A New Regime of Labour Governance in Mexico? The Case of Atento Call Centres

Authors

  • Hilary Goodfriend Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15173/glj.v17i1.6117

Abstract

Since 2018, the mechanisms governing labour relations in Mexico have experienced marked transformations at both the national and transnational scales. Terms of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) and reforms to the Federal Labor Law aimed at raising wages and promoting union freedom and democracy reshaped the landscape of labour regulation in the country, especially in strategic export sectors. Research on the impacts these reforms has privileged Mexican industrial manufacturing exports and the automotive industry. In this article, I examine the role of the USMCA’s Rapid Response Labor Mechanism in the Sindicato de Telefonistas de la República Mexicana (Telephonists’ Union of the Mexican Republic)’s campaign for collective representation and bargaining for Atento call centre workers in the city of Pachuca. Through a documentary review of primary and secondary source materials, I analyse the achievements and limits of this new, transnational regime of labour governance for labour rights at Atento call centres.

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Published

2026-01-31

Issue

Vol. 17 No. 1 (2026): January

Section

ARTICLES

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