|  ElCiudadano.cl |  Noticias

El Ciudadano

Original article: De la UDI y RN a Republicanos y PNL: diputados de derecha buscan eliminar la representación de trabajadores en el directorio de Codelco

A group of right-wing lawmakers has introduced a legislative proposal aimed at removing worker representation from the board of directors of the National Copper Corporation (Codelco). They argue that a clear separation of roles is essential given the financial challenges faced by the state-owned copper company.

The initiative spearheaded by Deputy Daniel Valenzuela (Ind-RN) has garnered support from legislators including Marco Antonio Sulantay (UDI), Paulina Muñoz (PNL), Tomás Kast (EVO), Javier Olivares (PDG), Patricio Briones (PDG), Pier Karlezi (PNL), Erich Grohs (PNL), Ignacio Urcullú (REP), and Álvaro Jofré (PNL). This proposal aims to modify Codelco’s corporate governance by eliminating the two positions currently held by worker representatives on the company’s highest decision-making body.

The legislators argue that this change is intended to ensure that all nine board members exclusively serve the interests of the company and the state, thereby excluding direct worker representation from corporate strategy.

Currently, Codelco’s corporate governance consists of a nine-member board. Of these, three are appointed directly by the President of the Republic, two come from worker representation, and the remaining four are selected by the president from shortlists proposed by the Public High Management Council (ADP).

The legislative initiative maintains the total number of directors but significantly alters its composition: it proposes to eliminate the two seats allocated for worker representatives and, in turn, to increase the number of directors appointed directly by the president from three to five. Meanwhile, the four positions filled through the High Public Management system would remain unchanged.

The advocates of the reform indicated that their proposal does not involve an evaluation of the performance of current labor directors or the labor unions involved in their appointment.

In the legislative proposal, they stated that «the current arrangement creates two directors with lower competency requirements, without the disqualification that applies to other union leaders, who are required to abstain from matters concerning them and excluded from the control committee.»

«This is not a reproach against those who have held the position, but a critique of the legal framework imposed on them,» they noted.

According to the lawmakers, the primary rationale for this initiative «is not a lack of trust in Codelco’s workers, but rather the conviction that the defense of their interests falls under the legal instruments recognized for that purpose, which relates to freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining,» which, they indicated, is guaranteed in Article 19, number 19 of the Constitution, developed in Book IV of the Labor Code, and protected by ILO Conventions No. 87, No. 98, and No. 135.

At the same time, they noted that the current model Fails to clearly differentiate between labor tasks and the obligations involved in managing the copper mining firm, leading to a confusion of roles.

«A union negotiates with the company administration and cannot simultaneously be part of it. The confusion of roles not only weakens the board but also undermines the union, which becomes co-responsible for decisions it will later have to contest, being bound by confidentiality to its members and obliged to abstain when needed the most. Furthermore, the appointment does not stem from a direct decision by the workers but from those vested by determined organizations, which shifts disputes over board seats into corporate governance,» they outlined in the legislative project.

Right-Wing Legislators Seek to «Eliminate Worker Representatives from Codelco’s Board«

«The aim of this bill is for the President of the Republic to appoint those five positions directly. We are essentially looking to relieve workers of all responsibility within the company,» stated Deputy Daniel Valenzuela on Radio Bio Bío.

According to Deputy Paulina Muñoz (PNL), modifying Codelco’s corporate governance would help avoid «internal pressures» that could influence decisions or votes within the board due to the presence of representatives linked to labor organizations.

In their presentation, the legislators indicated that the main idea of the bill is to «remove the participation of workers’ representatives from Codelco’s board,» with the goal of «restoring the unity of interest and the exclusive duty of loyalty» of the board members of the mining company towards the firm and its owner, the State of Chile.

Thus, according to the legislators, the proposal would eliminate «a representation of partial interests that the law itself recognizes as conflictive and that pertains to be exercised within the framework of freedom of association and collective bargaining.»

Featured image: Codelco.

La entrada Right-Wing Lawmakers Push to Eliminate Worker Representation on Codelco’s Board of Directors se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.