El Salvador: Information on the Electrical Workers Association (ATCEL), on whether it is an affiliate to the Salvadorean Workers' Union Federation (FENASTRAS), on whether it is affiliated to any political party or cause, on 1994 and 1995 ATCEL demonstrations, on whether ATCEL mistreated union members who did not participate in the demonstrations, and on whether ATCEL has the ability to hire and fire a company's employee
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 August 1997 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | SLV27503.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, El Salvador: Information on the Electrical Workers Association (ATCEL), on whether it is an affiliate to the Salvadorean Workers' Union Federation (FENASTRAS), on whether it is affiliated to any political party or cause, on 1994 and 1995 ATCEL demonstrations, on whether ATCEL mistreated union members who did not participate in the demonstrations, and on whether ATCEL has the ability to hire and fire a company's employee, 1 August 1997, SLV27503.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6abd75b.html [accessed 21 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The following information was provided by the vice-president of the Electrical Workers Association (Asociación de Trabajadores de la Compañía Eléctrica, ATCEL) in San Salvador in a 22 August 1997 telephone interview.
ATCEL is an independent union with no national or international union affiliations. It is, however, affiliated with the politically neutral organization called the International Public Servants (Internacional Servidores Públicos, ISP). ATCEL represents 2,000 affiliates within different employment sectors. Its affiliates include doctors, architects, engineers, security guards and administrators.
ATCEL participated in several marches in 1994 and 1995. For example, in 1994 ATCEL participated in a demonstration in front of the American embassy to protest the economic embargo against Cuba, and in 1995 the association marched to parliament to pressure the government to respect and enforce the 1992 peace accords.
Participation in union demonstrations is voluntary and no pressure is placed on ATCEL members to participate. ATCEL is not able to hire or fire employees from companies it has organized. It can involve itself in such matters only when an employee has been wrongly dismissed.
Additional and/or corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
Reference
Electrical Workers Association (ATCEL), San Salvador. 22 August 1997. Telephone interview with the vice-president.
Additional Sources Consulted
Amnesty International Report. 1995-1996.
Central America NewsPak [Austin, Tex.]. 1994-1997.
Central America Report [Guatemala City]. 1994-1997.
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. 1994-1995.
The Europa World Year Book 1996. 1996. 1996.
Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Daily Reports. 1994-1997.
Human Rights Watch World Report. 1995-1997.
Latinamerica Press [Lima]. 1995-1996.
Mesoamerica [San Pedro, Costa Rica]. 1994-1995.
Trade Unions of the World 1992-93. 1991.
Electronic sources: DIRB Databases, Global News Bank, Lexis/Nexis, Internet, REFWORLD (UNHCR database), World News Connection (WNC).
