Executive Secretariat for Integral Development (SEDI)

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Employment


Dialogue between Heads of Delegation and Workers' Representatives from Member States

Lima, Peru - June 6, 2010

During the XL General Assembly, the workers held an active dialogue with the Heads of Delegation of 26 Member States of the OAS. The Minister of Labor of Perú, Mrs. Manuela García, moderated the dialogue, and the OAS General Secretary General, Mr. José Miguel Insulza, greeted the participants, highlighting that workers’ rights are one of the fundamental components of democracy. Mr. Insulza also applauded that this space for dialogue continues to strengthen, despite that it only being in action for two years.

dialogue Lima, Peru - June 6, 2010The workers elected three representatives for the dialogue: Mr. Julio César Bazán, Vice Chairman of the Trade Union Technical Advisory Council (COSATE) and President of the Confederación Unitaria de Trabajadores del Perú [Unitary Confederation of Peruvian Workers] (CUT), Mrs. Dalila del Carmen Alemán, Secretary of Women Affairs of the Central Sandinista de Trabajadores de Nicaragua [Sandinist Workers Union] (CST) and Mr. Antonio Jara, in representation of the Chair of COSATE and the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas (TUCA-ITUC). Also, around 40 trade union leaders mainly from Peru but also from El Salvador, Brazil, Colombia, México and Guatemala were present.

The representatives presented the “Workers Declaration” that combines their perspectives and recommendations regarding the General Assembly’s theme “Peace, Security and Cooperation in the Americas”. In this document, the workers address the relations among peace, development and poverty, they voice their concern regarding violence against trade unions and weapons buildup, and they condemn the situation in Honduras and the recent migratory measures, among others. At the end, the document includes a series of specific recommendations.

dialogue Lima, Peru - June 6, 2010After the workers’ presentation, the chiefs of Delegation from Trinidad & Tobago, Argentina, Nicaragua, Uruguay, United States, Colombia, Brazil and Peru expressed their reactions, differences and points of agreement with the views presented. In the words of many of the assistants, this dialogue has been the most successful of all four that have been held to this date.

Preparatory Meeting: On June 5, from 2:00 to 6:00 pm, the workers’ representatives met in Lima to finalize the Declaration that they presented during the Dialogue. The meeting was coordinated by the DSDE/SEDI of the OAS, COSATE, TUCA and the International Labour Organization (ILO)

Relevant Documents: