Cuban State Enterprises: Compete Or Die / 14ymedio

The general secretary of the Workers' Central Union of Cuba, Ulises Guillarte on the program 'Good Morning'.
The general secretary of the Workers’ Central Union of Cuba, Ulises Guillarte on the program ‘Good Morning’.

14ymedio biggerCuban state enterprises, the cornerstone of the country’s centralized economy, could be about to suffer a major setback with a new review process. The inspection that concludes this coming November will evaluate those entities that present losses and could determine to do away with many of them, according to a report this Monday in Trabajadores (Workers).

Among the measures to be adopted against the enterprises that do not demonstrate profitability will also be the redefinition of their organizational structures and the salaries of their workers. The analysis should conclude before the next session of the parliament, this year’s last, to be held in December.

The general secretary of the Workers’ Central Union of Cuba (CTC), Ulises Guillarte De Nacimiento – who is also a member of the Council of State – alerted the official press that the country is heading towards “an economic context in which monopolies will in no way prevail.” He made a call to “promote creative thinking about the enterprise system to generate competitiveness.”

Among the measures to be adopted against the enterprises that do not show profitability, will also be the redefinition of their organizational structures and salaries of their workers.

In remarks punctuated with the words “profit,” “results” and “efficiency,” the official addressed the issue of granting new powers to state sector enterprises seeking greater autonomy and flexibility. While acknowledging that by their specific nature some enterprises may operate at a loss, he affirmed that keeping them would require “approval from (…) the Council of Ministers”.

The mission of unions during this process, according Guillarte De Nacimiento, will be to oversee a “continued raising of the rigor of the evaluation of these enterprises and to mobilize the workers’ collectives to bring to the fore potential reserves of efficiency.”

The union leader did not mention, however, that the workers could reject or discuss the definition of “not profitable” assigned to their company, nor that they could demand compensation or indemnification in cases of loss of employment. The CTC will place itself, in this situation, on the side of the management of the entities reviewed and the directives that come from the State.

However, Guillarte De Nacimiento acknowledged that “in the end it is the workers who pay the consequences, because their incomes are effected when an enterprise does not achieved the planned results.”