La libertad sindical en el sector público desde la Constitución de 2008 y sus enmiendas

Abstract

The aim of this research work is to determine whether or not the amendments to articles 229 and 326 of the Constitution, which tried to eliminate the figure of the public sector worker who is subject to the Labor Code, are a violation of fundamental labor rights. For this purpose, a doctrinal analysis of union rights, the collective labor agreement, and the right to strike has been made. It has been also analyzed if they may be considered to be fundamental rights, as well as the significance of the agreements of the International Labor Organization (ILO) subscribed by Ecuador and the guarantees the state must present to meet them. The political role played by Ecuadorian public unionism in the national political scene and the way it has influenced throughout decades have been also analyzed. In order to understand its influence, it has been necessary to make a brief review of its historical origin, its shaping processes, and its current situation after the abovementioned amendments have ceased being in force. Finally, both the verdict of the Constitutional Court, which gave way to the draft amendments, and the sentence, which nullified them, have been studied. In order to understand the context these amendments occurred in, it was transcendental to read and analyze the discussion book of the National Assembly. The adverse opinions to the draft amendments on the part of the trade unions and political left movements could be seen here, as well as the position, reasoning, and perspective of the executive party, which argued the need for generating these amendments to the Labor Code