But some reported that they are provided with no safety equipment whatsoever. Banana workers have little power under the current structure. They are at the mercy, first, of team leaders, and second, of plantation managers. All interviewees told of fearing that they would lose their jobs and be unable to find work in the banana industry if it became known that they were giving interviews to a person connected to any group concerned with labor rights. In the absence of social criteria governing world trade, consumers can play a strong role in support of banana workers.
Efforts are underway to organize unions in Ecuador's banana industry.
Though this is a long-term project, it will need significant support from activists and consumers in countries like the U.S. that buy large quantities of Ecuadorian bananas. Likewise, we can pressure the Ecuadorian government to respect its citizens' labor rights, as enshrined in the core ILO conventions to which it is a signatory, instead of routinely ignoring these rights while acting as a marketing arm for its banana industry. The European Union, seeking to resolve the longstanding WTO banana dispute, recently proposed a First Come, First Served scheme. Dole, with its hefty position within the Ecuadorian banana industry, has also announced that it supports the proposal. On the other side, Chiquita and the Central American banana exporting countries, with Panama and Colombia, oppose it.