Other Worker Rights Violations

Colombian workers face more than violence and impunity in their struggle for a better life for their families.  Workers who organize for justice must also overcome a government that fails to enforce labor law, a labor code in need of reform, and employers who block workers from exercising their basic rights.   The current government of President Alvaro Uribe sent a clear message about its commitment to worker rights when it eliminated the Ministry of Labor after taking office and merged its functions into the Ministry of Social Protection.  

Colombian labor law does not allow public sector workers to collectively bargain, and the right to strike for all workers is extremely limited.  In 2005, 96% of strikes were declared illegal by the Colombian government.  The use of temporary and subcontracted workers is increasingly common.  In 2002, the Colombian government passed a labor law reform that, among other setbacks for workers, lengthened the working day.  Workers are only eligible for overtime pay outside of the legal work day, which the law extended to 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., costing workers an average of $25 per month.

The combination of violence and the government’s failure to ensure respect for worker rights has led to a long-term decline in union representation.  In 1964, 15% of Colombian workers were in trade unions.  The figure dropped to 4.8% in 2005.  See a special 2006 report on worker rights in Colombia, Justice for All, authored by USLEAP and produced by the AFL-CIO. 

The collusion between employers and an anti-worker government has been evident in the struggle of flower workers at Dole plantations who have been organizing since November 2004 to form unions and obtain collective bargaining agreements to improve wages, conditions, and benefits, to no avail.