Metallurgist Union Of Doe Run Perú Stands Up To Fight For Recognition Of Share Of Profits

Metallurgist Union of Doe Run Perú Stands Up to Fight for Recognition of Share of Profits

PERÚ - Article N 16 Prensa Oroya

11th April 2006

prensa_oroya@yahoo.es

"Company officials are not being honest with this union which has sweated blood to bring this company along, and now they treat us in this way. For this, we are not going to give up our fight for what we consider our just demands," affirmed Subsecretary General of the Union of Metallurgists of La Oroya, Humberto Cosme Molina, whose union has not had its share of profits from 2005 recognized.

"We understand that in a moment, this company was making investments, and also that the price of metals was low, but we have learned that the company did manage to send a considerable sum of money to its headquarters in the United States. And to this we say !Basta! Enough! And we are going into the streets to demand our just rights, because they are not only swindling the workers, they are also embezzling the Peruvian state," stated Cosme Molina.

In a march headed by the Mayor of La Oroya, Clemente Quincho Panez, dozens of workers hit the streets on April 10, shouting slogans and directing choice words against the company. Officials of Doe Run Perú (DRP) were characterized as "pinochos" by the protesters.

The Union of Metallurgists of La Oroya, which consists of about 2,500 persons, held a meeting later that night to contemplate the iniation of a indefinate general strike which would paralize production of the metal mining company. "As workers, it is the only weapon that we have, although we also know that we are going to suffer economically," added Cosme Molina.

Union leaders disclosed that the officials of Doe Run Perú presented balances audited by the SUNAT (National Superintendent of Tax Administration), which appear to not carry accounts of large amounts of income. The union is planning to contract a group of tax lawyers to evaluate the company reports.