Mediation meeting between company, union postponed
By The Star Staff
Puerto Rico Police Bureau officers removed 16 workers from Suiza Dairy’s gates on Wednesday morning, enforcing a court order that allowed cleaning personnel access to the plant in the Puerto Nuevo sector of San Juan.
Among those arrested were representatives of the General Confederation of Workers (CGT by its initials in Spanish). The police action took place before a mediation meeting at the Department of Labor and Human Resources.
Héctor Varado, the security manager at Suiza Dairy, denied that management had requested police intervention and did not respond to a question about whether he coordinated with the police. He said that specialized personnel would carry out the cleaning, although he did not offer specific details.
Varado insisted that the striking workers were not qualified for cleaning duties and that the company was complying with court orders. Among those arrested were union leaders who were to participate in the mediation.
Labor Secretary Gabriel Maldonado-González spoke out regarding the activation of the police at the Suiza Dairy facilities:
“Despite a mediation effort that was going to take place today at the Department of Labor and Human Resources (DTRH) at 10:00 a.m. and that was announced yesterday by yours truly, the public safety component made the decision to activate the Puerto Rico Police in front of the Suiza Dairy gates, in compliance with the court orders regarding access to the plant, as well as the urgent health and environmental intervention to dispose of the thousands of gallons of milk that has been unattended for over a month.”
“Given this situation, it was not possible to hold a conciliation meeting at this time,” the Labor secretary said. “Our expectation is to be able to resume discussions with the parties as soon as possible and reach a solution that will benefit the well-being of all those involved.”
The arrests come as Judge Anthony Cuevas ordered protesters to allow access to the facility.
The protesters defied the judge’s order after preventing the entry of some trucks intended to provide cleaning services in light of the situation that the company is facing and which, as is public knowledge, if not addressed could represent a threat to public health.
The police activated their protocol in accordance with what was established by the federal court-mandated reform to enforce the judge’s order in response to the protesters’ insistence on blocking the entrance.
Police officers issued warnings to the protesters three times and read out the court order to them. The protesters decided to ignore the warnings. As a result, the officers proceeded to make the arrests.
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