ICE, Limón Dock Workers
and Teachers On Strike
Today
The workers of Japdeva,
ICE and APSE are on
strike today, protesting
the "Agenda de
Implementación al TLC" -
the implementation of
parallel laws to the
free trade agreement
with the united States,
Central America and the
Dominican Republic - and
the government's plan to
offer the Limón ports on
concession and the
constant problems
teachers have had with
receiving their pay.
In the case of the
Instituto Costarricense
de Electricidad (ICE)
union, they object to
the changes that the
Tratado de Libre
Comercio (TLC) will have
on the institution and
that consumers will have
to pay more for
electrical and telephone
services.
"We want Costa Ricans to
know that with these
laws they will see an
immediate increase in
services by as much as
300%, both in
electricity and
telephone", said Jorge
Arguedas, coordinador
del Frente Interno de
Trabajadores del ICE.
The Asociación de
Trabajadores del ICE (Asdeice)
is also calling on the
need to eliminate taxes
on gasoline and for the
government to better
salaries of public and
private sector workers.
The ICE workers are
expected to mass gather
in front of the ICE
offices in the Sabana
norte, in San José,
where they are expected
to be joined by the
members of the
Federación de
Estudiantes de la
Universidad de Costa
Rica (Feucr).
The Japdeva workers will
be protesting in Limón
and are expected to be
supported by community
groups who are united
with their cause.
As for the Asociación de
Profesores de Segunda
Enseñanza (APSE), its
president, Beatriz
Ferrero, although the
entire membership is
behind the cause, they
all cannot converge on
San José, mainly because
they have not been
getting their pay, it
will be a financial
hardship for many to
come to the capital.
For his part, the
Ministro de Educación,
Leonardo Garnier, has
made it clear that as
long as the threats of a
strike linger, there
will be no dialogue.
However, Ferrero
believes that after
today's strike the
education minister will
be forced to open
discussions, if not,
members of the
Asociación Nacional de
Educadores ANDE and the
Sindicato de la
Educación Costarricense
(SEC) - two other strong
teachers unions - will
join a strike action at
the end of the month.
So far none of the union
leaders have said what
will happen after the
strikers meet in front
of the ICE and Japdeva
offices, if there will
be a march through the
streets of San José and
Limón and how many
classrooms will be
without a teacher today.
What is clear that many
of the other public
services unions are
supporting today's
actions and although
their workers will not
be out on the streets,
they could very well
paralyze institutional
services today. |
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