CNV

On 14, 15 and 16 October the “FIRST DAYS OF UNION CAPACITY BUILDING - LATIN AMERICAN BANKERS” took place in Lima (Peru), organized by FELATRABS (the Latin American Federation of Workers in Banks, Insurance and Allied sectors) and the WOW (World Organization of Workers).

The UPJ received a special invitation for this meeting, being represented by the colleagues Silvana Flocco (Secretary General) and Silvia Fesler (member of the board). Colleagues Miguel Duche and Fernando Fontanet also participated as representatives of FELATRABS, the organization in which they have leading positions.
It is important to emphasize that the situation with regards to the Federation of Bank Employees of Peru has been normalized recently, after having being hit, with all the banking workers, by the attacks of neo-liberalism, which resulted in the closing of banks, mergers, dismissals, and loss of labour rights, during all the decade of the 90’s. A prescription that, in greater or lesser extent, affected all the workers of Latin America.

The agenda dealt with included the following themes:

• Reality of the banking trade unions in Peru and Latin America;
• Organization of the trade union activity;
• Collective labour agreements;
• Capacity building;
• Security systems;
• Mutual trade unions;
• Action to be developed in the international organisms (governmental et non-governmental);
• Cooperation.

The meeting was coordinated by colleague José Arias Portugal (Secretary General of the Banking Federation of Peru) and the members of the Governing Commission - Héctor Pérez Pérez, Genaro Rivera Minaya and Juan Alonso García Ruiz - who at every moment accompanied our delegation, making us feel as if we were at home.

The exchange of experience makes us reflect on the common destiny of all the trade union organizations of America, irrespective of the different levels of organization. It is for that reason that we need to continue fighting for the common objectives, since in a globalized world the answers should have the same characteristics.

Lastly, as representatives of the banking trade unions of Peru, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, Brazil and Argentina, we continue working together, in everything related to legislation and collective labour agreements.

(for pictures click here)