Given that agricultural day laborers have become a priority focus for Mexico's trade agreement with the United States and Canada (T-MEC), national agricultural entrepreneurs presented a new program that seeks to establish a decent work scheme for this sector of the population that adds 2.4 million workers. The new program seeks to establish a decent work scheme for this sector of the population, which has 2.4 million workers.
Through the National Agricultural Council (CNA) chaired by Juan Cortina Gallardo, it was agreed to present, before the federal government authorities, the National Plan, "For our agricultural day laborers", through which it is proposed to carry out an inter-institutional and coordinated work to address the needs of this population in the areas of employment and decent work, social security, food, education, infrastructure and housing, social cohesion and medical care.
In Mexico there are 2.4 million agricultural laborers, who with their families number 8.5 million people, who are forced to emigrate and, upon arrival in production areas, may be exposed to conditions that reduce their quality of life and violate their personal integrity, in addition to family separation.
At the time, the Secretary of Labor and Social Welfare, Luisa María Alcalde Luján, commented that efforts must be redoubled with regard to the identification of illegal practices in supply chains in order to mitigate any type of risk, especially in terms of Forced labor, since it is the subject of these treaties and is part of the agreement assumed with the government of the United States and Canada, it is even where there are powers to stop imports in case of identifying any of these behaviors.
Eliminate forced labor
The CNA explained that with the new structure that is intended to implement the objective is to guarantee social security and decent work for all-day laborers, eradicate forced and child labor, train and certify work skills for 100% of day laborers, ensure compliance with their labor rights and raising their quality of life, among others.
It also seeks to contemplate goals and indicators on improving the working and living conditions of agricultural day laborers and their families, as well as development and well-being indices.
The CNA has worked on social responsibility certification schemes, such as the Certification of Responsible Agricultural Company (CEAR) of the DEAR T-MEC Standard, which ensures compliance with labor obligations such as decent work, adequate working conditions and guarantees that there is no work childish, nor forced.
Alberto Alesi, specialists in human capital, commented that of the total number of day laborers reported by Inegi, 2.4 million, 20% of the total are those who are formally employed, “the formalization of the day laborers ”.
