The ICFTU Inter American Regional Organisation of Workers (, ORIT) was the regional organization of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) for the Americas.
The federation was formed in 1951, and described its objective as being to work for independent, autonomous, democratic unions throughout the Americas. The ICFTU merged with the World Confederation of Labor in 2006, and in 2008, ORIT merged with the WCL's former regional organisation for the Americas, the Latin American Confederation of Workers, to form the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas.
As of 2005, the organization had 65 affiliated or fraternal organizations, in 29 countries, representing 50 million workers.
Member TUCs
The following national organizations were affiliated with ORIT in 2005: Argentina Confederación General del Trabajo de la República Argentina Barbados Barbados Workers' Union Belize National Trade Union Congress of Belize (Fraternal, not affiliated) Brazil Central Única dos Trabalhadores Confederação Geral dos Trabalhadores Canada Canadian Labour Congress Confédération des syndicats nationaux Chile Central Unitaria de Trabajadores Colombia Confederación de Trabajadores de Colombia Central Unitaria de Trabajadores de Colombia (Frat.) Costa Rica Confederación de Trabajadores Rerum Novarum Dominica Waterfront and Allied Workers' Union Dominican Republic Confederación Nacional de Trabajadores Dominicana Confederación de Trabajadores Unitaria Ecuador Confederación Ecuatoriana de Organizaciones El Salvador Central de Trabajadores Democráticos Unión Nacional de Trabajadores Campesinos (Frat.) Guatemala Confederación de Unidad Sindical de Guatemala Unidad Sindical de Trabajadores de Guatemala (Frat.) Central de Trabajadores del Campo (Frat.) Guyana Guyana Trades Union Congress Honduras Confederación de Trabajadores de Honduras Confederación Unica de Trabajadores de Honduras Jamaica Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions Mexico Confederación Nacional de Trabajadores Unión Nacional de Trabajadores Montserrat Montserrat Allied Workers' Union Nicaragua Confederación de Unificación Sindical Central Sandinista de Trabajadores Panama Confederación de Trabajadores de la República de Panamá Convergencia Sindical Paraguay Central Unica de Trabajadores Peru Confederación Gral de Trabajadores del Perú Confederación Unitaria de Trabajadores del Perú Suriname Algemeen Verbond van Vakverenigingen de Moederbond (Frat.) Trinidad and Tobago National Trade Union Centre of Trinidad and Tobago United States AFL-CIO Uruguay Asociación de Bancarios del Uruguay Venezuela Confederación Trabajadores de Venezuela
Criticism
In June 2006 an American labor magazine, Labor Notes, documented the role that the ORIT, ICFTU, ILO, and the AFL-CIO played in supporting elements opposed to the government of Haitian leader Aristide. ORIT is alleged to have ignored massive labor persecution against public sector workers and trade unionist supporters of the ousted government throughout 2004, 2005, and 2006.