The following resolution passed at the UAWD Special Membership Meeting held on May 7, 2023.
Whereas:
1. For many years the multinational corporations many of us work for in the auto, textile, and manufacturing industries have moved their plants within and between countries in an effort to divide and weaken workers and use whipsawing to drive down their wages and working conditions everywhere, making greater international solidarity essential;
2. Mexico now occupies a crucial link in the U.S. automotive supply chain, with over 38% percent of American auto parts deriving from Mexico, the largest share of any other nation;
3. Investment in Mexican auto manufacturing is widely expected to increase significantly in the coming years due to changes in the American trade policy;
4. Mexican wages remain the lowest of all 35 OECD nations and have failed to keep pace with workers’ needs in order to grease corporate profits, often amounting to as little as $11.54 per day ($17.38 in the border zone);
5. According the Mexican Secretary of Labor and Social Provision, 80-85% of Mexican collective bargaining agreements are signed between employers and company unions without worker consent, typically to guard against genuine unionization and collective bargaining while guaranteeing little to no employee benefits beyond the legal minimums;
6. The Mexican Labor Law Reform of 2019, coupled with the new protections of the USMCA, has substantially weakened Mexico’s company-union system in favor of genuine democratic unionism, presenting an unprecedented organizing opportunity for independent Mexican unions;
7. Independent unions and worker centers have undertaken ambitious unionization campaigns in key parts of the Mexican auto industry, with notable success, but have been constrained by a lack of resources and engagement by international labor allies;
8. Cross-border solidarity along the industrial supply chain can increase American and Mexican workers’ bargaining leverage with multinational firms, including major employers such as GM, Stellantis, Ford, Caterpillar, and John Deere;
Be it resolved:
1. Unite All Workers for Democracy (UAWD) shall call on the United Auto Workers (UAW) and other U.S. unions to develop a comprehensive, strategic plan for engagement with the Mexican independent union movement;
2. UAWD, led by our Education Committee, will organize a hybrid in-person and online conference on this topic for the upcoming contract, including relevant topics relating to the EV transition, work-week scheduling, and other relevant contract demands.