The company was frank. That was the impression that some of those present at the instance of the Wages Council that defined the future of La Sin Rival. According to what they assured El Observador, the owner of the bakery, Mónica Calvar, acknowledged that she could not commit to paying what she owes on a certain date.
In the minutes of the meeting to which El Observador agreed the parties agreed that all workers will receive retroactive unemployment insurance as of April 1, 2023. It was also agreed that the company is allowed to condition and distribute the already processed merchandise.
Meanwhile, the plant will remain idle as there will be no new production.
In addition, according to the document signed by representatives of the union, the government and the company, La Sin Rival promised to pay today the union dues withheld during February and March that were also owed up to now.
Meanwhile The company will continue with its negotiations with Banco República (BROU) to obtain the working capital that will allow it, firstly, to pay the debt and, secondly, to resume operations. The entire process will be closely monitored by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (MTSS).
In the event that the loan is granted to La Sin Rival, the minutes determine that an immediate tripartite meeting will be scheduled to determine the next steps.
“The will of the workers is clear so that it does not close, but without money they cannot live. This agreement is reached, provisionally in principle, pending what happens with the BROU loan. If so, the conditions of the reopening will be seen and if not, it will go to an orderly and agreed closure“, summed up the president of the Mesa del Bread, Luis Echevarría after the meeting.
Echevarría hopes that there can be a reopening in which there is participation of the workers, “with another organization.” “As long as it is updated, the doors can be opened again,” he pointed out and affirmed that the 60 workers are waiting for what the BROU determines.
Background
The problem of the bakery La Sin Rival began along with the pandemic, but it began to manifest for the workers on December 20, 2022 when they did not receive their salary in a timely manner. They charged late. “On December 24, Calvar promised $10,000 to each employee and did not give them anything, they were left without the Christmas table and without a gift for their children, they did not pay for that entire week,” Echevarria recalled. In addition, they did not receive the double bonus that corresponds to them for their branch of activity. A week later, on the 30th of that month, the simple bonus was paid and the company promised to pay the second bonus in three installments (March, April and May of this year), but the latter did not happen in March and has not happened to date either. in April.
following this workers stopped showing up at the bakery on Thursday and production stopped.
