Greed and negligence putting T&G export industry at risk, ITGLWF

23 Feb '09

5 min read

Mr Neil Kearney, General Secretary, ITGLWF

“Another example is Hilandería Hialpesa, which has failed to renew the contracts of 150 union members. Some of those dismissed had been continuously employed for eighteen years on over 70 three-month contracts. The workers concerned were employed to perform permanent functions in the textile process. Their jobs existed before they were hired and have been filled by other workers since their dismissal. In other words, they are clearly in a 'de facto' permanent employment relationship and can in no way be considered as temporary workers hired to fulfill a specific export order.

“Icadie and its parent company Diseño y Color is another example of the fraudulent use of temporary contracts. Last year the ITGLWF intervened to seek the reinstatement of workers who had lost their jobs after joining a union. After finding that Icadie was not registered on the Register of Non Traditional Exporting Companies, the Labour Ministry ordered the company to give the workers permanent contracts. The company failed to do so, and again the government did nothing.

“At the ITGLWF's request one of the company's buyers, Gap Inc, intervened to ensure Icadie's compliance with its code of conduct, but the persistent failure of the company to address its concerns left the buyer which no choice but to sever its relationship”.

President Alan García has been asked to intervene in the cases of Hialpesa and Universal Textil to ensure that the workers fired for joining a union are reinstated with back pay and that the workers illegally hired under temporary contracts are made permanent as of their date of entry.

The ITGLWF has further asked the government to take action to repeal Decree 22342 and to bring Peru's labour laws into line with international standards. As a first step, the Global Union has called for an immediate investigation into the illegal use of short-term contracts in the industry.

Concludes Mr. Kearney: “The textile and apparel export industry is today an important component of the Peruvian economy but the greed of employers and the negligence of the government is putting the future of the industry at risk. The sector urgently needs a clean-up with immediate government intervention to improve labour protection for workers in the sector”.

International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers' Federation (ITGLWF)

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