Negotiation Strengthening & Mediation Labor Disputes

cancelled

This program seeks to introduce new forms of labor dispute resolution, independent of State involvement, including free collective bargaining, independent mediation, and self-determination of employers and workers. The activities to be funded are: (a) technical assistance for the design of collective development and/or mediation methodologies; (b) publications; (c) work visits; (d) technical visits and sharing of experiences; (e) training courses to upgrade the professional profile of negotiators; (f) development of a public domain information system; (g) awareness campaigns; and (h) effective use of the communications media. The first component funds: (a) an international seminar to present major trends in labor relations and negotiation, in order to create a homogeneous base of knowledge among those participating in the program; (b) technical visits by tripartite groups (workers, entrepreneurs, and staff from the Ministry of Labor) to four countries with pertinent experiences; (c) a national seminar to present and discuss the experiences gathered during the visits and establish consensus regarding the best options for Brazil; and (d) six regional workshops to disseminate and discuss the methodology or methodologies adopted during the national seminar. In addition, a statistical database will be developed, providing access to social actors for research, monitoring, and policy design. The second component, funds: (a) publication of a quarterly journal by the Ministry of Labor (MTE); (b) publication of a collective bargaining bulletin; (c) production of collective bargaining primers; and (d) preparation of a teaching kit, to be used for program courses, which will be distributed free of charge to institutions representing the social actors involved in the program. The third component funds the training of human resources nationwide in collective bargaining and labor mediation, mainly through technical visits to other countries to learn about the latest practices. Particular emphasis will be placed on the training of "multipliers"-- instructors in training institutions, who will then be able to update the curricula at their institutions.