In the city of Botucatu-SP, Brazil, unions from Brazil and Colombia met to organize the International Trade Union Network of Workers of Duratex in Latin America. The meeting, which was organized by the BWI, allowed an intense exchange of experiences of the unions of this company that works in forestry production, wood processing, ceramics and sanitary metals.
Union representatives discussed relations between the company and trade unions, especially in collective bargaining, negotiations and occupational health and safety practices. The commonalities among all the statements of the representatives were that, regardless of the plant or the country, Duratex has been characterized by anti-union practices such as: the lack of dialogue with workers and disrespect to the right to strike and unionization, among others.
The second day of the meeting began with the sunrise at the door of the unit of Botucatu, where meetings were held with the workers to present the network and to pay a tribute to the worker killed in an accident in the plant three months before.
The results of the meeting was not only the International Trade Union Network of Workers of Duratex in Latin America, which is formed to share experiences and discuss joint action and solidarity actions among employees of this company in order to improve working and living conditions; but also to set up a work plan to promote workers and trade unions ‘rights.