4 – Systematic violations of rights
The ITUC Global Rights Index

Peru

In practice

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Harassment of general secretary of the union at national coca company ENACO25-12-2019

Jaime Briceño, general secretary of the union at national coca company ENACO, denounced the harassment he was faced with after filing a complaint against the general manager of the public enterprise, Rafael Cánovas, for embezzlement of public funds. During the second week of December, dismissal proceedings were initiated against the trade unionist for serious misconduct, after he led two strikes over the poor financial management at the company, which has accumulated a deficit of three million soles in the last three years, and the loss of the land it owned.

Strike announced by Miski Mayu mining union declared illegal by Labour Ministry 29-11-2019
Strike called for 21 November by the National Committee for the Judicial Struggle declared illegal by Supreme Court of Justice 20-11-2019

The Supreme Court of Justice declared illegal the 24-hour strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
called for 21 November by the National Committee for the Judicial Struggle [grouping all the federations of judicial workers’ unions], as well as the indefinite national strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
called for 26 November. The court warned that the wages of those not fulfilling their duties would be docked. The two strikes were called to press for the hiring of workers throughout the judiciary as permanent ‘career employees’ and for assurances that the agreements in this regard would be upheld in the 2020 budget.

Strike by public sector administrative and auxiliary workers in Chiclayo declared illegal by the Regional Labour Department13-10-2019

After a 15-day strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
in the municipality of Chiclayo, mainly joined by administrative and auxiliary workers, the Regional Labour Department declared the action illegal and the mayor threatened to make mass dismissals, claiming that the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
was creating public health risks and that the workers concerned already had sufficient benefits. The workers were asking to be formally and directly hired as public sector employees, to have the benefit of being covered by the collective agreement along with the other employees in the sector. They were also denouncing the mayor for telling the media that their pay was high enough, while the trade unionists said they had proof to the contrary.

Strike declared unlawful and 17 union leaders arrested without a warrant10-09-2019

The general secretary of the FNTMMSP mine workers’ federation, two members of the Women’s Committee of the Mining Base (MARSA), a journalist and 13 other union leaders were arrested without a warrant after leaving the Labour Ministry, where they had been waiting, to no avail, for a meeting with the organisation representing national and foreign companies extracting wealth in Peru’s mining and energy sectors, the SNMPE. The strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
began on 10 September following a national call to pressure mining companies to abide by the Constitutional Court’s ruling requiring them to hire, through fixed-term or permanent employment contracts, workers who had hitherto been working on an hourly basis, as service providers or through subcontractors. The strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
was called off after a week, following the establishment of consultations between the government, the mining companies and the workers. The workers were being backed by congressional representatives on the opposition benches.

SITRAPOJ demands respect for the agreement signed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance28-08-2019

The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced that it would not comply with the second and higher pay adjustment agreed in 2018 with judicial workers’ union SITRAPOJ (Sindicato de Trabajadores del Poder Judicial), after filing legal action challenging the constitutionality of the collective agreement. The workers staged a 24-hour strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
while continuing to call for negotiations.

Arequipa civil construction union denounces that the salaries of the workers who took part in the three-day strike were docked20-08-2019
Six strikers dismissed for calling on Agroindustrial Cayalti to pay wage arrears and preserve its assets22-06-2019

The 620 workers at Agroindustrial Cayalti launched an indefinite strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
on the first week of June, calling on the company to pay the five months’ wage arrears they were due and to stop selling its productive land, which they were hoping would be used to repay the monies they are owed, as it is considered the most fertile land in the region. The company responded by firing six of the workers who had initiated the claim and called on the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the local authorities to intervene.

Doctors across the country go on strike after agreements are breached17-06-2019

The 195 unions grouped together in the Peruvian Medical Federation announced a 48-hour general strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
, which could be made indefinite, following the Health Ministry’s failure to comply with the agreements signed in 2017 and 2018 and to meet the deadlines set in January 2019 to remedy the situation. The agreements included clauses on pay increases, a solution to the lack of resources, and improved infrastructure and lab facilities, together with a gradual rise in the budget for the entire health sector.

National Registry of Identification and Civil Status (RENIEC) workers announce strike over failure to comply with payments set out in collective agreement 24-04-2019

The Ministry of Economy and Finance declared the collective negotiations between the National Registry of Identification and Civil Status (RENIEC) and its workers’ union illegal, invalidating the five judicial rulings issued since 2011, which had given rise to a series of pay increases and adjustments. The move made by the Ministry would have meant a significant fall in pay for RENIEC employees across the board as of April 2019. The union announced a 24-hour nationwide strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
that it would make indefinite if the Ministry were to continue to refuse to table negotiations, which were also part of the unfulfilled agreements. The strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
went smoothly and was lifted on the second day when the RENIEC provisionally agreed to comply with the agreements.

Labour Ministry declares strike illegal at Yauricocha mine controlled by Canadian corporation Sierra Metal13-04-2019

The Labour Ministry informed the management at the Sierra Metals mining operation that the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
underway to press for the reinstatement of workers dismissed by contractors operating at the Yauricocha mine, in the province of Lima, was unlawful under the current legislation, as it was launched after the workers and the company had entered into negotiations. The management fully suspended all operations at the mine, purportedly to protect the facilities and the workers not joining the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
.

The strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
was called off on 12 April, after 20 days, thanks to the progress made in the negotiations between the mining company and its employees. The reinstatements were not, however, secured, as the workers dismissed came under the responsibility of third party contractors.

