According to Francisco Caninde Pegado, president of the entity, the presence of the government has been disastrous, especially so during the government of Fernando Collor. An exception would be the sectorial camera of the automobile industry which none the less was damaged by lack of confidence but Pegado believes that this damage could be overcome by more dialogue. Approximately 1.200 entities were represented in the congress. He had replaced Antonio Rogerio Magri when the latter became Minister for Work and Social Welfare. Recession was one of the main themes of the congress.
Workers contest the necessity of the recent price rise of vehicles.
One of the principal dates in the trade union calendar, May 01, was celebrated this year in the same sports stadium in Vila Euclides, Sao Bernardo, State of Sao Paulo, where in 1980, 100.000 people gathered in a tense atmosphere with military police and helicopters in the vicinity. They demanded the immediate regularization of 49 areas occupied in the last two years. Families of landless rural workers who occupied the Sao Clemente ranch in the municipality of Poco Redondo are preoccupied by the presence of hired gun-men who work for ranchers in the region. The initiative and organization of the rural workers in the State of Sergipe was inspired by the Rural Struggle Day. In Porto Alegre, State of Santa Caterina, the rural workers arranged a meeting with State Governor Colares for May 06.