An Information Service of the Cuba Transition Project Institute for Cuban

and Cuban-American Studies Staff Report, Cuba Transition Project

Issue 25, October 8, 2002

LABOR CONDITIONS IN CUBA

There have been efforts in recent years to form independent labor unions in Cuba and there are nearly a dozen such groups, none of which is recognized or permitted to operate freely by the Castro government. The Central de Trabajadores de Cuba (CTC), the only recognized union, is not an independent labor organization but an appendage of the government and the Cuban Communist Party. It serves as a transmission belt for the slogans, instructions, and production plans of the regime. The CTC has never provided alternatives to official policies. Leadership is selected by the Party and members unanimously approve policies handed down by the Party.  Labor strikes, demonstrations, and collective bargaining are strictly prohibited.

The Labor Code emphasizes discipline over workers' rights.  Salaries in Cuba are some of the lowest in the hemisphere. The social benefits that at one time compensated for the lower salaries, such as health care, education, and social security, have deteriorated considerably. The regime's policies have also created social contradictions and injustices between those who have access to dollars and the vast majority that lives within the peso
economy.

It is estimated that only 20-30 percent of the population participate in the dollar economy while the rest lives in poverty with salaries of 200-400 pesos ($10-$20 U.S. dollars monthly). During the past decade, with the growth of foreign investments, many Cubans have found work in joint venture enterprises. Yet workers receive their salaries in pesos although foreign companies pay the Cuban government in dollars for workers' services. For example, foreign companies pay the Cuban State $100 U.S. dollars per worker per month. The State pays these workers 100 pesos. Since the value of a dollar is 26 pesos the worker is only receiving 1/26 (about 3.8 percent) of what he should receive. The State pockets the rest.  Workers in Cuba are hired and fired by the State. Free contract of labor is only permitted in Cuba under very strict and unusual circumstances. The regime serves as a labor contractor to foreign companies. Workers face job discrimination because of ideological and political reasons. Cubans endure an apartheid system in hotels and resorts. These are only accessible to tourists and high government officials. Cubans, other than those working in these hotels and resorts, are turned away by Cuba's security apparatus.  The Castro government's policies of controlling access to the Internet and to international communications are keeping Cuba's enterprises severely behind in the global technological revolution. Cuban workers are limited in their productive and competitive abilities due to this lack of know-how which, in turn, hurts the economic development of the country.