In a stunning pro-worker ruling, México’s secretary of labor and public welfare has terminated the collective bargaining agreement “negotiated” by the company union at the huge General Motors plant in the Guanajuato state city of Silao. Secretary Luisa Maria Alcalde’s September 19 ruling also expects the Mexican federal labor relations apparatus to shield the Silao plant’s workers from any retaliatory management moves, as this extract from the ruling makes clear.

The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare issued its decision to terminate the collective bargaining agreement entered into between the “Miguel Trujillo López” Union with the General Motors de México company, at its plant in Silao, Guanajuato, effective Nov. 3.

This determination is derived from the results of the vote carried out on August 17 and 18, which had the participation of more than 90 percent of unionized workers, and where 3,214 votes against and 2,623 votes in favor of ratifying the current labor agreement were recorded.

The resolution obliges General Motors to guarantee all the rights and benefits in the current collective agreement (until Nov. 3). Consequently, labor relations will be governed by individual contracts until the signing of a new collective contract, for which any interested union must demonstrate the majority support of the workers.

The resolution also orders the “Miguel Trujillo López” Union to continue complying with the existing obligations and transfer or settle all the commitments it has with the workers until the termination of the contract takes effect. In addition, the intervention of the Federal Attorney for the Defense of Labor and the Federal Labor Inspectorate has been requested to ensure that workers are not subjected to intimidation, threats, retaliation or dismissal and that their acquired rights are guaranteed.