A landmark vote on union recognition at a General Motors (GMC) factory in Mexico has raised hopes of a collective bargaining domino effect across the country.
In the first ever genuine union election at the plant in Silao, central Mexico, the Independent Union of Workers of the Automotive Industry (Sinttia) won an overwhelming victory to be recognized as the official voice of workers. The organization defeated the dominant Mexican Workers Federation (CTM), which has faced allegations of systematic stitch-ups with big business to deny collective bargaining and keep wages low. The Federation is close to the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which governed Mexico for most of the 20th century.
