The lie of workers rights in Cuba

On the one hand, leftist anti-American groups such as Global Exchange, accuse the U.S. of exploiting workers in third world countries, then on the other promote communist Cuba, the Castro brothers slave plantation, the tropical gulag, as a workers paradise. What a bunch of pompous self-serving hypocrites. Medea Benjamin, co-founder of Global Exchange knows perfectly well of the Human Rights abuses in Cuba. By promoting this propaganda, she is complicit with a regime guilty of crimes against humanity.

Here are the facts about workers rights in Cuba, from the Cuban Transition Project:

Labor Rights in Cuba

There is only one labor federation in Cuba, the Central de Trabajadores de Cuba (CTC), organized and controlled by the Cuban government.

All workers must be members of the CTC and pay dues.

Elections are held periodically. Only candidates approved by the Cuban Communist Party are allowed to run for local or national leadership positions.

There is no collective or individual bargaining in Cuba.

Workers cannot change jobs without government permission.

Most businesses/agricultural and industrial enterprises are owned by the government most Cubans work for the State.

All salaries and benefits are determined by the State.

Workers are hired, disciplined, and fired by the government.

Foreign companies doing business in Cuba must apply to the government for workers. They cannot hire or fire workers on their own without government approval.

Foreign companies pay the Cuban government in foreign currencies (e.g. euros, Canadian dollars) for their workers. The government pays the workers in Cuban pesos which are worth 1/20 of a U.S. dollar, pocketing 90% of every dollar it receives.

All Cuban workers in the tourist industry or any industry that comes into contact with foreigners are carefully screened and selected by the government. Lighter skin workers and those loyal to the revolution are picked for hotel, resorts, and other tourist destinations.

The Cuban government hires out physicians, artists, musicians, bartenders, etc. to foreign countries and foreign companies abroad. Cubans usually reside for six months in foreign countries and are paid in hard currency. Yet 40% of their salaries are deducted by their employers and sent to the Castro regime.

All labor arbitration must take place in the corrupt and arbitrary government offices where little protection is given to the worker. There is no independent judicial system in the island and all judges are appointed by and work for the government.

The CTP can be contacted at P.O. Box 248174, Coral Gables, Florida 33124-3010, Tel: 305-284-CUBA (2822), Fax: 305-284-4875, and by email at [email protected]. The CTP Website is accessible at http://ctp.iccas.miami.edu.