From: jbinder@igc.apc.org (James Binder)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.mexican
Subject: Mexican OIl Workers Interview
Date: 12 Dec 92 01:18:00 GMT
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1545800059:000:4546
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!jbinder    Dec 11 17:18:00 1992


From: James Binder <jbinder>
Subject: Mexican OIl Workers Interview

/* ---------- "Mexican OIl Workers Interview" ---------- */
Mexican Oil Workers

Ralph Schoenman spoke with three Mexican oil workers laid off in
the struggle for democratic unions and victims of the mass layoffs
as the Mexican government moves to privatize the nationalized oil
industry. All were attending the International Conference in
Defense of the Cuban People convened in Mexico City, Sept. 26-27.
AImelda Becerril worked two years in Hidalgo. Ysidro Zamudio Ruiz,
from Azcapozalco, and Bartolo Rosas Gomez, from Cuichapa,
Veracruz, each worked eight years in the oil industry.

Bartolo Rosas Gomez: I was very active in my section of the union
Q Section 35 Q and was chosen by my fellow workers to be a
representative to the electoral commission of the F.R.D. [the
pre-party formation of Cuauhtmoc Cardenas' P.R.D.]. The union
itself is affiliated with the P.R.I. [Salinas' ruling party], and
Section 35 is the most tightly controlled of all the Mexican Oil
Workers Union sections. The union leadership threatened me,
warning me that I would have problems if I organized any
demonstrations in defense of our rights.  I told them outright: I
am fighting for democracy; the workers are being treated like
sheep.  I was beaten and had to be hospitalized. I received death
threats repeatedly, as did members of my family. All the windows
of my house were broken the day before one of our demonstrations.
Then I was fired from my job without reason and kicked out of the
union. That was in 1988.  Later that year, I was told that I would
be reinstated in the union, but it never happened. Instead, I was
blacklisted Q not only from working in the oil industry but from
other work, too. The union leadership put out the word that I was
'against' the unions.  In spite of that, I was able to mobilize
the membership of Section 35 to join the national movement of oil
workers that had developed in Mexico in 1988 around demands for
compensation of workers when they were fired. According to the
law, workers weren't entitled to compensation until they had
worked three years, but the oil workers' contract, which wasn't
being respected, specified conpensation after three months' work.
I formed a committee, and even those who had attacked us
physically in the union when we fought for other demands joined
our committee. But some of the committee's leadership were willing
to accept compromises even though they didn't have a mandate from
the workers. When I objected, the union leaders had me banned from
the very committee I had formed. I went to the rank and file to
explain why I was no longer representing them.  We have since
formed an organization, the Association of Oil Workers of the
Mexican Republic. It includes permanent and part-time oil workers
and retirees.  We are only 160 members now, but we expect most of
the 131,000 oil workers who were fired in 1992 will join our
association.  Only 80,000 work in the oil industry today Q less
than half [38%] of the oil industry workforce. The government is
reorganizing the oil industry into separate sectors that can be
privatized. These are the very oil and chemical firms that had
been nationalized by Lazaro Cardenas in 1939. The mass layoffs of
oil workers was imposed to make the industry look more profitable.
This is a direct result of NAFTA.
 First the mass layoffs. Now the selloff. In Tula, a petrochemical
firm has just been sold, with both Japanese and U.S. capital
involved. Many of the Tula workers will be fired before December.
Our association is struggling against privatization. We have five
points of unity.
1. Protect part-time workers from layoffs.
2. Maintain pensions. (The government is trying to cut off
retirement benefits.)
3. Struggle for a democratic basis for the Mexican Oil Workers
Union.
4. Defend Mexican oil for Mexicans. (Mexican oil is produced for
export revenues, and petrol products are thus expensive for us.)
5. Prevent privatization of the oil/chemical industry and demand
the renationalization of privatized firms.  We are trying to build
our organization, to organize demonstrations and to help the
unemployed oil workers form cooperatives so they can find
alternative work.  Our objective is to have a Latin American
organization of oil workers that can link up with workers
worldwide.

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