Mayor of Trujillo delegitimises strike, saying it was driven by political interests 28-03-2019

The mayor of Trujillo stated that the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
called for the last week of March was driven by veiled interests, adding that public services could not be halted and that the legislation regarding budgets prohibits the pay increases asked for by public security, public works and general services workers. The measures announced by the head of the city council included docking strikers’ wages and hiring temporary public workers if the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
were to be deemed illegal by the Department of Labour and Employment Promotion. The strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
was launched on 27 March despite being declared unlawful by the Regional Labour Department on the grounds that it failed to meet certain legal requirements.

Local governments discriminate against unionised informal economy workers31-12-2017

The self-employed workers’ union Red Nacional de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras Autoempleados del Perú, which also represents informal economy workers, denounced various union busting union busting Attempts by an employer to prevent the establishment of a trade union or remove an existing union, e.g. by firing union members, challenging unions in court, or by forming a yellow union. tactics and manoeuvres discriminating against union members.

Local governments refused to grant unionised workers permits to work on the public highway, arguing that they needed to be listed in the association register regulated by the Civil Code. The municipal authorities do not recognise the trade union organisation, which means the workers are not covered by collective agreements and any protests or sit-ins they hold are rapidly dispersed by municipal police officers, with the backing of the National Police of Peru.

Anti-union discrimination at fish terminal market31-12-2017

The trade union representing dockers, seafood product sellers and associated workers in Villa Maria del Triunfo reported that, throughout 2017, fish terminal owners Ángel and Edilberto Canales Pillaca harassed and discriminated against its members and prevented trade union leaders from accessing the market.

Breach of collective agreement at Lindley bottling company31-12-2017

During 2017, bottling company Lindley imposed a fortnightly shift rotation rather than the weekly rotation schedule established in the collective agreement signed with the bottling workers’ union Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de Embotelladora Latinoamericana (SINATREL).

Anti-union practices to end teachers’ strike 28-08-2017
Anti-union practices to crush union at AB InBev 14-08-2017

According to the Sindicato Nacional de Obreros de UCP Backus y Johnston, the new owner of the Unión de Cervecerías Peruanas Backus y Johnston S.A.A, beverage and brewing multinational AB InBev, launched a fierce anti-union offensive seeking to implement a plan to outsource several of the company’s operations and thus put an end to the workers’ organisation. During the first week of August 2017, the company suspended the union’s general secretary, Julio Eyzaguirre, press secretary, Jonathan Cruz, and workers’ rights secretary, Luis Damán for four days.

Striking cement workers face police repression, discrimination and reprisals31-07-2017

On 31 July, a nationwide strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
was held across the cement sector, called by the Federación de Trabajadores del Cemento y Premezclado del Perú. Various incidents were reported during the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
and demonstrations staged that day.

The union representing employees of cement producer UNACEM, Sindicato de Trabajadores de Unión Andina de Cementos (UNACEM), denounced that the police repressed a trade union demonstration held in Villa María del Triunfo, despite the fact that the organisers had the relevant authorisations. The trade union was forced to put an end to the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
at UNACEM, to avoid potential dismissals after the action was declared unlawful. In addition, workers were hired to replace strikers during the industrial action industrial action Any form of action taken by a group of workers, a union or an employer during an industrial dispute to gain concessions from the other party, e.g. a strike, go-slow or an overtime ban, or a lockout on the part of the employer. and UNACEM offered all employees who refused to join the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
a bonus of 800 soles. The Labour Ministry fined the company for having violated the right to strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
. In the legal action filed by the union, however, the court ruled in favour of the company.

Meanwhile, Cementos Pacasmayo dismissed several workers (Juan Carlos Mendo Valerio, Víctor Hugo Goycochea Chávez, Víctor Gerardo Paz Portilla, Rolando Ernesto Palacios Puitiza, Telmo Roldan Sagastegui Gil and Hebert Carrasco Quezada), for carrying placards during the mobilisation, violating their trade union rights.

Anti-union dismissals at Southern Peru Copper Corporation 22-07-2017

The national federation of mining and metal workers FNTMMSP (Federación Nacional de Trabajadores Mineros, Metalúrgicos y Siderúrgicos del Perú) denounced anti-union practices at Southern Peru Copper Corporation (owned by Grupo México), following a series of anti-union dismissals. The dismissals were made in retaliation for the workers’ participation in the national strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
called by the FNTMMSP in July 2017. Peru’s deputy minister of mines expressed support for the workers, stating that the dismissals were illegal.

Abusive imposition of state of emergency to undermine workers’ protests 12-07-2017

As of June 2017, the government declared successive states of emergency in various parts of the country to put an end to the various protests being held by workers. The states of emergency allowed for the deployment of the police, the use of teargas and other violent practices against the demonstrators. Several workers were injured.

Trade union leader dismissed during collective negotiation 27-06-2017

In February 2017, Owens Illinois Peru unfairly dismissed José Másquez, workers’ rights secretary of the union at the company SITRA-OISA (Sindicato de Trabajadores de Owens Illinois Perú) at a key moment in the collective negotiations. SITRA-OISA requested a labour inspection labour inspection An authority responsible for ensuring compliance with labour laws and legal provisions relating to protection of workers through the inspection of workplaces. , arguing that the dismissal was made on anti-union grounds. On 27 June 2017, it filed a claim for unfair dismissal.

