News

During the 8 years of Uribe’s govrenment, the labour and union agenda was frozen, which resulted in the aggravation of a historic situation in Colombia: the exclusion of workers and organisations.



Uribe leaves:

1. The highest unemployment rate in Latin America, the highest levels of inequality of the continent, an informality near 60%, with two thirds of the workers without social protecion and income level which reduces them to a state of poverty.

2. Economic, social and tax policies damaging labour rights.

3. A great distance between social interlocutors who have been denied the right to develop an appropriate social dialogue agenda and collective bargaining.

4. The labour movement abused, stigmatized and subjected to violence, with a low level of membership and presence in the country.



President Santos presented various proposals during his campaign:



1. Laws to promote the generation and formalization of employmen and a law for the firs employment.

2. The creation of the Ministry of Labour.

3. The creation of 2.500.000 employments as a result of economic growth.

4. The implementation of certain agreements and ILO recommendations through reglamentary decrees.

5. Reinforcement of spaces for social dialogue.





On the other hand, employers have anounced their proposals:



1. Elimination, reduction or benefit substitution.

2. Elimination of the minimum salary, or at least the establishment of mimimum salaries according to age, sector or region.

3. Reform of the system of pensions which eliminates medium insurance premium system and increases age and contribution weeks.

4. Tax regulations which promote the creation and formalization of employment.

5. Reform of the health insurance system to guarantee profit margins.

Finally, the Colombian labour movement has focused its agenda on:



1. Policies of generation and preservation of employment.

2. Improvement of workers’ salary and income

3. The recovery of the work contract in the face of outsourcing and precarious contracting.

4. Recovery and improvement of union freedom.

5. Policies and measures which guarantee truth, justice, reparation and the end of anti union violence.



Everything seems to indicate that labour and union issues will be dealt with, that they will not be ignored, and that they will get an important place in the current government’s agenda; thus, a great debate will be held in the country. What really matters is the direction in which the agenda will be treated. This will depend on the capacity the workers and the organisations shall develop to improve the scope of deliberative action and mobilisation capacity to generate a progressist labour agenda.



Source: José Luciano Sanín Vásquez – General Director ENS