WASHINGTON – The United States today announced the successful resolution of the USMCA Rapid Response Labor Mechanism (RRM) matter at the Vidrio Decorativo Occidental, S.A. de C.V. (VDO) facility, in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico, which specializes in manufacturing glass inserts for doorframes, doors with insulated glass, and window blinds. This matter was brought to the attention of the U.S. government through a petition. After the United States requested the Government of Mexico’s review of the matter, Mexico and the company took several actions to remediate the denials of rights identified by the United States, including payment of owed bonuses and retroactive salary adjustments, offers to rehire workers, and measures to address employer interference in union affairs.
“Our Administration put the RRM front and center as a trade tool to positively impact the lives of thousands of workers and hold accountable corporations profiting from exploitation. This is another example of how our worker-centered approach to trade is driving a race to the top for working people everywhere,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai. “We commend the Government of Mexico and the company for their swift action to remediate the denials of labor rights that occurred at this facility. With the successful resolution of this case, the RRM has now directly benefitted over 43,000 workers.”
“We appreciate the collaboration between the Mexican government and Vidrio Decorativo Occidental to safeguard freedom of association,” said Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs Thea Lee. “The company has committed to fair treatment by providing bonuses owed to workers and rehiring workers who were fired after supporting a union of their choice.”
Actions taken by the facility to address the matter include:
- Providing backpay to a worker who was previously reinstated and a written commitment to rehire and pay bonuses equivalent to 100% back pay owed to two workers who previously signed conciliation agreements and accepted severance packages;
- Expunging disciplinary action for seventy-two workers who faced direct reprisals by the company;
- Providing a bonus payment for thirty-six workers and a retroactive 8% annual salary increase for thirty-three workers who had not received them;
- Withdrawing a criminal complaint filed against six workers and two SNITIS representatives before the Attorney General's Office of the State of Tamaulipas;
- Adopting, disseminating, and implementing a neutrality statement and company guidelines on freedom of association and collective bargaining, including a zero-tolerance policy for violations, and training all company personnel on the guidelines and neutrality commitments; and
- Providing a complaint mechanism for workers to anonymously report any violations of their rights and breaches of company guidelines on freedom of association and collective bargaining.
Actions taken by the Government of Mexico to address the matter include:
- Delivering in-person trainings for all company personnel on freedom of association and collective bargaining;
- Offering an email address for workers to anonymously report any intimidation, coercion, threats with respect to their selection of a union and union activities, non-neutrality, or interference in internal union affairs; and
- Organizing and facilitating a dialogue meeting to re-establish communication between VDO and the petitioner union, and committing to continue dialogue meetings on an ongoing basis.
Based on these measures, Ambassador Tai has directed the Secretary of the Treasury to resume liquidation of unliquidated entries of goods from the facility.
Background
The United States Trade Representative and the Secretary of Labor co-chair the Interagency Labor Committee for Monitoring and Enforcement (ILC). On October 10, 2024, the ILC received an RRM petition from the Sindicato Nacional Independiente de Trabajadores de Industrias y de Servicios “Movimiento 20/32” (SNITIS), United Steelworkers (USW), and Rethink Trade. The petition alleged VDO was violating workers’ right to freedom of association and collective bargaining by interfering in workers’ union activity, retaliating against workers due to their union affiliation, promoting affiliation with a company-dominated union, and refusing to bargain with SNITIS. The ILC reviews RRM petitions that it receives, and the accompanying information, within 30 days. The ILC determined that there was sufficient, credible evidence of a denial of rights enabling the good faith invocation of enforcement mechanisms.
As a result, the United States Trade Representative submitted a request to Mexico to review the matter. The Government of Mexico accepted the request, found denials of rights related to freedom of association and collective bargaining, and worked with the facility to take a number of remedial steps within their review period, which the United States has reviewed and concluded to have remedied the situation.
A copy of the request for review can be found here.
A copy of the letter to the Secretary of the Treasury can be found here.
Information about previous requests can be found here.
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