Anti-union practices at SiderPerú Gerdau 07-06-2017
Sintrarimac denounces dismissals, persecution and attacks21-04-2017

Throughout 2016, members of the Sindicato de Trabajadores Rimac (Sintrarimac) were confronted with anti-union dismissals, persecution, job threats, harassment and discriminatory treatment at the hands of the company. Six members and founders of the union were unfairly dismissed from the technology division, after having been forced to transfer from Lima to different provinces. Workers dismissed in 2014 initiated legal proceedings to secure their reinstatement, but Rimac has delayed the process and the next hearing is scheduled for June 2017.

The management also sent notarized letters to the union’s executive, requesting that the administrator of the union’s Facebook page be identified, under the threat of filing a criminal complaint. In addition, workers who have contact with or join the union are given the lowest scores in the annual performance appraisals and are deprived of access to promotions, leave and permits, which are clear illustrations of anti-union intimidation and discrimination. The company meddles in trade union affairs, sending out false information and mails that mislead the employees.

The union’s executive members are reprimanded for attending conciliation conciliation An attempt by a neutral third party, a conciliator, to aid the settling of an industrial dispute by improving communications, offering advice and interpreting issues to bring the disputing parties to a point where they can reconcile their differences. The conciliator does not take as active a role as a mediator or an arbitrator.

See arbitration, mediation
meetings, and encounter serious difficulties when requesting trade union leave.

Rimac Seguros and Rimac EPS have always been reluctant to recognise the trade union and to negotiate with it. Although the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
proposal was submitted in April 2015, they are continuing to delay and defer the process of direct negotiation, conciliation conciliation An attempt by a neutral third party, a conciliator, to aid the settling of an industrial dispute by improving communications, offering advice and interpreting issues to bring the disputing parties to a point where they can reconcile their differences. The conciliator does not take as active a role as a mediator or an arbitrator.

See arbitration, mediation
and arbitration arbitration A means of resolving disputes outside the courts through the involvement of a neutral third party, which can either be a single arbitrator or an arbitration board. In non-binding arbitration, the disputing parties are free to reject the third party’s recommendation, whilst in binding arbitration they are bound by its decision. Compulsory arbitration denotes the process where arbitration is not voluntarily entered into by the parties, but is prescribed by law or decided by the authorities.

See conciliation, mediation
with appeals.

The workers also reported that the company does not comply with the mandates of the decisions delivered by the National Superintendency for Labour Inspection labour inspection An authority responsible for ensuring compliance with labour laws and legal provisions relating to protection of workers through the inspection of workplaces. (SUNAFIL), and when issued with fines it pays them, but does nothing to remedy the abusive practices.

Dismissals at Medifarma in retaliation for formation of trade union03-03-2017

On 3 March 2017, Medifarma dismissed three workers and sent notice of termination letters to another 17 for having formed the Sindicato Único de Trabajadores de Medifarma (Sutramed), recognised by the Labour and Employment Promotion Ministry (MTPE) on 5 February 2017. The employees of the Peruvian transnational staged a protest in front of the MTPE, demanding the reinstatement of the workers dismissed and an end to the attack on their union.

Discrimination and attacks on the right to strike and collective bargaining at Peruana de Perforación SAC31-12-2016

During 2016, workers from the Sindicato Peruana de Perforación SAC suffered discrimination for belonging to the trade union and attacks on their right to strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
and collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
.

The discrimination took the form of dismissals, transfers, and incentives for non-unionised workers. The company uses a number of union leaders to manipulate the members in exchange for certain rewards.

The workers report that the Labour Ministry itself has prevented them from staging protests or strikes by declaring them illegal. Such actions, in addition, are usually repressed by the police. The company, for its part, hampers strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
action by threatening to dismiss anyone taking part in stoppages and issuing warning letters to workers taking action.

In the context of the crisis in oil prices, and with regard to collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
, the trade union has received threats from the company’s legal advisors, claiming it would be closed down if they rejected their offers.

Discriminatory practices and attacks on trade union rights at Banco Continental31-12-2016

During 2016, members of the Centro Federado de Empleados del Banco Continental were the victims of discriminatory practices and attacks on the right to organise. The company showed no willingness to negotiate the legitimate and realistic demands presented by the trade union, obstructing its activities. Employees have been discriminated against for belonging to the trade union. Workers are reluctant to join the union, as those who do so are marginalised, deprived of access to promotions, stigmatised and attacked by the company.

Trade union and collective bargaining rights violated at MT INDUSTRIAL SAC31-12-2016

During 2016, workers affiliated to the Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores de la Empresa MT INDUSTRIAL SAC faced attacks on their trade union and collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
rights as well being discriminated against for being union members.

Workers are reluctant to join the union, as those who do so are marginalised, stigmatised and harassed by the company, as well as being deprived of access to promotion and pay rises, which are only given to non-unionised employees. The company has dismissed employees and transferred them to other sites as part of its union busting union busting Attempts by an employer to prevent the establishment of a trade union or remove an existing union, e.g. by firing union members, challenging unions in court, or by forming a yellow union. strategy. Two trade union leaders were dismissed just as the trade union was being formed and disciplinary proceedings were subsequently initiated against the members of the union. Trade union representative Josué Calderón Valdez was dismissed on 3 March 2016 and conciliation conciliation An attempt by a neutral third party, a conciliator, to aid the settling of an industrial dispute by improving communications, offering advice and interpreting issues to bring the disputing parties to a point where they can reconcile their differences. The conciliator does not take as active a role as a mediator or an arbitrator.

