VZCZCXYZ0023
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHTG #0430/01 0652025
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 062025Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY TEGUCIGALPA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1302
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC PRIORITY
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS TEGUCIGALPA 000430 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/PPC PUCCETTI AND DRL/IL DEL VECCHIO 
STATE FOR WHA/CEN AND WHA/EPSC 
STATE PASS USAID FOR LAC/RSD: BARRY MACDONALD 
DEPT. OF LABOR FOR ILAB: JANE RICHARDS 
 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB ETRD EAID ECON PGOV HO
SUBJECT: Proposal for Strengthening Trade Unions' Effective 
Role with CAFTA and Improving the Culture of Labor Law 
Compliance in Honduras 
 
Reftel: SECSTATE 26123 
 
¶1. Summary: As per the referenced cable, Congress 
appropriated $40 million ($20 million in ESF and $20 million 
in DA) in FY 2006 for trade capacity building in CAFTA-DR 
countries to be used in the areas of labor and the 
environment.  This proposal is the first of three 
USAID/Honduras responses to the request for input and ideas 
for projects that meet the labor and environment trade 
capacity building priorities for Honduras.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. Justification: Trade unions are organizationally weak and 
politically influenced.  These organizations have not 
evolved where they fully represent the interests of their 
members and nurture leadership from their local labor units. 
Instead, labor unions are often manipulated by political 
interests, and they are often unable to sit down at 
negotiations and have fruitful discussions.  Their strikes 
are often non-constructive and frequently ineffective, and 
can be counterproductive to economic development and foreign 
investment.  Many workers remain unaware of their rights and 
do not file complaints to labor law infringements. 
Consequently, workers are placed at a disadvantage by their 
lack of representation and information. 
 
¶3. Description: This program will address the need to 
strengthen democratic processes within the unions and 
improve their organizational capacity, particularly at the 
local level, to seek out younger potential leaders and to 
train them in more representative, democratic practices. 
Strengthening trade unions' capacity to organize, negotiate, 
and democratically represent their members is an important 
element of trade capacity building strategies.  This is 
required to improve the ability of local labor units to 
participate more effectively in the direction of their 
unions. 
 
¶4. Local labor units will improve the awareness of their 
local unit members with labor laws and regulations as well 
as strengthen their leadership in strategizing and resolving 
issues.  It will focus on encouraging trade union 
participation in economic policy-making and legislating, but 
most importantly, on developing strong leadership and 
organizational potentials at the local level.  Through their 
labor unions, workers will be made aware of labor laws and 
regulations, but most importantly, of their obligations and 
responsibilities. Labor unions also need to provide 
mechanisms that give access and safe haven for workers to 
file legitimate claims.  Having the institutional capacity 
to expedite the process of adjudicating claims will be 
meaningless if workers lack the knowledge and viable means 
to file claims.  Best practices by local labor units from 
other countries will also be shared to encourage innovation 
by Honduran labor participants. 
 
Quick results will be achieved in the first year with 
improving the awareness of workers as well as making 
negotiations more constructive.  Multiyear funding will be 
required to achieve sustainable changes with introducing 
democratic processes with local labor units that nurture 
leadership and create more participatory processes in the 
direction and decision-making of trade unions. 
 
¶5. Advancing U.S. Policy Objectives: CAFTA implementation 
will be strengthened by professional, democratic trade 
unions that support equitable economic growth by 
participating as an effective partner in mature, 
constructive industrial relations.  Augmenting the capacity 
of labor unions to participate more effectively in economic 
policy-making and business relations will make them more 
constructive partners rather than being manipulated by 
political interests seeking to counter CAFTA.  Additionally, 
labor unions will need to play critical roles in handling 
violations and institutional weaknesses that will threaten 
Honduras' compliance with labor provisions in their trade 
agreements. 
 
¶6. New or Related to Previous Work: This program will 
complement labor activities being implemented through the 
Department of Labor's Cumple y Gana project, the Continuous 
Improvement in the Central American Workplace (CIMCAW), the 
International Labor Organization, the Solidarity Center, and 
other regional programs.  While other activities have 
focused on increasing workers' and managers' understanding 
of rights and responsibilities, efforts have not focused 
 
 
 
sufficiently on bringing in labor unions as effective 
partners, particularly due to the unions' weak capacity and 
low internal resources.  Social dialogue efforts have had 
limited impact since Honduran authorities continue to 
demonstrate ineffectiveness in protecting worker rights in 
the application of the labor law.  Weak leadership skills 
and democratic practices further debilitate the labor unions 
to play a critical role in strengthening the transparency 
and viability of processes, such as filing complaints, so 
that workers have knowledge, access, and freedom from 
reprisals.  Efforts also have not addressed weaknesses in 
local labor units which are essential to building more 
participatory processes as well as leadership within union 
structures; this is necessary to change traditional 
organizational practices that promote political patronage 
rather than democratic representation, leaving workers 
without the instruments that protect their interests when 
political will is absent.  Additionally, regional activities 
have focused primarily on regional training, and in some 
cases, the provision of limited information technology. 
 
¶7. Estimated Cost:  $2,250,000 (three-year program period) 
 
¶8. Local Buy-In:  Labor union representatives have been 
receptive to assistance and training to their membership, 
and representatives of employer's organizations have 
expressed the need for more efficient counterparts in labor- 
management negotiations.  Objectives under this proposal 
follow interests established in the White Paper. 
 
¶9. Public Diplomacy Strategies:  Training to local labor 
units on national labor laws as well as their rights and 
responsibilities will help promote international labor 
standards and the national rule of law as it applies to 
labor.  Improved dissemination and understanding of issues 
concerning compliance with labor and other provisions in 
trade agreements will also help counter propaganda and 
misinformation. 
 
Ford