Banana plantation workers in Southern Guatemala last week constituted a new workers’ union, known as the SINDICATO DE TRABAJADORES BANANEROS DE ESCUINTLA (SITRABE). The establishment of SITRABE took place on the 77th anniversary of the creation of SITRABI, a banana workers’ union operating in Del Monte-owned plantations in the Izabál region around 300 miles away. SITRABI has been supporting the creation of an independent trade union in the Pacific South as part of a project funded by the US Department of Labor via the Solidarity Center of the US trade union confederation AFL-CIO. Earlier in the process, British and Italian trade unions had also supported the education and training work.
In letters of congratulation, the Izabál banana workers’ union and regional coordinating body COLSIBA enthusiastically welcomed the decision of workers in Escuintla to organise themselves, noting that it was against a backdrop of recent intimidation and repressive action on the part of their employers.
According to SITRABI, between 10th and 11th May 2024, at least 15 workers were unfairly dismissed by Frutera del Pacífico, a subsidiary of the AgroAmérica group. This was following efforts made by SITRABI over a number of years to educate banana workers in Southern Guatemala – where around 80% of the nation’s banana workers are based, and 80% of the country’s bananas are grown – on freedom of association and labour rights. SITRABI noted that the workers who were dismissed had all participated in this training.
‘All the dismissed workers had decided to learn about the reality of the country and their rights under the law by participating in labour rights activities. Within two weeks of their participation in these activities, and one day before the dismissals began, company security personnel in military fatigues interrogated and intimidated the workers for a long time, and at least 15 of the workers were subsequently illegally dismissed’ SITRABI stated in a letter to AgroAmérica, one of the largest agribusinesses in Guatemala.
The union went on to state that ‘Frutera del Pacífico management accused the dismissed workers of engaging in discussions against the interests of the company during non-working hours, on their days off.’ SITRABI demanded that the dismissed workers be reinstated with backdated pay, and that the company respect freedom of association.
In response to the union’s communications, the owner and corporate affairs manager of Grupo AgroAmérica met with the SITRABI leadership and have accepted the reinstatement of 9 workers. They have also given written assurance that the company respects workers’ rights and freedom of association. The company has reinstated 5 on 17th June and others who part of the agreement will strat agina shortly. Frutera del Pacifico has also rolled out compulsory human rights and labour rights training for administrative teams and security personnel on the affected farms.
While the incident has taken a toll on the corporate image of AgroAmérica in a time of increased international scrutiny of worker rights, it is noteworthy that both the company and the union have been able to engage in good faith open dialogue to work on a resolution acceptable to both parties. SITRABI is expected to publish a response to AgroAmérica’s remedial actions in the next few days.
The establishment of a union in the Southern region of Guatemala’s banana industry is an important development that may herald a new era for worker rights in the country’s industry. Reports have highlighted the stark difference that union affiliation makes for banana workers in Guatemala. A 2021 study published by the Centre for Global Workers Rights at Penn State University found that non-unionised workers in Guatemala earned less than half the hourly pay and worked on average 12 hours more per week than their unionised counterparts, were 81% more likely to face verbal abuse, and that women working on non-unionised packing plants were 58% more likely to experience sexual harassment.
Guatemala is still considered to be one of the top-ten worst countries for workers, with the ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 noting the prevalence of violence and intimidation against trade unionists, coupled with insufficient efforts to investigate, contain and control anti-union violence on part of the government. Sadly, in 2023, there was more than one case of union activists within the banana industry being assassinated, including Doris Aldana, a member of SITRABI’s Women’s Committee and a mother of four.