See arbitration, mediation
was scheduled for July 2017, highlighting the extent of the delays in legal proceedings.

The company has shown no willingness to negotiate the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
proposals presented to it two years ago and submitted to the Ministry. The company invariably acts in bad faith to counter any demands.

Monsanto union members harassed, attacked and discriminated against31-12-2016

During 2016, members of the Sindicato de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de la Empresa Monsanto were the victims of various forms of harassment, discrimination and attacks at the hands of the multinational.

The company threatened not to hire workers for future harvesting campaigns, or to transfer them to other production lines, if they interacted with the trade union leaders. This discriminatory treatment is facilitated by the seasonal and intermittent nature of the contracts. Other discriminatory acts against trade union members include the refusal to grant leave and permits, low appraisals, the allocation of extra work and the non-payment of overtime.

The workers denounced undue interference on the part of the company, which is waging a misinformation campaign about the leaders’ activities and how the union conducts its meetings, seeking to undermine the workers’ faith in it. It has also delayed and obstructed the collective negotiations.

Finally, the company sent notarised letters to all the members of the union executive, threatening them with legal action if they failed to reveal the name of its Facebook page administrator and censoring content on the page.

Although the company has been issued fines by the National Superintendency for Labour Inspection labour inspection An authority responsible for ensuring compliance with labour laws and legal provisions relating to protection of workers through the inspection of workplaces. (SUNAFIL), its abusive practices remain firmly in place.

Telefónica Peru switches subcontractors to bypass its labour and trade union obligations 29-12-2016

In December 2016, the multinational Telefónica closed down its subcontractors, LARI, COBRA, ESENTIZ and DOMINION, to avoid having to comply with court orders and its obligations towards trade unions. Telefónica nonetheless continues to have contractual ties with these subcontractors, which move to different regions so they can lay off their employees, avoid their labour obligations and weaken the trade unions.

During 2016, hundreds of workers lost their jobs in towns and cities across the country, those most affected being Trujillo, Cajamarca, Lima and Tacna.

Telefónica de Peru decided to relocate the subcontractors when the Supreme Court ruled that the company must ensure compliance with the arbitration arbitration A means of resolving disputes outside the courts through the involvement of a neutral third party, which can either be a single arbitrator or an arbitration board. In non-binding arbitration, the disputing parties are free to reject the third party’s recommendation, whilst in binding arbitration they are bound by its decision. Compulsory arbitration denotes the process where arbitration is not voluntarily entered into by the parties, but is prescribed by law or decided by the authorities.

See conciliation, mediation
award regarding the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
proposals presented by the Sindicato de las Empresas de Telefónica en el Perú y de las del Sector Telecomunicaciones (SITENTEL), covering Telefónica subcontractors for the 2010-2011 period. Telefónica claimed that the decision to dismiss workers lies exclusively with the subcontractors, and the Spanish multinational does not intervene in any way.

Barriers to judicial employees’ freedom of association, right to strike and collective bargaining15-12-2016

During 2016, judicial employees met with obstacles to freedom of association freedom of association The right to form and join the trade union of one’s choosing as well as the right of unions to operate freely and carry out their activities without undue interference.

See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework
and collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
as well discrimination for belonging to the trade union and arbitrary arrests whilst exercising the right to strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
.

In December 2016, the Federación de Sindicatos del Poder Judicial (FENASIPOJ) called a strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
in front of the Court of Justice in South Lima. The action was violently repressed by the National Police, which used tear gas and firearms against the employees. Fortunately, no one was injured. Three people, one of whom was a trade union leader, were arrested.

Campaigns are being waged within the justice system to coerce workers into giving up their trade union membership. Trade unionists face reprisals such as the non renewal of their contracts and job rotation. As regards collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
, the employer shows no real willingness to negotiate, and any requests for the documents required in compliance with the regulations are invariably met with reluctance and delays.

Gerdau Peru workers march against dismissals and refusal to recognise union28-11-2016

On 28 November 2016, workers at the Gerdau steel company in Chimbote, Peru, staged a march in protest at the violations of their rights, the dismissals, the refusal to recognise trade unions and the company’s outsourcing outsourcing See contracting-out strategy.

In June 2016, the company dismissed workers in Lima, presenting them with letters of resignation. Those who refused to resign were transferred to the company’s plant in Chimbote. The company was seeking to cut the staff on its payroll and to outsource work to a subcontractor. The company also extended the working day from eight to ten hours. It was on these grounds, and given the company’s refusal to recognise the trade union organisation as a valid interlocutor in the search for a negotiated solution to the dispute, that the workers decided to mobilise, with the support of other trade union, political and local organisations.

Dismissals and attacks following strike at Pomalca sugar mill12-11-2016

On 12 November 2016, agribusiness workers in the Lambayeque region announced they were to form the Frente de Defensa de los Intereses de la Industria Azucarera, a common front to defend their labour and trade union rights in the sugar industry. The new organisation is made up of trade unions representing agribusiness and associated workers in Pomalca, Tumán, Cayaltí, Pucalá and Úcupe.

The front sought to resolve the dispute at the Pomalca sugar mill, managed by the Oviedo Group, over pay reportedly withheld from over 460 employees. The protests staged against the management led to the dismissal of 17 workers. Employee Manuel Saavedra Romero was injured by a firearm during a protest. His mother, Domitila Romero López, accused a security guard employed by the sugar mill, Rosendo Fernández Coronel, of the attack.

