Cook 2007

Cook, Maria Lorena. 2006. The politics of labor reform in Latin America: between flexibility and rights. University Park, Pa: The Pennsylvania State University Press.

Chapter 5: Bolivia and Mexico (only Mexico here)

• Technical, ambiguous nature of the law allows the JCAs a lot of discretionary power
• also makes protection contracts easier to attain
• exclusion and separation clauses
• make protection unions stronger
• protect leadership in unions from rank-and-file revolt
• 1980s: “The economic crisis weakened all labor unions, but independent unions were hit hardest by industrial restructuring and never regained a presence in manufacturing” (163)
• Government devoted to neoliberal model
• in 1990s-2000s, “corporatist compromise” granted increased flexibility to employer in exchange for conserving the status quo on unions’ organizational prerogatives and collective rights
• First round of labor reform proposals in late 1990s, both for PRD and PAN, tried to take apart corporatist system, demand greater union democracy
• labor divided:
• official wanted to keep positions
• UNT unions divided, because some (SNTE, STRM?) didn’t want to totally demolish system
• also fear that once the bill hit Congress, everything would change!
• Fox appoints a businessman, Carlos Abascal, to head Labor Ministry
• His reform (which fails) would create greater flexibility and not touch internal democracy of unions
• Sequence of transition, economic then democratic, may have limited possiblities for democratic labor reform
• business now heading the labor ministry!!
• official unions can give wage restraint, which managers want, so managers allow official unions to survive
• “As long as the PRI remains a significant presence in Mexican politics, labor’s relationship with the party is likely to continue and the party is likely to degfnd the demands of the traditional labor sector” (192)
• see labor reform failure in 2012!
• MEXICO NOT ABLE TO REALIZE PROMISE OF PROGRESSIVE LABOR LAWS OF DEMOCRATIC TRANSITION