After the show of force, the Government returned to the bargaining table and made concessions to miners and teachers that were sufficient to quell the demonstrations and obtain the acceptance of the COB to the overall package. After the new Government took office in August, a general strike called by the COB was declared illegal, and the Government stated its intent to withhold pay for the days they were striking, from government employees who participated in the strike. In the past, the Government has not withheld pay, even when it has declared strikes illegal. Subsequent negotiations apparently resulted in pay being restored to at least part of the striking governmental employees. Bolivian unions are not truly independent of the Government and political parties.
All unions are underfinanced and depend on outside support.
Bolivian labor laws place no formal restrictions on a union's right to join international labor organizations. This leave guarantees the right of workers to function as labor leaders and still receive their salaries. After the U.S. Ambassador protested the then-Labor Minister's act, the two leaders were fired from their jobs at the petroleum workers' social security medical clinic. The Labor Ministry then ordered them reinstated to their jobs, but the employer refused to let them return to work. The case was finally resolved in February of 1993, when the labor court ordered the employer to reinstate the employees, and the employer complied with the court order.