Trade unionists dismissed at Nestlé Peru01-09-2016

On September 2016, 19 production line workers at Nestlé Peru were informed that their contracts with the company were to be terminated “by mutual consent”. Twelve of them were members of the Sindicato Único Nacional de Trabajadores Nestle Perú (SUNTRANEP). The employees maintain that the decision was taken unilaterally. The dismissals took place in the midst of the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
process initiated seven months prior.

The company decided to shut down the press producing the tops and bottoms of evaporated milk cans, as it works out cheaper to source them from other factories than to produce them. The workers asked to be redeployed to another department or to the new subcontractors, but the company ruled out the possibility.

Unionised employees at Chinalco mining company dismissed in retaliation for strike 28-06-2016

On 28 June 2016, the Sindicato Unificado de Trabajadores de la Minera Chinalco de Perú called on the Chinese mining company to reinstate the trade union’s main leaders, who were fired in retaliation for the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
that brought operations to a standstill at the Toromocho copper mine. The dismissals were in breach of trade union protection rights.

The dispute began on 31 May 2016, when 800,000 unionised employees at the Chinese-owned mining company, Chinalco, in the Morococha district, in the province of Yauli (Junin region), staged a four-day strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
to press for payment of the bonuses agreed to and better working conditions. Following this action, the company sent notice of dismissal to the deputy general secretary and the defence and press secretaries of the trade union, based on the claim that they had forged documents regarding workers’ attendance at the meeting where the decision was made to go on strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
.

The trade union tried to reach an agreement with Chinalco Mining Corp., but the company showed no willingness to negotiate. The trade union therefore called on the General Directorate for Labour within the Ministry of Labour and Employment Promotion (MTPE) and the regional government of Junín to intervene. A meeting was scheduled between the parties but the state representatives failed to show and the conciliation conciliation An attempt by a neutral third party, a conciliator, to aid the settling of an industrial dispute by improving communications, offering advice and interpreting issues to bring the disputing parties to a point where they can reconcile their differences. The conciliator does not take as active a role as a mediator or an arbitrator.

See arbitration, mediation
process was not able to go ahead.

Labour inspectors’ trade union denounces attacks and failure to meet commitments18-05-2016

In May 2016, the Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Superintendencia Nacional de Fiscalización Laboral (SI-SUNAFIL) announced an indefinite nationwide strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
in protest at the government’s systematic violations of labour inspectors’ labour and trade union rights.

The national labour inspectorate, SUNAFIL, does not provide employees with the minimum conditions or protection required to perform their duties, such as transport, uniforms and a suitable work environment, thus preventing adequate auditing of compliance with labour regulations. It has also failed to comply with a number of commitments made in collective agreements.

The General Directorate for Labour within the Ministry of Labour and Employment Promotion (MTPE) declared the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
illegal and called SUNAFIL and SI-SUNAFIL to a conciliation conciliation An attempt by a neutral third party, a conciliator, to aid the settling of an industrial dispute by improving communications, offering advice and interpreting issues to bring the disputing parties to a point where they can reconcile their differences. The conciliator does not take as active a role as a mediator or an arbitrator.

See arbitration, mediation
meeting. The labour inspectorate recognised that it had not provided its inspectors with uniforms and personal protective equipment. It also acknowledged that the process of complying with occupational health and safety regulations had been slow, but insisted that it was making headway.

Union busting at agribusiness company TALSA05-04-2016

After dismissing the leadership of the Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Empresa Talsa (SITETSA) and two former members of the union, the company contested the legality of the organisation and the federation to which it is affiliated, the Federación Nacional de Trabajadores del Sector Agrario, Industria, Riego y Similares del Perú (FENTRAIR). In addition to waging a campaign of intimidation to press workers to leave the union, the company sought to form a new union in line with its interests and then negotiate a new collective agreement.

FENTRAIR and SITETSA launched an international campaign to denounce TALSA’s anti-union practices and took the company to court over the unfair dismissals. The Second Labour Court in La Libertad ruled that the dismissals were not valid and requested precautionary measures for the reinstatement of the union leaders.

Union busting and unfair dismissals at Talsa30-03-2016

In March 2016, the Talsa agro-industrial company, a member of the Rocío group – one of the biggest agricultural exporters in Peru specialised in the production of asparagus, blueberries, artichokes and avocados – unfairly dismissed the whole executive committee of the Talsa Company Workers’ Union (SITETSA). It also prosecuted them for allegedly faking signatures at the general assembly held in 2013 to elect a new executive. To discredit the union leaders and bring a case against them, the company hired one of the defence lawyers of former president Alberto Fujimori.

The union leaders say they were dismissed as a reprisal for repeated complaints about poor health and safety conditions at the company. According to the union, after their dismissal the company began a campaign of heavy pressure and threats against workers to make them disaffiliate from the union.

Attack and threats against construction union leaders 10-02-2016

The National Executive Committee of the General Workers’ Confederation of Peru (CGTP) has condemned the violence and criminal attacks against workers and leaders of the Civil Construction Workers’ Federation of Peru (Federación de Trabajadores en Construcción Civil del Perú - FTCCP).

Manuel Coronado Lino, General Secretary of the CGTP Loreto and a national leader of the CGTP was attacked in February 2016 when an explosive device blew up outside his home putting his life and health, and that of his whole family, at risk.

