[CTC] Mexican unions challenge constitutionality of new labor law

[Arthur Stamoulis]

Mexican unions challenge constitutionality of new labor law

By Isabelle Hoagland, Inside U.S. Trade
06/24/2019

Mexican labor unions -- most of them employer-dominated -- are challenging the constitutionality of newly passed labor legislation required by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, with nearly 100 separate cases filed in district courts this month.

According to a document listing the challenges, 96 have been filed with courts across the country, with one source saying they expected more to be filed soon. The document does not note which parts of the labor law the unions are disputing.

The labor law includes provisions aimed at eradicating protection contracts, which are signed between companies and company-dominated unions without workers' consent, and requiring the exercise of free, personal and secret votes by workers. It also requires the establishment of independent labor courts to rule on disputes, among other actions.

Most of the challenges have been filed by employer-dominated unions, which have largely opposed the labor law's requirements, as Inside U.S. Trade reported last month. The Mexican legislature passed the reform legislation in April, after which it was signed into law by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Several of the filings are attributed to "C.T.M." unions, referring to a confederation of unions considered employer-dominated. CTM-sponsored unions have been flagged by a number of Democrats as anti-democratic.

Democrats on Capitol Hill have expressed doubt that the labor reforms will be fully implemented, with many calling the law a step in the right direction while continuing to raise concerns. Last week House Ways & Means trade subcommittee Chairman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) pointed to more than 700,000 protection contracts in force in Mexico in questioning "how long" it would take to eradicate them while ensuring new ones were not signed. Citing that concern and others, he said it was "very unlikely" Congress would pass USMCA before an August recess.

This week the House Ways & Means trade subcommittee will hold a hearing titled "Mexico's labor reform: Opportunities and Challenges for an Improved NAFTA."

Dan Ujczo, an international trade lawyer with Dickinson Wright, said the multitude of constitutional challenges filed in Mexico, along with continuing implementation questions, strengthened Democrats' hand.

"The more the legal and practical implementation appears to be unsettled, the stronger the argument for a 'wait and see' approach among Democrats regarding USMCA. Again, there is not a large 'No USMCA' faction in Congress; rather, the 'What's the Rush?' faction is just fine heading into the August recess with chores left to do in the fall," Ujczo said in an email.

But U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer last week said he remained committed to working with Democrats to ensure the reforms are implemented and enforced. During a June 19 hearing, he tried to assure the House Ways & Means Committee that USTR would collaborate with members in trying to ensure Mexico put in place the necessary capacity-building tools and other resources to implement the law.

"So it's an enormous, enormous undertaking that they have agreed to do," Lighthizer testified. "It's clearly in Mexico's interest, as you say, it's also in my judgment, in our interest."

"We decided ... that four years was a reasonable period of time. That's a lot -- that's a heavy burden on them," Lighthizer said, referring to language in USMCA's labor annex. The labor law states that "all existing collective bargaining agreements shall be revised at least once during the four years after the legislation goes into effect."

The trade representative also pointed to the labor courts required by Mexico's new law, adding "They have to set up a whole system. And they have to have the series of votes in four years. That requires number one, an allocation of resources, number two, capacity building of which we should be part," the trade representative continued.

Meanwhile, Mexico's legislature is slated to be in recess this summer, but the Chamber of Deputies is expected to hold several special sessions while the Mexican Senate is scheduled to hold at least three sessions, according to Mexican media reports. While those sessions likely will be focused on educational reform and national guard issues, they also present opportunities for "disgruntled" right-wing groups to attempt to make changes to the labor law, according to a U.S. union representative with knowledge of Mexican labor issues.

"Anybody can try to put a bill in during that time," the representative said. "There is definitely still a lot of disgruntlement on the part of employer-dominated unions ... about the legislation. There are things they would like to weaken or get rid of if they can."

The Mexican Senate ratified USCMA last week.

Arthur Stamoulis
Citizens Trade Campaign
(202) 494-8826




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