Nespressure in Latin America: Fighting for union rights in Argentina and Ecuador
When a laboratory technician at Nestlé's water bottling plant in the province of Buenos Aires decided to join the union, management decided to set an example for other laboratory technicians who might follow suit and fired him. This happened on Friday, July 31. After attempts by the union to reason with the company had failed, the workforce staged a walk-out on Monday bringing the plant to a standstill for almost 2 full days.
Nespressure in Argentina: Join the union? You're fired!
On Tuesday, August 4, in a meeting between Nestlé management and the union, the Argentine Federation of Mineral Water Workers (FATAGA), facilitated by the Ministry of Labour, the company agreed to reinstate the dismissed worker and recognise his right to join the union. The workers returned to the plant at 9:00 p.m. that evening.
Nestlé believes it reserves the right to decide who may and who may not join the union
The workers at the Eco de los Andes bottling plant are covered by a collective agreement negotiated by FATAGA. Nestlé has always contended that laboratory technicians were not part of the bargaining unit, while FATAGA considers that they are. As long as there were no union members in the laboratory, the issue never came to a head. But when a technician decided to join, Nestlé argued that he had no right to and when that didn't work they fired him.
Nespressure just might backfire for the company in Argentina as workers have seen what a strong, fighting union can do for them!
Nespressure in Ecuador: Union-avoidance and worker surveillance
At the Nestlé Surindu biscuit factory in the city of Guayaquil, a union was formed in September 2008 when, in accordance with Ecuadorian law, 50% of the workforce plus 1 signed up for membership. Since then, the company has employed Nespressure to avoid collective bargaining.
Each time the union approaches management with the request to begin collective bargaining, management demands a list of members, then produces a padded payroll list including names of workers from other plants, thereby claiming that the union doesn't have the requisite number of members. What it's doing is "legalizing" its refusal to recognize the union.
Collective bargaining demands include the removal of the CCTV surveillance of production workers and the reinstatement of workers dismissed in 2008, many of whom were union members. The union first submitted its collective bargaining demands in December 2008 and didn't receive a response until July 2009, when Nestlé fired 17 more workers, 8 of whom are union members.
And the CCTV cameras remain in place.