"Registering Trade Unions and Collective Bargaining Agreements in Mexico", September 2020

... In Mexico, the registration of trade union functions has been a tool used strategically by governments to control the labour movement. One reason governments have been able to do so is that the official registration bodies have lacked the necessary political, budgetary and operational independence to appropriately carry out their functions. The General Directorate for the Registration of Associations, at the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare (STPS), has registered unions under federal jurisdiction. For unions under state jurisdiction, the Local Conciliation and Arbitration Boards (juntas) have held registration authority. The tripartite nature of these institutions concentrated decision making in the hands of government, employer and “official union” representatives.

A similar situation has occurred with the registration of collective bargaining agreements (CBAs), which has been managed by tripartite bodies that lack independence and neutrality: the Federal Conciliation and Arbitration Board for CBAs under federal jurisdiction, and the Local Conciliation and Arbitration Boards for CBAs under state jurisdiction. Their lack of independence and neutrality has been a central factor in the proliferation of employer protection contracts, favouring their registration while putting obstacles in the way of the registration of authentic collective bargaining agreements...