According to the CGTP, in the same month Wilmer Zegarra Bonilla, Organising organising The process of forming or joining a trade union, or inducing other workers to form or join one. Secretary of the CGTP Lambayeque and Secretary of the Civil Construction Regional Union, received a death threat and has been constantly persecuted by unidentified persons.

Anti-union attitude by Telefónica contractors30-12-2015

The industrial dispute industrial dispute A conflict between workers and employers concerning conditions of work or terms of employment. May result in industrial action. with the companies working on contract for Telefónica Peru continued: ITETE, CALATEL and the Antonio Lari Mantto consortium. In addition to discriminating against workers and denying them the right to collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
, these companies blocked the trade unions’ demands, administratively and legally.

The contractors persistently refuse to recognise the union representatives and refuse to check off union dues, putting the union organisations survival at risk.

Nestlé ignores collective agreement30-05-2015

The General Secretary of the Nestlé Peru Workers’ Union (SUNTRANEP), Alexander Caballero, complained that the company refused to classify workers as production supervisors even though they had been carrying out the task for ten years, in violation of the collective agreement.

The multinational said that to reach this grade, workers would have to pass certain exams that would qualify them to carry out the job they had already been doing for ten years.

Caballero stresses that this is a strategy by Nestlé to be able to dismiss these workers, and replace them by others whom they could pay considerably less. To date, the company has continued to ignore the collective agreement and refuses to promote workers with over ten years experience according to the collective agreement.

Protests, strikes and repression in the mining sector12-05-2015

On 12 May 2015 trade unions and social organisations in the Arequipa region began a 72 hour strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
in solidarity with the Tambo valley strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
, protesting at the controversial mining project by the Southern multinational. According to the unions, the strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
was also a protest against the military deployment ordered by the government to strengthen the police presence, sent there to counteract the protests that emerged during the workers’ strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
that began in March 2015. The CGTP expressed its solidarity and asked the government to cancel the mining project, called Tia Maria, owing to concerns over the harmful environmental effects and the repressive manner in which the projects have been imposed on the communities without consulting the population.

Anti-union dismissals at Topy Top30-04-2015

In April , during negotiations over a new collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
agreement, Topy Top dismissed SINTOTTSA union secretary Huber Amed Albujar.

The company also dismissed 12 union members, five of whom enjoy immunity from dismissal.

Albujar has been an outspoken critic of the exploitation of short-term contracts and a staunch defender of worker rights at the company. It is not the first time Topy Top has tried to get rid of him.

He is now facing four alleged offences all of which he denies.

Anti-union dismissal at hydrocarbon company24-03-2015

On 24 March 2015 Julio Rodríguez La Chira, General Secretary of the National Hydrocarbon Federation of Peru (FENANHID Perú) was unfairly dismissed. According to the Autonomous Workers Centre of Peru (Central Autónoma de Trabajadores del Perú - CATP) the leader’s dismissal was an anti-union act by the company, SAVIA Perú S.A., which drills for and produces hydrocarbons.
The company was well aware of Julio Rodríguez’s position as a union representative, but it did not hesitate in dismissing him unfairly as an anti-union tactic aimed at reducing union membership and intimidating the other workers.

Labour reforms undermine jobs30-01-2015

In November 2014 the Peruvian Congress approved a law that made it easier to lay off up to 5 per cent of workers in enterprises that claimed their financial viability was at risk. One month late Law 30.288 on young workers was approved, allowing for more cuts.

Throughout January 2015, worker and student unions mobilised and protested against these initiatives that undermined and reduced labour rights. On 15 January 2015, a trade union and student demonstration was violently repressed by the police, leaving several wounded. Some of the demonstrators were arrested.

At the end of January 2015, Peruvian workers celebrated the repeal by congress of the young workers law, although they continued to mobilise against another law that was equally damaging to labour rights.

Assassination of construction union leader 27-11-2014

On 24 November 2014 trade union leader Carlos Malásquez Bastante was assassinated. He was the member of a union affiliated to the Civil Construction Workers’ Federation of Peru (FTCCP). According to José Villanueva Carbajal, leader of the FTCCP, Carlos Malásquez Bastante was shot dead in the Callao port, in the city of Lima, by unknown assailants. Vallanueva said that his federation had complained that Malásquez had been followed in a threatening way, but that he had not received the protection requested.
He said that the murder was in reprisal for the many complaints made by Carlos Malásquez about the criminal extortion practiced by pseudo unions in the sector, created to put an end to legitimate trade unions, during the government of Alan García.
The General Secretary of the General Workers’ Confederation of Peru (CGTP), Mario Huamán, has repeatedly complained that the former government led by Alan García had facilitated the registration of unrepresentative trade unions to foster parallel trade unionism, including criminal organisations.
According to the CGTP, 15 trade union leaders from the civil construction union have been assassinated in the last few years.

Union leader hospitalized after being beaten12-09-2014

In September 2014, Luis Cardenas, a trade union leader at security firm Prosegur, became the victim of a brutal and violent assault near his home in Peru. Cardenas, an off-duty worker, was left hospitalised by the attack after an anonymous criminal smashed him across the head with a rock.

The attacker took none of Cardenas´ personal property, suggesting he was targeted simply for being a trade union leader. Just one month earlier, pamphlets were circulated to Prosegur staff identifying Cardenas as a union leader and falsely accusing him of stealing union funds.

