- The independent body pointed out that the ILO recommendations to improve workers’ conditions have not been taken into account | Photo: José Daniel Ramos
On July 19, the Institute for Advanced Trade Union Studies (Inaesin) revealed the main cause of labor conflicts in Venezuela: the deterioration of salaries, wages and pensions.
According to data collected by the Observatory of Labor Conflict and Union Management, an entity attached to Inaesin, another reason is the “inefficiency” of institutional channels for solving problems.
“The government’s wage policy is widely rejected, and with good reason, since, among other aspects, the minimum wage has been frozen since March 2022 at what today barely represents 3.55 dollars per month. Consequently, the salary scales and labor benefits that are calculated based on the minimum wage have been affected,” said León Arismendi, general director of Inaesin, in a press release.
Inaesin pointed out that around 70% of labour disputes are caused by salary issues and 90% of the protesters are part of the public administration.
“The unions do not go to the Labor Inspectorates because they know in advance that their claims will not be addressed. The petitions, conciliatory or conflictual petitions are not processed if the accused is a public entity,” Arismendi added.
Attention to labor disputes
Inaesin also pointed out that the lack of independence and autonomy of official unionism is another problem faced by workers in resolving conflicts.
“This is one of the reasons why the review of collective agreements is paralyzed, which accentuates discontent,” said the non-governmental organization (NGO).
The independent body stressed the need to implement a change in strategies to address the complaints and demands of the working class.
“These have been years of erroneous policies that have had a negative impact on the purchasing power of Venezuelans, so the hackneyed official argument that sanctions are the cause of the destruction of the value of work does not convince almost anyone,” said the director of Inaesin.
ILO presence in Venezuela
According to the Inaesin report, the presence of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Venezuela in recent years has had an impact on the defense of labor and union rights.
However, Inaesin noted that the recommendations made by the ILO in this investigation procedure have not been taken into account by the government.
“With the mediation of the ILO, the Social Dialogue Forum was established in March 2022, a tripartite mechanism that has not advanced at the expected pace,” Inaesin added.
For this reason, the acting Secretary General of the Confederation of Workers of Venezuela (CTV), José Elías Torres, asked Gilbert F. Houngbo, Director General of the ILO, to intervene with the Venezuelan government.
The request was made during his participation in the 112th Session of the International Labour Conference, held from June 3 to 14, 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland.
“Neither the willingness nor the expected benefits for workers established in the tripartite dialogue are evident, while poverty and precariousness of the working class, retirees and pensioners continue to increase,” Inaesin stated.
Labor disputes in June
On July 5, Inaesin revealed that during the second quarter of 2024, the Observatory of Labor Conflicts and Union Management recorded 155 labor conflicts.
According to the report, 30 of the protests were recorded in the month of Junea decrease of 39 compared to May, when 69 were recorded.
Inaesin attributed the decrease in the number of complaints to the proximity of the presidential elections on July 28, due to the fact that public workers supported calls to form groups for electoral campaigns.
In the press release of the agency, they highlighted that the education sector was the protagonist of 50% of the protests in June. Demands for decent wages led the reasons for discontent with 63.33% of the cases.
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2024-07-19 14:45:52
