GMB Appeal for Pablo Lopez
SITRAP activist, Pablo López, faces an uncertain future after
losing his job with “Piña-Frut”, the Costa Rican pineapple company
owned by the notoriously anti-trade union Acon Group. Pablo
received his letter of dismissal on July 27
th, 2010,
telling him that he was to be made redundant on August
28
th, along with 200 other workers.
There are no agreed criteria for 
redundancy at Piña-Frut and, if past practices are anything
to go by, most of the sacked workers will be reinstated but Pablo
will not be one of them. He joined the firm 6 years ago and has
been a key figure in SITRAP’s drive to organise the pineapple
plantations and improve the inhumane conditions for those working
on them. Despite threats and harassment from management, Pablo had
avoided being one of the dozens of trade unionists sacked by the
employer – until now. Even pressure from one of Acon’s biggest
customers, Tesco, could not get the sacking reversed.
Pablo López is a 41-year old Nicaraguan
migrant with a partner and 2 children aged 7 and 14. He has been in
Costa Rica since 1992 and lives in rented accommodation that he
will lose unless he manages to find alternative employment. He will
almost certainly be blacklisted by Acon, thus preventing him from
working in the tropical fruit sector again.
We are doing everything possible to assist
Pablo but in the short term, he and his family need cash to
survive. GMB Branches showed their generosity when they helped
Allan Hernandez in Costa Rica after his house was torched. Now we
are asking you to help again by showing solidarity with Pablo and
sending a donation, made payable to our partners, Banana Link, who
will make sure he gets the funds. Cheques should be sent to the
address below:
Bert
Schouwenburg, International Officer,
GMB, 22/24 Worple Road,
London, SW19 4DD