Suites données aux recommandations du comité et du Conseil d’administration - Rapport No. 318, Novembre 1999

Effect given to the recommendations of the Committee and the Governing Body

1. 57. At its last examination of the case in June 1999, the Committee made the following recommendations on the outstanding issues (see 316th Report, para. 532):
   • (a) the Committee requested the Government to keep it informed of developments relating to the understanding which appeared to have been reached at the Mopá and Panorama plantations apparently ending the conflict that had occurred at both plantations;
   • (b) the Committee requested the Government to recognize the workers' unions at the Alabama and Arizona plantations without delay and to keep it informed in this respect; and
   • (c) the Committee requested the Government to keep it informed about the results of the mediation measures taken by the authorities concerning the dismissal of workers from the Alabama and Arizona plantations and the legal action initiated by the employers.
2. 58. In its communication of 27 August 1999, the Government reaffirms that the Ministry of Labour and Social Security had done its best to mediate within the sphere of its competence in order to reach a settlement of the disputes at the Mopá and Panorama plantations, which were not only of an industrial nature but involved criminal and commercial factors complicating the situation of the plantations. The actions of the Government within the sphere of its competence, carried out by officials at the highest level, had brought about countless meetings with representatives of both parties in the search for solutions. The workers had sought potential buyers for the plantations, making it clear to them that there were three conditions for settlement of the conflict: reinstatement of the 400 workers, recognition of the trade unions and the signing of a collective agreement at each plantation. For their part, they were promising that: (1) the buyer would not assume responsibility for the labour debt; (2) the collective agreement would be quite moderate, though it would recognize the workers' union; and (3) that the resumption of work would be gradual because of the condition of the plantations. The Ministry of Labour, in turn, had unofficial information to the effect that Mr. Littmann, the leaseholder of the Mopá and Panorama plantations, had reached an agreement with Mr. Fernando Bolaños concerning the sale of those plantations; it was also understood that the consent of Bandegua, as owner of the land, had been obtained for this.
3. 59. The Government also states that legal recognition and registration of the workers' unions of the Alabama and Arizona Plantations Corporation and other concerns within the same group had taken place on 4 March 1999.
4. 60. As to the authorities' mediation activities regarding the dismissal of the Alabama and Arizona plantation workers, the Government states that the Ministry of Labour recognizes the scale and the social and economic implications of the conflict and is continuing to seek alternative financial, organizational and employment solutions for the recovery of the plantations.
5. 61. The most recent steps taken included the following: a visit was made on 7 April 1999 to the Alabama and Arizona plantations by the labour inspector and the parties involved. Moreover, the workers requested immediate reinstatement and payment of the wages owing, to which the employers declared that the Alabama and Arizona plantations no longer existed as productive enterprises because of the enormous losses that had destroyed the resources and capacity of the companies, which did not have the very large sums required to return them to productivity, and that banana cultivation and production were no longer being carried out, since there remained only two properties, totally destroyed and paralysed by the de facto strike. As to reinstatement of the workers, its inadmissibility had been determined by the courts which had declared the strike illegal and given legal authorization for the dismissal of the workers.
6. 62. The Committee takes note of the development recorded in the dispute surrounding the Mopá and Panorama plantations and hopes that the parties involved, with assistance from the authorities if appropriate, can rapidly find a permanent solution. With regard to the second recommendation, the Committee notes with interest the legal recognition of the workers' unions of the Alabama and Arizona plantations. Finally, concerning the dismissal of the workers at the Alabama and Arizona plantations (more than 500 workers according to the complainant) and the criminal proceedings started by the employers, the Committee takes note of the negotiations arranged by the authorities with the parties in connection with the dismissals and observes that, according to the Government's reply, reinstatement of the workers is not feasible because it has been judged inadmissible by the courts through their declaration that the strike was illegal and since the plantations are no longer functioning as productive enterprises. The Committee requests the Government to send it a copy of the ruling that the strike in the Alabama and Arizona plantations was illegal and to inform it of the progress of the criminal proceedings instigated by the employers. The Committee further requests the Government to immediately send its observations on the latest information communicated by the ICFTU in a communication dated 22 October 1999.