Osnay Miguel Colina Rodríguez, president of the Organizing Committee of the XXII Congress of the Cuban Workers' Central (CTC), announced this Saturday that the final sessions of the labor congress will be held on June 26 and 27 via videoconference from all provinces of the country, under the principle of maximum austerity.
Colina Rodríguez, a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party (PCC) and deputy to the National Assembly, appeared on the midday news of Cuban Television to outline the format and agenda of the event, which is held under the slogan “For Cuba Together We Create.”
The leader emphasized that the congressional process does not begin on June 26, but rather reaches its peak after a long journey of debates that started in January 2024.
“The congress began a long time ago, and fundamentally, we have already carried it out. It started in the union sections, the union bureaus, and at the municipal and provincial conferences, as well as the development of the conferences for the 15 unions that make up the CTC and the National Association of Innovators and Rationalizers (ANIR),” emphasized Colina Rodríguez.
Virtual format due to the economic and energy crisis
The conclave will not be held in the conventional face-to-face format due to the difficult conditions that Cuba is experiencing, as explained by Colina Rodríguez himself.
In Havana, delegates from the capital province and candidates for the National Council of the CTC will participate in person, while the rest of the country will connect via video conference.
“Congress needs to reflect its time, adapting to the development conditions we face,” the leader declared.
The CTC, the only official union in the country, encompasses more than two million workers affiliated with 18 national unions.
Agenda: Defense, Production, and Labor Rights
The agenda of the XXII Congress will cover several strategic axes, as detailed by Colina Rodríguez in his television appearance.
The first is the defense of the homeland and socialism.
“To defend the homeland, the Revolution, socialism, from any trench, in the field, in the classroom, even if necessary, with rifles in hand”, emphasized the leader.
The second focus is productive momentum, with an emphasis on food production, energy transition, and the improvement of the Cuban business system.
The actual participation of workers in decision-making will also be debated: salary formation, profit distribution, and transparency in management boards.
"I'm not just talking about the union leader, but about the possibility of proposing other outstanding workers who can represent their voices and votes, to ensure there is more democracy and participation," emphasized Colina Rodríguez.
New Labor Code and Workers in Crisis
The XXII Congress will gather the results of the massive consultation of the draft of the new Labor Code, in which more than two million workers participated between September and November 2025.
Colina Rodríguez confirmed that the current state of the bill will be shared with the delegates before its analysis in the National Assembly, scheduled for July 2026.
The right to strike is still not included in the new code, as critics of the process have pointed out.
The congress will also assess the situation of workers who, due to the energy crisis, have been forced to retrain for new jobs or are currently unemployed.
The leader proposed the creation of community brigades consisting of plumbers, masons, carpenters, and electricians who are currently unable to work at their usual centers.
Colina Rodríguez concluded that the congress "serves as a milestone to establish commitments and make workers the protagonists of a substantial change in their communities and neighborhoods."
The reality of the street: Crushed salaries and blackouts in the face of the union debate
The XX Congress of the CTC is taking place against a backdrop of extreme precariousness for the island's workforce.
Cuban workers are facing rampant inflation and a constant devaluation of the national currency that has devastated the purchasing power of the minimum wage.
This economic gap makes it impossible to cover the basic basket of food and medicines, pushing a significant portion of the population towards the informal economy or multiple jobs to survive.
This financial suffocation is compounded by the severe shortcomings of the everyday work environment.
The collapse of the national electric power system not only causes continuous blackouts that paralyze industries, but also forces thousands of employees to work under extreme conditions.
This is compounded by the transportation crisis, which complicates daily commutes to workplaces and leads to a critical shortage of raw materials, work tools, and internal protective equipment, deepening discontent and the exodus of skilled professionals toward the private sector or emigration.
This XXII Congress is the first to take place after the leadership change at the CTC: the Cuban regime removed Ulises Guilarte de Nacimiento from his position as general secretary on July 8, 2025, after 12 years in office, without a public explanation of the reasons.
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