Union representation and redistribution: The case of the valley of San Quintín’s farmworkers

This article analyzes the relationship between the lag in the working conditions of Mexican farmworkers, the absence of an effective representation of their interests, the existence of authorities tolerant of the repressive measures of their employers, and their structural weakness in the labor market. It is argued that this situation obstructs any demand of rights compliance, except in extraordinary circumstances such as those that led to the mobilization and organization of the valley of San Quintín’s farmworkers between 2015 and 2017. In this case, the struggle to obtain an authentic representation of interests overlaps with the demand of better terms of exchange between labor and capital.