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The Congress takes place every three years and defines the banking union organization strategies for the next term, besides electing a new leadership. There are around 100 local unions and 8 regional federations affiliated to Contraf, representing 450 thousand bank workers throughout the country.



On the Congress opening day, March 30, Contraf held an international conference with the participation of around 30 foreign delegates from the Americas, Europe and Africa. Coming from financial sector sister organizations, affiliated to UNI, the delegates represented the following countries: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Colombia, Chile, the United States, Costa Rica, Spain, the Netherlands, Angola and Mozambique.

The international conference was preceded by a meeting, on March 29, with representatives of Portuguese speaking countries. With the participation of UNI Finance, there were representatives from Brazil, Angola (SNEBA) and Mozambique (SNEB). Besides exchanging information about the reality of these countries in the financial sector, the meeting pointed out several issues to be dealt with in the next meeting: impacts of the crises and financial system regulation; workers’ health; union education; and collective bargaining. The next meeting will take place in Angola in June and will be coordinated by UNI Finance. The other UNI affiliates from Portuguese Speaking countries will also be invited.

International conference

To start the international conference, Alejandra Madi, University of Campinas professor, gave a lecture on the impacts of the world crises and the need of a financial sector regulation including the issue of the social role of credit. Alejandra summarized the crisis, its consequences and analyzed the weak responses to it. "The crisis was responsible for massive unemployment, with important distributive effects. Debt management and the adjustments on Basel III haven’t solved the crises. The new context favors, once more, capital speculation and volatility”, she highlighted. In the same session, Adriana Rosenzvaig, UNI Americas regional, claimed for more union action and unionization as workers’ responses to the crises. "My message for you is: unionisation, unionisation and more unionisation. We need unions which are more open to the streets mobilisation and to the workplaces. It is necessary to build capacity to collective bargain, face the issue of decent work, and say no outsourcing”, she added.

The following lecture was given by Stephen Lerner, one of the leaders of the Occupy Wall Street Movement (OWS) and unionist from SEIU (Service Employee International Union), American union organisation affiliated to UNI. He questioned the financial system deregulation and the benefits given by the US Government to big corporations. He also gave an update about the Occupy movement and new forms of mobilization. In his opinion, now it is time for bank workers to demand an ethical behavior of banks. “We want bank workers to start organising themselves in the US and to demand better wages and working conditions, but also a fair financial system. We want bank workers to be the leaders for more ethics in the financial system”, he stated.

The head of UNI Finance, Marcio Monzane, was the first lecturer in the afternoon session. He pointed out the crisis effects, the political measures in Europe and in other parts of the world, the proposals of the union movement and the banks behavior in this context. Marcio said that the financial crisis became an economic social crisis that, in Europe, started with the privatization and outsourcing waves. Marcio also revealed that 50% of the workers are under conditions of precariousness and that 200 thousand and financial sector workers have already loosen their jobs according to the ILO. "The austerity policies have been fostering the crisis. More and more people have been excluded”, he added.

Marcio proposed a motion in solidarity of European workers, which was approved unanimously by Congress delegates

“The delegates of the 3rd Congresso f Contraf-CUT express their unconditional support and solidarity with the struggles and mobilisation of European workers against the neoliberal reforms that governmentes have been implementing in alliance with the same speculators who were responsible for the current crisis.

Today, the European working class faces the strongest attack to their social and labour rights. These rights were achieved along more than a hundred years of struggles. Capitalists want to globalise labour precariousness likewise it is in various parts of the planet.

Workers of the whole world must be together in this fight because Europeans’ struggles are the same of the working class around the world for protection and social rights, and for a global society with fairness and solidarity.

Guarulhos, São Paulo, 1^st April, 2012”

Strategies for the next term

The Contraf-CUT Congress 316 delegates approved, on Saturday, March 31, the entire document presented by the Executive Secretariat with a few amendments. The original document addressed to the delegates of the Congress, presents an assessment of the last Contraf’s term (2009-2012) which is coming to an end. It also aims to reflect on the challenges of the movement in terms of union organisation, union action, and partnership with other players in the Brazilian society, where the Confederation must act, struggling for a state model that meets workers’ interests in order to transform Brazil into a more democratic country, with economic and social development, fairness and solidarity. See attached the version of the document in which we highlight the views of the Confederation on the international and national contexts, and on its international action. In the final part of the document, the national leadership presents an action plan for the next term.

Before the 3^rd Congress there were several regional pre-congresses, preparation events to deepen discussions and proposals. “It was a joint work, democratic and with wide participation of bank workers’ leaders and representatives. That takes into account not only the Brazilian reality but also the world’s. It recognizes the great job done during the 2009-2012 term and defines actions and projects to face the new challenges towards more achievements and the consolidation of advances because future is now”, stated Robert Von Der Osten, treasury secretary of Contraf and coordinator of the document preparation.

The final document approved in the Congress highlights the strategies for the 2012-2015 term:

1) Dispute political hegemony for a democratic state

2) Decent work

3) Union autonomy and freedom of association

4) New political and organizational project

5) New collective bargaining and negotiation framework

6) Financial autonomy

7) International social alliances

New leadership

The Congress delegates also elected unanimously the new leadership for the 2012-2015 term. Reelected, Carlos Cordeiro, celebrated the remarkable unit in the event, and pointed the challenges for the next three years.

“The 3rd Congress demonstrated an extraordinary unity both among unions and the political forces. Therefore, the new elected leadership is the outcome of this process”, stated Cordeiro, who is also the UNI Americas Finance president. “The elected list has a great political capacity. We took large steps ahead in the previous term and we can do much more now”, added Cordeiro, reinforcing the importance to meet the gender quota of 30% of women in the new leadership.

Source: Contraf-CUT