An international seminar organised by LOC/MTC (Liga Operária Católica - Movimento de Trabalhasores Cristãos) took place in Marinha Grande, Diocese of Leiria/Fátima, from October 13th to 16th. The topic was "Preserving the rule of law and a working democracy as a pre-requisite for social prosperity: the role of workers’ organisations". The seminar was funded by the European Union.
It was primarily held as a face-to-face event, but one could also join in via video conference. It was attended by members of LOC/MTC from different dioceses of Portugal, BASE - FUT, FIDESTRA, the Union of Garment and Textile Workers of the North, the Portuguese Platform for Women's Rights, CESMINHO, the Union of Workers' Pastorals of Portugal and representatives of the KAB from Germany, HOAC from Spain, CTC from Switzerland, and representatives from EZA and MTCE-Europe.
The opening session was attended by Father Patrício Oliveira, parish priest of Marinha Grande, representing José Ornelas de Carvalho, Bishop of the Diocese of Leiria/Fátima; Maria Neves, representing the Mayor of Marinha Grande; Américo Monteiro, National Coordinator of LOC/MTC, and João Paulo Branco, member of the EZA Board of Directors. The speakers expressed their pleasure at being present in person. The contributions highlighted various aspects that demonstrated the importance of fighting indifference, fighting for a better world and for restoring hope among people. It is necessary to fight for democracy every day and to build a Europe with strong democracies, social cohesion, and an economy for the common good, in which everyone has a place, from the youngest to the oldest. People without hope would tire of democracy.
A modern and competitive Europe cannot be based on an economy based on precariousness and social exclusion, but on a social and solidarity economy, an economy of general prosperity and defence of the common good. The values that challenge us today to take care of our common home were highlighted. We therefore are called to create another economy, the economy of Francis. The Church and the Pope call on us to be frugal and to fight for peace.
It was noted that next year's LOC/MTC theme is: European Green Deal and Employment. Fair Transition Fund. Impact on industrial relations and the role of social dialogue. The seminar Circular Economy is to be held from 1 to 4 June 2023 in the Diocese of Setúbal. At their last national congress, LOC/MTC took up the motto: "Make work more dignified, care for the common home". This opening session ended with the internalisation and sharing of values that reinforce our militancy as Christians in the working class, with an open mind and willingness to discuss ideas.
The central impetus topic of the seminar was broken down into five subtopics and dealt with in different panels: The first session dealt with the "values of the rule of law and participatory democracy, their importance for social prosperity, workers and European and global society.". Fátima Almeida, former Co-President of MMTC - World Movement of Christian Workers - and leader of LOC/MTC, reflected on representative and participatory democracy and the values of the rule of law. In a democracy, power belongs to the people, which is reflected in free and fair elections. In a democratic constitutional state, no one is above the law. Everyone must obey the law and the rules of democracy. In a democratic constitutional state, it is necessary for the law to be applied equally, fair and consistently for everyone. The philosophical considerations that led to the emergence of democracy have taken centuries and generations to be negotiated and fully understood. In the course of the process, they were constantly being perfected. For example, for centuries civic participation was reserved to the social elite and men. Women, the poor, and slaves were excluded from thought, participation, and participation in all civil and democratic acts. This model of democracy led to the first charter of human rights being called the "Bill of Rights of Man". Back then, the word "man" [man or human being] was understood to include both males and females. As a result of social developments, this terminology is no longer up-to-date, and the charter is now called the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The concept of social dialogue, freedom of the trade unions, winning rights and creating the ILO and other international institutions like the UN are the fruits of the democratic system.
In the second session, Raquel Rego, coordinator of the REP project (representativeness of social partners and its impact on economic governance) at the Institute of Social Sciences ICS of the University of Lisbon, addressed the topic "Maintaining the rule of law and a functioning democracy as a prerequisite for social Prosperity". She presented a study in which she was involved entitled REP-representativeness of social partners and the impact on economic governance, representativeness of trade unions and employers' organisations.
Starting from a double statement, namely the representativeness of the social partners and the functioning of this representativeness, she referred to the concept of (political) representation in four dimensions, namely the descriptive, the content, the symbolic and the formal, as well as to the various objective and subjective criteria that do not always coincide in the European Union. She also presented two case studies, one on the fragmentation of union representation using the example of the public safety police and another on gender representativeness in social dialogue. In this second case, several questions were raised about the presence of women in this area of debate and the ability of workers' organisations to assert their positions on gender issues.
