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INFO RHMFIUU/CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL
RUEHBH/AMEMBASSY NASSAU
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA
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RUEHWN/AMEMBASSY BRIDGETOWN

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 000037 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
PASS TO USTR/CROMERO AND DOL/TWEDDING 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB ECON ETRD DR
SUBJECT: 2009 Labor Monitoring and Engagement With Free Trade 
Agreement Countries (Dominican Republic) 
 
REF: A) 09 STATE 129631; B) 08 SDO 00547 
 
¶1.  The following is Embassy Santo Domingo's submission (requested 
in reftel) for information on labor issues in the Dominican 
Republic. 
 
 
 
Labor Issues Scene-Setter 
 
--------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶2.  Labor unions represent about eight percent of the formal 
workforce, according to labor union sources; 60-70 percent of the 
workforce is in the informal sector.  The Dominican Constitution 
provides the right of workers to strike, to organize labor unions, 
and to join unions of their choice.  The Dominican work force is 
regulated by the Dominican Labor Code, which establishes policies 
and procedures for employer-employee relationships (such as hours 
of work, overtime and vacation pay, severance regulations, and 
union registration). 
 
 
 
¶3.  Collective bargaining is legal in firms in which a union has 
gained the support of an absolute majority of the workers.  Few 
companies, however, have collective bargaining pacts, partly due to 
onerous bureaucratic and judiciary hurdles.  As a result, workers 
are often discouraged from organizing and pursuing collective 
bargaining agreements.  The Labor Code further stipulates that 
workers cannot be dismissed because they belong to or organize 
trade unions. According to sources from the Free Trade Labor 
Confederation, however,  firms have fired workers who were 
associated with union activities.  As noted in the 2008 Human 
Rights Report, in response to attempts by workers to form unions, 
firms also start their own "yellow" unions or company-backed unions 
in an effort to dilute workers' union influence. 
 
 
 
¶4.  As noted in reftel B, the U.S. DOL maintains that the 
conditions of Haitian migrant workers in sugar production 
constituted forced labor.  However, in 2009, Post interviewed NGOs, 
various cane workers, sugar cane companies and advocates working on 
behalf of cane workers, who said Haitians are no longer smuggled 
into sugar cane plantations, held in locked enclosures, have their 
movement restricted by armed guards, or have their documents 
confiscated by employers. 
 
 
 
¶5. The GoDR has been actively combating the issue of illegal child 
labor.  The Ministry of Labor (SET) enforces child labor laws with 
203 labor inspectors located in various offices in the country.  In 
March 2009, the Ministry of Labor and the Consejo Nacional para la 
Ninez y la Adolescencia (CONANI)launched a program to train and 
give productive work experiences to youth ages 16 to 19 who will 
then be enrolled in the Ministry's national electronic job bank. 
Other projects under the Ministry of Labor include Proyecto 
Desarrollo Juvenil and Plan de Empleo Juvenil.  The Ministry of 
Labor also has started a program called, "Action Child Labor," in 
eight bateyes in the provinces of Barahona, Bahoruco and 
Independencia. 
 
 
 
¶6. Through the "Comply and Win" program, SET has a program 
educating employers on gender discrimination.  SET also has an 
Office of Gender Issues. The Dominican Labor code provides for no 
less than 12 weeks of pre and post natal care. 
 
 
¶7. The Labor Code establishes a standard work period of 8 hours per 
day and 44 hours per week and stipulates that all workers are 
entitled to 36 hours of uninterrupted rest each week.  The law 
provides for premium pay for overtime.  As mentioned in the 2008 
Human Rights Report, conditions for agricultural workers are poor, 
with many workers working long hours and exposed to hazardous 
working conditions, including exposure to pesticides, excessive 
exposure to the sun, and the use of sharp and heavy tools. 
 
 
 
¶8. Key organizations involved in labor rights in the DR: Movimiento 
Socio Cultural para los Trabajadores Haitianos (MOSCTHA), the 
Solidarity Center (AFL-CIO), Catholic Relief Services (CRS), 
Servicio Jesuitas a Refugiadas y Migrantes (SJRM), and Centro 
Dominicano de Asesoria e Investigaciones Legales (CEDAIL), and 
Federacion Dominicana de Trabajadores de Zonas Francas 
(FEDOTRAZONAS). 
 
 
 
¶9. POC for FTA labor matters: Dr. Andres Marranzini Grullon, 
Undersecretary for Labor, tel: (809) 535-4404, ext 2325, email: 
andres_marranzini@set.gov.do 
 
 
 
Strategy Recommendations 
 
------------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶10. Post has identified four key areas of weakness within the 
Dominican labor rights framework that should be priorities for USG 
dialogue with the DR, on assistance, and technical cooperation: 
 
 
 
--   Although the government has made advances in inspections, 
union leaders continue to complain that inspectors lack sufficient 
training and do not respond well to complaints made by employees. 
Post considers training for SET labor inspectors a key priority. 
 
 
 
--   Child labor remains a significant problem in several sectors, 
especially in the agriculture and domestic sectors. The GoDR needs 
to disseminate information on Dominican laws and regulations on 
child labor and legal age of work more widely in high risk areas 
and communities. 
 
 
 
--  While labor inspectors check for health and safety violations, 
there are limited health and safety measures implemented in the 
workplace and employers are often unaware of proper health 
standards and regulations, especially in the construction and 
agriculture sectors. SET needs to establish and publicize better 
guidelines for workers in these sectors to emphasize proper safety 
equipment and information on the handling of hazardous materials. 
 
 
 
--   Because SET's Office of Gender Issues does not address 
discrimination based on national origin, sexuality, disability, 
race or age; these areas should also be added to SET's mandate. 
 
 
 
Cooperation Needs 
 
-------------------------- 
E 
 
 
¶11. There are several key areas of labor cooperative assistance and 
dialogue: 
 
 
 
--  Inspections: "Comply and Win," a regional CAFTA-DR program 
continues to work with the SET to increase quality, capacity, and 
effectiveness of labor inspections. 
 
 
 
--  Information on labor rights: "Todos y Todas Trabajamos", a 
USDOL project that trains workers on their labor rights and 
provides legal services. There are several workers' rights centers 
established in the DR. 
 
 
 
--  Workers' associations: The USG-funded Solidarity Center has 
made some advances with labor associations in the informal sector, 
and has also been working with domestic workers and street vendors 
to form worker unions. 
 
 
 
--  Child labor: In January 2008, the USDOL, SET, and the Ministry 
of Education launched a project to support public-private 
partnerships aimed at preventing hazardous child labor by 
withdrawing and preventing 8,500 children from exploitive labor. 
 
 
 
Promising areas for further cooperation include improving labor 
union capabilities, defining child labor, establishing written 
labor contracts, improving health and safety, facilitating migrant 
rights, and curbing discrimination based on age, race, gender, 
sexuality, and disability. 
Lambert