Carrefour that it had signed with UNI Global Union which covers such aspects as respecting trade union rights and recognising the fundamental rights of workers.



Before establishing the union, CARREFOUR and UNI Global Union organised a seminar which was coordinated and supported by the National Trade Union School (ENS – Escuela Nacional Sindical). 123 workers participated in the seminar, representing all the stores throughout the country. Of these, 112 participated actively in the founding assembly of the union.



The creation of this new union has created a real basis for a social dialogue within Carrefour. Its basic precept is the organisation of workers employed by the company at the workplace.



The aim of the workers’ union is to improve working and living conditions, to provide advice and to represent workers’ interests whenever labour-related conflicts arise. It also intends to work together with the management of Carrefour with a view to making the company more competitive and socially responsible by strengthening the various mechanisms of the social dialogue in an atmosphere of respect for trade union independence.