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| Confederación Sindical de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de las Américas | |
|---|---|
| Name | Confederación Sindical de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de las Américas |
| Native name | Confederación Sindical de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de las Américas |
| Founded | 2008 |
| Headquarters | San José, Costa Rica |
| Affiliation | International Trade Union Confederation |
| Members | 55 million (approx.) |
| Key people | Héctor Badillo; Humberto Calderón Berti |
Confederación Sindical de Trabajadores y Trabajadoras de las Américas is a regional trade union federation representing labor organizations across the Americas. It operates as a continental body coordinating national unions, federations, and sectoral organizations in North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. The organization engages with regional bodies such as the Organization of American States, international institutions like the United Nations, and global labor networks such as the International Trade Union Confederation.
The federation was established in response to labor realignments following the consolidation of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and the World Confederation of Labour, and amid shifts in regional politics involving actors like Hugo Chávez, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush. Early conferences brought together delegations from Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, United States, Canada, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Venezuela, and Costa Rica, and forged ties with continental initiatives such as the Summit of the Americas and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. During its formative years the federation engaged with campaigns related to the World Trade Organization negotiations, responded to crises like the 2008 financial crisis, and coordinated responses to labor law reforms in nations including Chile and Mexico.
The federation is governed by a relatively centralized executive while maintaining national affiliates with distinct statutes, mirroring structures used by federations like the European Trade Union Confederation and the African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation. Its principal bodies include a congress, an executive board, and sectoral committees covering industries such as manufacturing represented by unions from Argentina and Brazil, agriculture linked to organizations in Guatemala and Honduras, and public services involving affiliates from Canada and Ecuador. Leadership elections draw participation from unions such as the Central de los Trabajadores de Cuba, CUT (Brazil), and the AFL–CIO, and involve policy coordination with institutions like the Pan American Health Organization on occupational safety.
Membership comprises national trade union centers, industrial federations, and independent unions from countries across the Americas, including prominent affiliates like CUT (Brazil), CGT (Argentina), Central de Trabajadores de Colombia, Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores, and the Canadian Labour Congress. The federation's affiliate map spans the Caribbean with unions from Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, Central American centers in El Salvador and Nicaragua, Andean federations in Bolivia and Ecuador, and North American members in Mexico and the United States. Sectoral affiliates represent teachers associated with organizations akin to Education International affiliates, healthcare workers linked to groups active in Panama, and transport unions comparable to those in Chile and Peru.
The federation mounts campaigns on collective bargaining inspired by cases such as the Marikana massacre labor disputes and the General Strike of 2019–20 movements, organizes regional congresses comparable to International Labour Organization tripartite forums, and coordinates solidarity actions during strikes in Argentina and Venezuela. It runs capacity-building workshops patterned after programs by Solidarity Center and Trade Union Confederation of the Americas predecessors, conducts research on precarious work as seen in debates about the gig economy involving platforms like Uber and Rappi, and advocates for occupational safety referencing standards promoted by the Pan American Health Organization and the International Labour Organization.
The federation takes positions on labor law reform, social protection, and trade policy, engaging with treaties and processes such as NAFTA/USMCA, bilateral agreements with the European Union, and regional economic initiatives like Mercosur and the Pacific Alliance. It issues statements on elections and labor rights in countries including Chile, Colombia, Brazil, and Honduras, and lobbies national legislatures comparable to the United States Congress and the Congreso de la República (Perú). The federation has intervened in debates over minimum wage legislation in nations like Bolivia and Dominican Republic, and supports policies aligned with instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and conventions of the International Labour Organization.
Regionally, the federation interfaces with the Organization of American States, the Union of South American Nations, and intergovernmental agencies like the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, while maintaining affiliate relationships with the International Trade Union Confederation and links to global unions including the Global Union Federations and Public Services International. It has coordinated campaigns with international NGOs such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch on labor rights cases, participated in UN fora including sessions of the United Nations Human Rights Council and the UN Summit on Sustainable Development, and engaged multilaterally on migration issues with bodies like the International Organization for Migration.
Funding sources include membership dues from national centers such as those in Brazil and Argentina, project grants from philanthropic entities similar to Ford Foundation and Open Society Foundations, and programmatic support from labor development partners like the Solidarity Center and the European Commission through cooperative agreements. The federation manages resources for training, legal aid, and research, and has administered funds for emergency solidarity during events such as the Haiti earthquake responses and COVID-19 related labor relief in Mexico and Peru.