The Union of Port Workers and Related Branches (Supra) defined this Saturday to do strikes for an indefinite period and by sectors from this Monday in the port of Montevideo, due to the decision of the Montecon company to fire 150 workers and cut wages by up to 50%. This was reported to The Observer the president of the Montecon workers union, Martín García, who pointed out that “The measures are going to be intensified week by week if there is nothing concrete”.
The Minister of Labor and Social Security, Paul Miereshe just said to The Observerwhile the portfolio is “working on a proposal to raise the workers”.
The Supra was waiting for the government’s guidelines in a proposal that was transferred to the Supra this Friday night. That note was sent by the Minister of Transport and Public Works, José Luis Falero, but to the understanding of the union “does not contemplate anything” and “does not give certainties”, claimed García. “What the note has is very insufficient to be able to deal with this (…) It is a simple note where they ask us for time until Tuesday night to present us with a project that is analyzed to see if we can get out of this,” he said. .
The stoppages, whose details will be announced this Sunday, will affect the work of Montecon workers in the port of Montevideo in the three large areas that already exist: operators and terminals, warehouses, and the National Port Administration. The union will subdivide the workers into “four or five sectors” -explained Garcia- “to mitigate a little” and “that the averages are not so abrupt, but alert the Executive; tell him that we are at the limit and that we are serious.”
Likewise, the union leader recalled that there is a 72-hour general and national strike “on top of the table” that “can happen at any time” because “it is approved by the board”. “We wait for some sign of progress so we don’t have to go to those extremes,” he warned..
Regarding the sectoral strikes that will begin on Monday, he added: “The end date is going to be set by the government and the authorities, who are the ones who are there to formalize the negotiations. When they bring concrete proposals that we can accept, the measures would be left there. If we have to wait a little while we will wait but if there is nothing concrete, the measures are going to worsen week by week”.
The workers demonstrate against the dismissal of the workers and the reduction of wages, according to a Supra statement. In addition, they ask to restore free competition in the port to guarantee jobs, reactivate the interior ports, and the entry of personnel in the National Port Administration to cover 100% of the vacancies.
The conflict
Authorities from the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (MTSS) met this Friday afternoon with leaders of Supra and they asked for “time to work on the negotiation” of the conflictsaid Minister Pablo Mieres in statements to the press.
The union has prepared a “battery of measures” that will be announced in case of disagreement about how the negotiation progresses. It is the product of the port company Montecon announced last Tuesday at a meeting between the partieswhich had decided to lay off 150 workers and reduce the salaries of employees who remained on the payroll by up to 50%.
“The explanation is that they they have lost one of the services they hadimplies a drop in activityMieres explained, referring to the conflict in the Montecon company, caused by the government’s agreement with Katoen Natie which allowed the extension until 2081 of the Terminal Cuenca del Plata (TCP) concession in the port of Montevideo.
“There is a restructuring of the distribution of jobs, which affects workers. The way to solve it is to find a way so that the workers are not affected. We have time to work on negotiation, dialogue and the search for solutions”, said the minister.
