Colombian union files lawsuit against Spanish security giant Prosegur
A Colombian trade union today filed a complaint with government authorities alleging that Spanish security giant Prosegur AB has engaged in gross violations of law concerning workers’ rights.
SINTRAVALORES, a union of security guards representing workers at Prosegur AB, filed a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office in Bogota based on Prosegur’s March 1, 2014 “pacto colectivo,” alleging it violates Article 200 of the Colombian Penal Code.
This new pacto follows a previous pacto colectivo, which ended on February 28, 2014, that was found by Colombian courts to be discriminatory. Prosegur has been ordered by the courts to pay trade union members the same bonuses that it had illegally offered only to non-union workers.
SINTRAVALORES, a member of the Prosegur Alliance of Unions, works with UNI Global Union, an international labour federation representing security workers worldwide, to stop the ongoing abuse of workers by Prosegur and to work toward reaching an agreement with Prosegur that workers’ rights will be recognized in all parts of its global operation.
UNI's Head of Property Services, Alice Dale said, "It's astonishing that Prosegur appears to have followed one illegal pacto colectivo with another. This latest pacto appears to be another clear violation of Colombian law which states that trade union members should not be excluded from pay or benefits offered to other workers. The new pacto offers yet another bonus, camouflaged as an advance, which is only available to non-union workers outside the collective agreement. Prosegur must treat its global workforce with respect and equality. We call on this Spanish giant to do the right thing and we support these efforts to hold it accountable under Colombian and international law."
Colombian laws related to pacto colectivos were amended in 2011 after passage of the US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement to bring them into compliance with this treaty. These changes now include criminal penalties, under Article 200 of the Colombian Penal Code, for violations of the law concerning illegal pacto colectivos. Pacto colectivos are illegal in Colombia if they offer higher wages, better benefits or working conditions than are offered under a company’s collective trade union agreement.
This complaint is the latest in a string of allegations and cases filed against Prosegur for workers’ rights abuses in Latin America. UNI Global Union has a pending OECD complaint that it filed in Spain accusing Prosegur of human rights abuses throughout the company's global operations. The complaint also alleges gross contradictions between Prosegur’s purported corporate social responsibility commitments and its actual human rights track record in South America.
Editors: For more information please contact:
James Dyson, Mobile : +34 633422032, jvdmedia@gmail.com
Richard Elliott, Director of Communications, UNI Global Union
Mobile: +41 79 794 9709, richard.elliott@uniglobalunion.org