LatinNews Daily - 24 October 2023

* Metalworker unions in three factories owned by the US carmaker General Motors (GM) in Brazil’s south-eastern state of São Paulo have announced a strike. In a joint statement, the union leaders criticised GM for sacking workers by email and telegram on 21 October without prior negotiation or warning. The unions described GM’s actions as “cowardly and arbitrary” and accused the US firm of violating national workers’ rights legislation. Local media have gained access to the dismissal notice sent to the workers and reported that GM attributed the sudden layoffs to a “drop in sales”. However, the unions rejected this excuse, stating that GM’s car sales in Brazil saw a yearly rise of 18.18% in April-June this year and saw a 51.6% yearly rise in profits in Q2 2023. The unions have demanded that GM reverse the layoff decision and have called for support from Brazil’s federal government and the São Paulo state government.