Winning a strike in the United States may be a rare event, but in Mexico, particularly in the border-straddling factories called maquiladoras, the odds against even building an organization are almost prohibitive. One such effort, hailed as a victory in June, now seems to be settling into a battle of endurance. PNS associate editor David Bacon is a former union organizer who writes widely on labor and immigration.

TIJUANA, BAJA CALIFORNIA -- Each morning as the sun rises, thousands of workers stream out of this city's dusty barrios, up the hillsides, and into the industrial parks on the mesas above.

But on June 2, that human wave stopped at the gate of Han Young de Mexico as the plant's 120 workers went on strike.

They demanded negotiations -- first with their bosses, and then with the authorities of the National Conciliation and Arbitration Board (the JNCA, equivalent to the U.S. National Labor Relations Board). By the end of the second day of the walkout, the company had agreed to bargain, a first in the maquiladora industry, where managers have almost absolute power.

Since then, Han Young managers have moved to regain control, most dramatically by firing Emeterio Armenta, the strike's leader, in early August. The managers were not acting on their own, but as part of a government-industry network that sets the rules for labor relations in Tijuana. After the strike, the JNCA insisted the company hire Luis Manuel Escobedo Jimenez as personnel director -- it was Escobedo who fired Armenta and two other strike leaders.

Escobedo is a labor consultant -- local activists call him a "psychological warfare expert." Mexican employers haven't used such people in the past, but maquiladora managers seem to be adopting the hardball U.S. model of labor relations.

Han Young de Mexico is a "feeder" factory. Its workers build truck trailer chassis and huge metal shipping containers for the huge Hyundai manufacturing complex. The June walkout was fueled by low wages -- $36-48 (US) a week and some of the most dangerous conditions in a city well-known for workplace accidents.  Han Young workers complain they often lack welding masks, gloves and safety shoes. The plant has no ventilation system, and lead fumes from soldering cause permanent eye damage.

But the Han Young workers' core demand was company recognition of their independent union. Han Young has had a union since the factory was built years ago -- a union that holds no meetings, rarely if ever sends representatives to visit the plant, and does not help workers with complaints. Workers call it a company union.

If Han Young workers won recognition of an their union, "the formation of independent unions could sweep like a wave through the factories of Tijuana, where conditions are the same," says Enrique Hernandez, president of the Civic Alliance, a community organization which gives workers legal advice.

That possibility may explain why Han Young fired Armenta and two co-workers. Company spokesmen have declined to comment on the reasons for the firing.

Han Young may also have felt threatened because the workers sought help from Mexico's Frente Autentico de Trabajo (Authentic Labor Front), for help. The FAT, Mexico's most independent labor federation, has been cooperating with the U.S.-based Teamsters Union and United Electrical Workers on organizing drives. A victory by Han Young workers would give the FAT a base in Tijuana, a situation which would particularly threaten Hyundai -- possibly the city's most important industrial corporation.

Hyundai's Tijuana operations are particularly vulnerable. The company's effort to expand by taking land at the city's outskirts in the community of Maclovio Rojas has been a particular focus of resentment -- Han Young strike leader Armenta lives in Maclovio Rojas, and has been active in the resistance to Hyundai's attempted takeover.

In addition, workers employed in Hyundai's main plant complain of being hit by Korean foremen. They also report that safety sensors are often disabled, and complain of numerous mutilating workplace accidents. These allegations seem to be supported by high turnover rates.

"In seven years over 7600 workers have passed through a plant which only employs 1500," says Jaime Cota, of Tijuana's Workers' Information Center.

Two key factors helping to sustain the Han Young workers' efforts as Hyundai resists. One is the continuing support of Maclovio Rojas residents -- and the ability to connect the strike with the community.

The other is aid from U.S. activists pushing a new tactic in labor's arsenal -- cross-border organizing. San Diego's Support Committee for Maquiladora Workers mobilized southern California unions to send money, fire off telegrams, and bring down observers during the strike. The Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers donated $5,000 to the workers' center. Other support has come from San Diego's janitors' union, the San Diego-Imperial Counties Central Labor Council, and unions at the University of California, San Diego.

"We try to even the odds faced by maquiladora workers who get into fights with factory owners and the government," says Mary Tong of the San Diego committee, "and educate people in the U.S. at the same time. In a global economy, the jobs and livelihood of people north of the border can depend on the outcome of the struggles of workers south of it, at factories like Han Young."