The other side of lithium: strengthening unions in the battery supply chain 9 October, 2025Given the central role that lithium plays within the global energy agenda, a seminar was held in Antofagasta, Chile, on how to strengthen unions in the lithium sector. The event, which ran on 30 September and 1 October, was attended by leaders of mining unions in Chile and Argentina. It was part of IndustriALL’s strategy to support its affiliates in the battery supply chain, in light of the continuing labour rights violations in the sector.
Challenges for industrial integration in Latin America amid global trade uncertainty23 September, 2025On 16 September, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, IndustriALL Global Union brought together experts and its affiliates in Latin America and the Caribbean to discuss strategies to meet the challenges surrounding trade, production and industrial integration in the region, amid concerns over the impact of global uncertainty on employment, freedom of association and human rights.
Mental health, a common concern for the network of CMPC workers’ unions16 September, 2025Mental health emerged as a common concern during the recent online meeting of the CMPC workers’ unions network, which brought together union representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru and Uruguay, along with Alejandro Valerio, IndustriALL deputy regional secretary for Latin America and the Caribbean and Tom Grinter, IndustriALL pulp and paper sector director.
Guatemalan unions strengthen power with IndustriALL support21 August, 2025IndustriALL Global Union is boosting the strength of its affiliates in Guatemala through a series of workshops and high-level meetings with government officials and union leaders.
Brazilian industrial workers’ unions present government with reindustrialisation proposals23 July, 2025IndustriALL Brazil, a national organization comprising of trade unions from all industrial sectors, including organizations affiliated to IndustriALL Global Union- CUT and Força Sindical, together with the inter-union department of statistics and socioeconomic studies – DIEESE, met with the industrial development secretary of the ministry of development, industry, trade and services (MDIC), Uallace Moreira Lima, to present a series of demands and proposals to help strengthen the new industry Brazil (NIB) plan, advocating a reindustrialisation strategy that focuses on sustainable development and places workers at its centre.
Lithium in the Southern Cone: Tensions and opportunities in the global supply chain17 July, 2025A study on lithium mining in Argentina and Chile reveals the complex relationships between trade unions, companies and governments in a strategic industry for the energy transition. The report, produced as part of the FES-IndustriALL project on the battery supply chain, highlights the challenges in terms of governance, labour conditions and human rights due diligence.
Latin America’s trade union leaders meet to strengthen the paper sector17 July, 2025Union representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Uruguay met in Buenos Aires to examine the challenges facing the pulp and paper sector and to strengthen coordinated action in the region. The event was attended by representatives of the Belgian union federation ACV-CSC BIE, building on an international alliance aimed at pursuing joint strategies.
Threats target Colombian mining union officials8 July, 2025Union leaders in Colombia’s mining sector are facing renewed threats and intimidation, sparking calls for urgent government action to protect their safety. The latest incidents target members of Sintracarbón, underscoring the persistent dangers for trade unionists in one of the world’s most hazardous countries for labour activism.
Argentina’s manufacturing unions warn of deindustrialization and deliver harsh criticism of Milei’s government2 July, 2025Argentina’s largest industrial union federation, CSIRA, is sounding the alarm over what it calls an imminent “industricide,” accusing President Javier Milei’s government of wrecking manufacturing, destroying jobs, and threatening the country’s economic sovereignty.
Unions in Latin America’s energy sector work towards a gender-sensitive just transition8 May, 2025Eleven women union members from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica and El Salvador attended a seminar in Colombia on how to ensure a gender-sensitive just transition for the energy sector, with attendees agreeing to implement action plans in their unions.
