During the XV Ordinary Congress of the Autonomous Confederation of Workers and Employees of Mexico (CATEM) held in Mexico City, Claudia Sheinbaum, National Coordinator of the Committees for the Defense of the Fourth Transformation, pledged to uphold what she described as the major victories of the 4T in the labor sector.
“Here, I commit to the workers of Mexico that we will continue to defend their salaries and their labor rights, because we know that when workers do well, businesses and the entire country thrive,” stated the virtual presidential pre-candidate for Morena and its allies, emphasizing that “for Mexico to continue to prosper, we cannot change course.”
Shortly before this, Sheinbaum led a meeting at the national headquarters of Morena with the nine state coordinators for the defense of the transformation, who will eventually take on candidacies for governorships and the capital’s government next year. “In the 4T, we are united. We stand with the people of Mexico to strengthen and advance this renaissance of Mexico’s public life,” said the Morena leader as she shared a photo with the potential candidates and the party’s national leader, Mario Delgado.
At the CATEM Congress, held on Wednesday at the Arena Ciudad de México, Sheinbaum pointed out that the alliance with this labor organization is being formalized, after she inaugurated the first groups that the union designated as committees for the defense of labor transformation. The labor organization has offered to form at least 10,000 of these committees as its “contribution to the transformation.”
In her address, Sheinbaum listed the “great victories” for workers over the past five years under the current federal administration, such as the increase in the minimum wage. This is significant, she noted, since for 36 years, the country’s cheap labor force was promoted abroad. “That’s why when it’s said that the neoliberal period is similar to the Porfirio Díaz era, or is neo-Porfirismo, it’s because, indeed, workers earned less each year,” she added.
She also highlighted the “union freedom” achieved through reforms in this area, stating that workers share a common goal: “We do not want to return to the past of corruption and privileges.”
Meanwhile, CATEM leader Pedro Haces spoke out against the reduction of working hours, arguing that it would lead to a decrease in wages.
The event was attended by the governors of Puebla, Sergio Salomón Céspedes; Quintana Roo, Mara Lezama; Nayarit, Miguel Navarro; Baja California, Marina del Pilar; and Michoacán, Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla.
Also present were Francisco Cervantes, president of the Business Coordinating Council, and Héctor Tejada, president of the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce, Services, and Tourism (Concanaco Servytur).
Pedro Haces Barba Pedro Haces Barba Pedro Haces Barba