Note published in El Economista, Empresas [Companies] section by María del Pilar Martínez.
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The National Institute of Statistics and Geography reported that the outbreak of strikes in the country increased during 2019.
The outbreak of strikes in all of 2019, when the Labor Reform became effective in the country, increased 137.5% in comparison with the previous year, informed the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi).
When presenting the data regarding the “Labor relationships of local jurisdiction, 2019”, the agency explained that the evolution of the outbreak of strikes registered an increase of 11.8% in 2019 in comparison with 2013, going from 68 to 76 strikes; nevertheless, the past year has reported the greatest number of strikes in the country.
Out of the 76 strikes that broke out, 38 are located in the State of Tamaulipas, 18 in B, seven in Mexico City, three in Nayarit and Sonora, two in Baja California, Campeche and Sinaloa and one in Hidalgo. 47 of these strikes were solved during the same year.
Other interesting data on labor relationships are the presentations of notices to strike, which have been used in many cases to extort companies; according to data provided by the Inegi, in 2019, an increase of 6.9% was reported in comparison to 2018, going from 25,260 cases to 27,008.
The federal entities that reported the highest number of companies presented with notices to strike were Jalisco and Mexico, reaching, between them, 46.0% of the national total, although there were no strike outbreaks at all in Mexico during 2019.
It is important to highlight that 78.8% of notices to strike had, as their origin, the demand for the signature of the agreement, while 9.6% were the revision of the agreement.
A higher conflictivity will come
Blanya Cristina Correal, specialist in labor transformation models at De la Vega & Martínez Rojas, stated that “in the particular case of Mexico, in addition to the pandemic, the Labor Reform is underway, which has resulted in an increase of the conflictivity in labor relationships.”
The above, explained Correal, has been used by unions for their benefit because there is currently an environment in which people have had their salaries reduced, a decrease in the payment of profit sharing is expected; therefore, “there are new union movements that are capitalizing flags in order to add people.
Last year we saw conflicts in the North of the country; we are now seeing conflicts in the mines, in the South, and everything that is happening with the certification for holding the qualification for entering into collective bargaining agreements is like the first effect; I believe that this is like the short term effect that will last for a couple of years.”