Attacks on Risk Control workers23-04-2014

In April 2014, the union representing workers at Risk Control, Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Empresa Risk Control, in the oil sector, denounced physical assaults and attempts on the lives and health of its members. The incidents took place whilst they were providing security services at the pipelines of oil company Savia Perú.

The union also denounced the absence of labour inspectors in the city of Talara and the company’s refusal to submit its responses to the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
proposals of 2012 and 2013.

According to the union, the company’s managers did not comply with the legal procedures established, failing to report the incidents to the National Police and other relevant authorities.

Regional government officials, for their part, refused to give orders to request the presence of labour inspectors.

Petrex not negotiating in good faith with oil workers23-04-2014

In October 2013, the union representing PETREX employees, Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Empresa PETREX S.A. (SIGETRAPETREX), affiliated to the Central Autónoma de Trabajadores del Perú (CATP), entered into the direct negotiations phase of the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
process and requested the accounting documents needed to know the situation in terms of profits and losses. By April 2014, however, the Administrative Labour Authority had still not issued the relevant report.

At a meeting held in April 2014 between SIGETRAPETREX and the company, the latter refused to accept the clauses presented by the workers. The managers knew that the union did not have access to the financial statements and other accounts during the negotiation. PETREX is part of the SAIPEM Group, made up of PETREX S.A. and the Italian ENI Group.

Anti-union repression in Peruvian agribusiness sector19-03-2014

Camposol is one of the largest agribusiness companies in Peru. It is also one of the most resolutely anti-union. On 13 March, one day after the start of action in support of the workers’ demands, Camposol employees were brutally assaulted by the police, 18 of them were detained and one of the female union leaders had to be hospitalised with severe head injuries.

The Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Empresa Camposol S.A. (SITECASA) had decided to take action after exhausting all channels of negotiation, “tired of the broken promises, mistreatment, dismissals and the repressive policy" of the management at the company.

In the afternoon of Thursday 13 March, a group of workers was sitting at the entrance to the company’s industrial plant in Chao as part of the trade union action being taken. National Police force officers, responding to a call from the management, arrived on the scene without warning, determined to clear the entrance at any cost.

According to witnesses, the police acted with unrestrained force. The trade union leader Carmen Silvestre was hit on the head and had to be initially admitted to the Medical Post of Chao and later transferred to the Essalud Hospital in Viru. Another 18 workers were detained, including the general secretary of SITECASA, Felipe Arteaga Saavedra, his predecessor, Santos Garro Rojas, and former leaders Elmer Riveros Escobal and Teresa Cóndor Cotrina.

Union leaders sacked at Saturn13-02-2014

The management at Saturn, an agri-business firm in the district of Chulucanas, sacked trade union leaders Mercedes Camacho Juárez and Luis Alberto Manrique Santos, who had been elected in November 2013 to serve as Women’s Secretary and Organising organising The process of forming or joining a trade union, or inducing other workers to form or join one. Secretary for the Sindicato de Trabajadores Agrarios de Perú (SITAG). The company used the expiry of the two employees’ employment contracts to cover up the real reason behind their dismissal.

Trade union leader sacked at Talsa13-02-2014

On 25 January 2014, trade union leader Felipe Román Rodríguez Moreno, who had just been elected Minutes and Records Secretary, was called into the office of Manuel Razzeto Chauca, the human resources manager at Talsa, a company based in the Libertad region that belongs to the Rocío Group and exports asparagus, artichokes and berries.
The reason for summoning him was simple and direct: coercion. Rodríguez Moreno was presented with a choice: he either had to resign from his position in the union and withdraw his membership or lose his job. According to a report by the Federación Nacional de la Agroindustria y Afines (FENTAGRO), the HR manager told the trade unionist that he was “setting the workers a bad example” by belonging to the union.
The following Monday, 27 January, Rodríguez Moreno was not allowed into the factory. Razzeto Chauca informed him that he had been dismissed and that he would receive notice of the decision through a notary.

Bargaining in the public sector under threat11-02-2014

Seeking to reach a collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
agreement with the Peruvian government, three public-sector union confederations presented a joint petition to government officials in February 2014. The bargaining proposal includes the freedom for workers to form unions, and stresses that worker rights should not be negated even though civil service is a “vocation and calling.”

The industry-wide bargaining proposal “is an opportunity to advance respect for freedom of association freedom of association The right to form and join the trade union of one’s choosing as well as the right of unions to operate freely and carry out their activities without undue interference.

See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework
and collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
in the public sector, which are currently under threat,” said Jorge Villa García, Deputy Secretary General of the Federación Nacional de Trabajadores Administrativos del Sector Educación (FENTASE). “It’s a chance for us to negotiate fair wages and establish agreements that will prevent conflict and help us build a better Peruvian civil service.” Villa García is also Public Services International (PSI) coordinator for Peru.

Glencore Xstrata acts true to form in Peru24-01-2014

In December 2013, IndustriAll denounced that Glencore Xstrata was using unfair dismissals, coercion and interference in union affairs to prevent technicians at the Antapaccay copper company in the Cuzco region of Peru from unionising.

On 24 March 2014, workers at the Antapaccay company, a Glencore Xstrata subsidiary, began a two-day stoppage in protest of the failure to pay legally-mandated profit sharing; the violation of the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
agreement; the use of fixed-term contracts, and the illegal dismissal of employees for forming a union of technicians and administrative staff.

