Online at: http://politicalaffairs.net/article/articleview/7884/

Latin American Workers Uniting, Talking with Maria Pimentel

2008 – online

December 1– 31, 2008 click here for related stories: labor movement

12-19-08, 8:47 am

Editor's note: Maria Pimentel is the international secretary of the Brazilian General Workers' Union Central (CGTB).

PA: Tell us about the CGTB. In what sectors of the Brazilian economy is CGTB strong?

(Maria Pimental, CGTB. Political Affairs photo by Mike Tolochko.)

MARIA PIMENTEL: In 2008, the CGTB entered its 22nd year. During this period it has organized five national congresses. Today, the CGTB is active in 14 states of the Brazilian Federation. It also participates actively at the international level, and since 2003 has sent a delegation to the ILO (International Labor Organization). We are very deeply rooted in manufacturing industries, metallurgy, construction, and textiles. We also have affiliates in the information technology sector, among public employees, and in commerce and cooperative enterprises. In agriculture, we are present among the sugar cane workers and also participate in both the rural settlers and landless rural workers movements.

PA: What are the strategic priorities of the CGTB?

PIMENTEL: The main strategic priority of the CGTB is to achieve for Brazil’s workers conditions of work and wages that permit them to live a dignified life in accordance with the wealth that Brazil possesses. In that sense, we are fighting for a developed country that is sovereign and independent, where the State plays an active role in accelerating the country’s economic growth and strives to unite the workers and their unions around achieving these goals.

PA: What is the relationship between the CGTB and other Brazilian labor federations? Does the labor movement share strategic goals?

PIMENTEL: Since our main goal is the unity of all Brazilian workers, we concentrate our energy in building and strengthening the Forum of Trade Union Centrals. There are six legally-constituted Union Centrals, which are now eligible to receive money from the Federal Budget to promote trade union activities and support struggles for workers’ rights. The Forum of Trade Union Centrals addresses the main demands and problems that the Brazil’s working people face. The Forum also frequently deals with international issues that affect working people on a global scale.

PA: How would you describe the state of the labor movement in other countries in Latin America? Is there a formal relationship between labor federations which agree with the CGTB’s strategic approach?

PIMENTEL: In Latin America the workers movement is now experiencing huge growth. The election of patriotic and progressive governments in the majority of countries on the continent, such as Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Chile, Uruguay, Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Paraguay, and others, was due to huge mobilizations of the people – mainly of the organized sectors of the working class. There is throughout the continent a strong current of progress among all the trade union organizations. Based on our experience in creating the Forum of Trade Union Centrals, a structure which combines all Brazil’s labor federations – independent of their international affiliations – into a unified aggregate, the CGTB is committed to strengthening all efforts at united action on the part of Latin America’s workers and people.

PA: What kind of relationship does the CGTB have with the Cuban trade union group, the Confederacion de Trabajadores de Cuba (CTC)?

PIMENTEL: The relationship between the CGTB and the Cuban CTC is a longstanding one. We have a strong fraternal relationship based on mutual solidarity. We both participate as Deputy General Secretaries in the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU). We are in frequent contact with Cuban CTC leaders and share the same views about the role of workers and the goals of the international labor movement, especially on our continent.

PA: What is the percentage breakdown in the CGTB between private and public sector workers?

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PIMENTEL: The public sector represents about 15 percent of the organizations affiliated with our Trade Union Central. We have a strong presence in the public sector in all the main states of the country, such as Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, and we are also active in the South and Northeast. In the private sector our presence is also significant, in large enterprises as well as small and medium-sized ones.

PA: What is the attitude of the CGTB toward the leadership of the government in Brazil?

PIMENTEL: For Brazil, Lula's government has meant a decisive break with the neoliberal policies of the former government of Fernando Henrique Cardoso. The Lula government has put a stop to the privatization of important sectors of our economy. It has also helped to propel the growth of the internal market by increasing wages and expanding employment, and it has promoted the integration of the country with the rest of Latin America through Mercosul (the Southern Common Market) and Unasul (the Union of South American Nations).

