Two years after the implementation of a bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Colombia, labor rights violations and anti-union violence continued, seven Members of Congress write in a letter to Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. The letter, sent May 15, 2014, calls attention to the bombing of the headquarters of SINTRAEMCALI, the public sector union in Cali, Colombia, as well as continued illegal subcontracting and other union-busting throughout the country.
WOLA welcomes this letter, and continues to encourage U.S. authorities to work with Colombia to implement the bilateral Labor Action Plan to protect the rights of Colombian workers.
From the Letter: “We recognize that steps have been taken to improve protection of union leaders and members, but ask that the Colombian government, through the National Protection Unit, significantly strengthen these protective measures,” Congressional Monitoring Group members wrote in a letter to President Santos. “We continue to be deeply concerned about the high levels of anti-union violence and labor rights violations in Colombia. We […] look forward to continuing our dialogue on advancing justice for union members throughout the country and the on-going implementation of the Labor Action Plan.”
To read the entire letter, please click here.
Photo: Rep. George Miller (D-CA), courtesy.