Anti-union reprisals at Corporación Lindley31-10-2013

On 16 October 2013, Corporación Lindley unfairly dismissed 32 workers affiliated to the Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Corporación Lindley S.A. (SITRACORLINSA), ignoring the Labour Ministry’s order to provide them with permanent employment contracts, denounced the General Secretary of SITRACORLINSA, Pedro Huapaya.

Huapaya explained that the union had requested an inspection into the misuse of fixed-term contracts on grounds of technological innovation, affecting 35 workers who, having worked on short-term contracts for over two years, were entitled to permanent employment.

The inspection concluded that 294 workers were not employed under the appropriate contracts.

To defend their rights, 127 workers decided to join the union. The company, angered by the decision, retaliated by dismissing 32 of the workers on 16 October.

Covert layoffs at San Miguel Industrias PET24-09-2013

In 2012, a trade union was set up at San Miguel Industrias PET, a company which produces plastic packaging. In August 2013, the company closed the warehousing department and “invited” all the workers to “a mutual parting of the ways with economic incentives”. If they did not accept the proposal on the table, they would be relocated to Arequipa, a 17-hour journey overland to the south of the capital.

Recognition of union for collective bargaining19-08-2013
Anti-union discrimination19-08-2013

The Spanish telecommunications company Telefónica has systematically dismissed workers attempting to form a union in several of its subcontractors. One of the main cases happened with the Telefónica subcontracting company ITETE SA that dismissed all workers affiliated to the union SITENTEL.

Fidel Polo, Legal Defence Secretary for the Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Sociedad Agrícola Virú (SITESAV) and Deputy General Secretary of the Federación Nacional de Trabajadores de la Agroindustria y Afines (FENTAGRO), was dismissed after appearing on a local television programme speaking out against working conditions in the Peruvian agricultural export industry.

Anti-union harassment in Saga Falabella29-07-2013

On 29 July 2013, workers at Saga Falabella, Peru, demonstrated in front of the shop in the Plaza San Miguel, Lima, in defence of their labour rights and freedom of association freedom of association The right to form and join the trade union of one’s choosing as well as the right of unions to operate freely and carry out their activities without undue interference.

See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework
. The trade union called for an end to the harassment by executives and bosses of workers and leaders of the Sindicato Único Trabajadores de Saga Falabella (SUTRASAF).

Peruvian clothing company ignores court ruling 30-06-2013

In June 2013, following countless appeals, rulings and resolutions, Texpop Corporation still stubbornly refuses to uphold the decision of the courts and reinstate the 129 workers who were dismissed in blatant violation of the right to freedom of association freedom of association The right to form and join the trade union of one’s choosing as well as the right of unions to operate freely and carry out their activities without undue interference.

See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework
back in 2009.

Unfair dismissal and harassment of a worker05-04-2013

Juan Flores Haro suffered reprisals from the Redondos Alimentos company over a three month period. The Peruvian justice system had ruled that he had been unfairly dismissed and had obliged the company to reinstate him. He was subsequently dismissed again on 5 April 2013.

Barriers to collective bargaining compounded by gaps in legislation31-12-2011

The state has shown little or no interest in promoting collective agreements at branch level. There is currently no labour legislation specifying the scope of branch-level collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
. By failing to specify the rules needed to make it viable, the law neither fosters nor guarantees collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
.

Telefónica del Peru, one of the most profitable companies in the country, is sticking to its policy of refusing branch-level collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
, systematically rejecting the collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
rights of employees of companies that form part of the Telefónica Group in Peru. As a result, discrimination in terms of working conditions is suffered by workers employed by companies not directly owned by Telefónica del Perú, but which provide services and operations for it and belong to the telecommunications sector.

In August 2011, the Chilean company Ripley finally agreed to engage in the collective negotiations it had been refusing to hold since 2010 with the Sindicato Único de Trabajadores del Grupo Ripley (Sutragisa). The union’s demands were aimed at improving pay and working conditions for Ripley’s 5,000 workers. An agreement was ultimately reached in October 2011 under pressure from the Labour Ministry, urging the company to discuss the union’s demands.

Collective bargaining violations15-12-2011

According to Labour Ministry figures released in December 2011, 18 collective disputes remained unresolved across the country. Failure to recognise collective bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
rights was at the root of the disputes in 11 out of the 18 companies in the electrical and civil aviation sectors; three disputes were related to pay and working conditions in construction companies; one was over failure to comply with the collective agreement and the remaining three were linked to workers’ rights.

Temporary contracts used to avoid unionisation31-12-2010

Employers continued to make fraudulent use of temporary and other precarious forms of contracting as a means of preventing unionisation and avoiding the cost of labour rights and benefits. The figures on labour intermediation focus mainly on the property development, business services and rental sector, where almost 80% of employment intermediaries operate. Over 50% of the workers in this sector are employed on temporary contracts and the union membership rate does not even reach 1%.

Outsourcing in the public sector30-11-2009

The government is continuing the trend of contracting out government services on a wide scale, leading to ever-fewer posts in state-owned enterprises and the public administration, as well as making it harder for workers to organise.

Temporary contracts used to avoid unionisation30-11-2009

Manufacturing companies are making fraudulent use of temporary contracts on a massive scale to avoid unionisation, the recognition recognition The designation by a government agency of a union as the bargaining agent for workers in a given bargaining unit, or acceptance by an employer that its employees can be collectively represented by a union. of labour rights and the payment of benefits. Workers on short-term contracts are denied the right to organise and are subjected to long working hours, low pay, abusive treatment and limited access to pension and health cover, as they do not have a permanent employment relationship.

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