The third session was chaired by Wilfried Wienen from KAB Germany, who addressed the topic "Main economic and social consequences for workers and the most disadvantaged population groups, resulting from the failure to respect the values of participatory democracy and the rule of law".
He presented his reflections as follows: "In a globalised economy, workers' rights must also be globalised. There have been numerous accidents and deaths worldwide among workers who work for big European brands, and these brands do not take responsibility, do not repair the damage satisfactorily and do not terminate the contracts of such sub-contractors afterwards. Global legal systems are required for effective protection of human rights, labour rights and the environment along the supply chains". In this context, the initiative of an EU supply chain law was presented and discussed. The companies must work for the observance of human rights, sustainability, and the reparation of damages along the entire supply chain and be held accountable and this must be actionable, regardless of which countries the production is outsourced to, even if there are not the same laws as in Europe. The task now is to promote this legislation in the European Union.
In the fourth session, Maria José Rodriguez, HOAC member from Spain, addressed the theme: "Values that contribute to the dignity at work and of the most vulnerable workers. Our role in defending them in a democracy and a rule of law in view the sustainability”. The social context in which we live today is characterised by profound social change. Since the beginning of this century, we have lived through three crises: the economic crisis, the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. They are all under the auspices of neoliberalism, with very similar effects and consequences: increasing inequality, precariousness, unemployment, impoverishment, exclusion, pain and increasing suffering for millions of people who are victims of injustice and an economic system that kills, hinders people and families to live in dignity.
We live in an economic dictatorship in which the will of capital is always placed above the sovereignty of the people. Whoever controls the money controls political power. This social and cultural model destroys society, the common home, and the human spirit with devastating effects on the world of work, democracies, and the common home.
We need a different, radically different logic of community that creates everything anew. Mentality shifts to overcome the virus of individualism and indifference. We are called to create brotherhood and solidarity and to care about people and the planet. As Christians, we have Jesus of Nazareth as a model of life and a guide who helps us to orient our existence towards a different logic that focuses on community, trust in God and the search for justice
The fifth session took the form of a round table and dealt with the topic "Respect for democracy and the rule of law with regard to social security and human dignity, situation in each country". Representatives from four countries, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and Germany took part. Alexandra Silva from the Portuguese Platform for Women's Rights presented the concerns and challenges in Portugal regarding women's equality. She reported on aspects of the existing discrimination, prostitution, and exploitation they face, among many other forms of discrimination, as well as the work of her platform. Melchior Kanyamibwa of the Swiss CTC and coordinator of MTCE highlighted aspects of social and democratic participation in his country, migrants and refugees and the challenges they face. He described his experience and his new tasks as coordinator of the MTCE in the service of the European movements and workers. Angelines Bayo from HOAC in Spain expressed concern at the Spanish democracy, which is becoming more and more undermined. She addressed the work situation of refugees and migrants arriving in Spain and the difficulties they face. Furthermore she discussed nursing staff, mostly women, and their difficult access to a decent livelihood and legal work. Johannes Eschweiler from KAB Germany spoke to us about their campaigns for workers in particularly disadvantaged sectors, particularly migrant workers who are working in Germany on short-term contracts. They sometimes live in slave-like conditions, especially since they only enter the country with a 3-month visa and then must work for many hours at a time under difficult conditions and at very low wages in agriculture, the meat industry, nursing, etc. He told us what movements like the KAB and other partners can do to support these workers.
We also visited the VIDREXPORT company from Marinha Grande, which manufactures glass, as this is the largest and most historic industry in the city. In this company we have seen the evolution of glassmaking through automation and the use of robots, although manual, artistic executions are still valued. After the visit we were given an important personal life story in the glass industry, a journey through the working world through lived experiences and the struggles of the glass workers in Marinha Grande. The evolution of the glass industry over time, the years of crisis and unemployment, finally the retraining of workers to work in other sectors. Marinha Grande is currently one of the areas in Portugal with the lowest unemployment rate; wages are not significantly lower compared to other sectors and regions of the country.