Opposition at Fiesp tries to organize assembly to remove president

Unions that oppose the current president of Fiesp (Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo), Josué Gomes da Silva, are trying to organize an extraordinary assembly later this year to remove him.

The directors’ meeting, however, should be held in January, after the entity’s collective vacation period. When contacted, Fiesp says it does not comment on internal matters.

Almost a month ago, Josué rejected a request signed by 78 representatives of unions linked to Fiesp. The articulation of the opposition is attributed to the former president of the entity, Paulo Skaf, who commanded the federation for 17 years (the linked group says that attribution is unfair).

At the meeting in which he communicated the decision, the president of the entity claimed to have consulted jurists and concluded that requests for meetings needed to be detailed, and there would be no objective reasons for calling them.

The unions reacted with detail and, therefore, some understood that Josué would make the call. As that did not happen, a few days ago, a new letter was forwarded to Fiesp and, this time, delivered to the federation’s first secretary, occupied by industrialist Vandermir Francesconi Júnior.

This new letter received 86 signatures, more than the original request sent out in October. In it, union representatives point out that Josué should have called the assembly, but did not. Therefore, they demand that the plenary of unions be scheduled and suggest the date of December 19th.

The assessment of the directors who signed the letter is that it is preferable that the call for the assembly comes from Fiesp itself. The group understands, however, that the entity’s statute allows “self-convocation”.

Paulo Skaf’s proximity to the current President of the Republic, Jair Bolsonaro (PL), on the one hand, and Josué’s relationship with President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), on the other, is often cited as a factor of tension between the groups that make up Fiesp.

For a union leader who participated in the assembly request, however, the increase in the number of supporters demonstrates that dissatisfaction has no electoral bias, as it increased even after the elections.

A union leader close to Skaf also rejects the attribution of leadership of this movement to the former president of the federation. Speaking on anonymity, this businessman stated that Skaf would only have been sought out by the dissatisfied when the movement that led to the request for an extraordinary meeting was already advanced.

Opponents and allies of Josué say that their dissatisfaction with him stems from an estrangement from the new president’s management style, which is more discreet and less “traditional politics” than his predecessor.

This Monday (5th), Fiesp held its last board meeting this year. The matter would not have been dealt with at the meeting, which was followed by a get-together. Now, the federation goes on collective vacations and the summons should be in January.

Next week, Ciesp (Center of Industries of the State of São Paulo) will do the same – a last meeting with businessmen, a get-together and the start of the year-end break.

On Sunday (4), businessmen Horácio Lafer Piva, former president of Fiesp and shareholder of Klabin (paper and cellulose), Pedro Wongtschowski, chairman of the board of directors of the Ultra group (fuels, owner of Ultragaz), and Pedro Passos , director of Natura, signed an article published in Sheet in which they argue that “it makes no sense for Fiesp to get lost in parochial issues or threaten to be influenced by a group that, when at the head of the entity, did not defend the interests of a modern industry for the country.”

“Communication errors may have been committed by not clearly signaling the new strategy — or by not integrating the important employers’ unions in this effort. It makes no sense, however, to interrupt an ongoing process, although there are certainly improvements to be made”, they say. .

They also highlight the digital transformation work initiated by Ciesp with small and medium-sized industries and call on “those who are actually committed to the search for a new path for the industry” to “manifest their support for the leadership of Josué Gomes da Silva in conducting of this new moment for Fiesp”.