Mexico: major purge of illegal collective agreements

Trade unions in Mexico have until 1 May 2023 to validate the 500,000 or so collective agreements signed before the 2019 labour reform. Otherwise, these so-called "employer protection" agreements, which are contracts of convenience signed with corrupt unions to "protect" the employer, will disappear. Mexico expects that agreements will not be validated by that deadline in at least 90% of cases. It means the time is ripe for a massive purge of illegal collective agreements: both as a matter of union democracy and as a requirement under the new North American free trade agreement (USMCA).
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Following the labour reform of 2019, the 500,000 collective agreements that exist in Mexico – collective, branch and company deals – face two potential fates: either they are validated by their base or they cease to apply. The new federal labour law, which was published in Mexico’s official gazette on 1 May 2019, has sought to create democratic trade unions and reinforce trade union freedom; it has provided for a transition period of three to four years to allow the new institutions to be set u

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