Another important development for workers under the government of President Lula has been the direct participation of the CGTB in important government decision-making bodies such as the Council of Economic and Social Development, as well as the agencies concerned with migration, industrial policy, the fight against hunger, Mercosul, and other aspects of social and economic policy. The CGTB is also represented on International Relations Commission of the Ministry of Labor, the Commission on Fair Labor Standards, and the Council of Women. All of these are new agencies that were created by the Lula government to allow the working people of Brazil to participate directly in formulating the policies of their government.

PA: Which policies of the Brazilian government does the CGTB support and which does it want to change or improve?

PIMENTEL: We support the government’s policy of investment in the country's growth by creating good quality jobs and improving the consumer power of the workers. We also support President Lula when he criticizes the policies of financial speculation that have brought about the bitter economic crisis, a crisis that was caused by Washington and Wall Street and is being suffered by everyone.

However, the CGTB has stated clearly to President Lula that it the monetary policy of the Brazilian Central Bank must be changed. The interest rate dictated by the Central Bank is currently around 14 percent. Because credit is so expensive, it has a negative impact on the country’s economic development. This has created a situation that favors the interests of finance capital – a sterile, unproductive force in the economy. The payment of interest is now the top economic priority, at the expense of healthy economic growth.

PA: Does the CGTB have any contact with the AFL-CIO in the United States?

PIMENTEL: The CGTB looks forward to deepening its relationship with the AFL-CIO, but it has not had too much success up until now. We have more contact with those sectors of the labor movement that participate in the ILO conferences.

PA: What is the CGTB’s position on the WFTU (World Federation of Trade Unions) and the ITUC (International Trade Union Confederation)?

PIMENTEL: The President of the CGTB, Antonio Neto, was elected President of WFTU in 1994. After three years as President of the WFTU, Neto was elected Deputy President at the last WFTU Congress held in Havana in 2005. The CGTB is also a member of the General Council of the WFTU and the Financial Control Commission.

In terms of trade union policy, the CGTB concentrates its efforts on building the unity of all the world’s workers. This means always searching for ways to work together with labor councils and trade unions everywhere. The unity of the Brazilian Labor Centrals is an important example for the international trade union movement, especially for workers in Latin America and the Caribbean. Unity of action, as determined by the main interests of the workers’ movement, is the position we defend within the WFTU.

PA: What is role of women in the CGTB?

PIMENTEL: The CGTB is at the forefront of organizing working women into trade unions. We promote the formation of women’s sections within unions, and work to create women leaders and the election of women to leading posts in our trade unions. We also participate in the Brazilian Women’s Council, an official organization which debates public policy affecting women.

PA: Are there immigration issues between Brazil and neighboring countries? What work has the CGTB done in this area?

PIMENTEL: The CGTB participates in the National Council on Migration, a new organization created by the Lula Government. On the Council, the government works with the Trade Union Centrals to formulate policies for documenting and assisting immigrant workers. Immigrant workers are granted the same labor rights as other Brazilian workers. They have legal work documents and universal health assistance. Such measures prevent the exploitation of unregistered immigrant workers.

PA: What is the role of the CGTB at the annual conferences of the ILO in Geneva?

PIMENTEL: Both the CGTB and the WFTU work to counteract hegemonic and neoliberal tendencies in the ILO. We offer our support and solidarity to countries that strive to maintain their national sovereignty but are systematically attacked at the ILO conferences, as has happened with Venezuela, Cuba, Argentina, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Byelorussia, Syria and Palestine, among others. By coming to their defense, we have are succeeded in building the unity of the developing countries against the policies of enslavement, monopolization and foreign intervention.

In 2002, because of this unity, we won a very significant victory when the ACFTU (All-China Federation of Trade Unions) regained its seat on the Governing Body of the ILO after a 12-year absence. This victory of the international trade union movement dealt an important defeat to those who wanted – at all costs – to isolate the ACFTU, the largest labor federation in the world, in order to maintain their exclusive position within the ILO. As a result of our struggle, the All-China Federation of Trade Unions won the support of the huge majority of the world’s labor federations for its re-integration into the Administrative Council of the ILO.

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