Puerto Rico unions threaten labor actions over benefits and forced leave

Labor unions in Puerto Rico are escalating tensions with government and university administrations over working conditions and contract implementation.

The Brotherhood of Non-Teaching Exempt Employees (HEEND) has issued an ultimatum to the University of Puerto Rico (UPR), the Office of Management and Budget, and the Financial Oversight and Management Board. Union president Hilda Torres Guzmán warned that members may activate a strike vote previously approved by an overwhelming majority. The dispute centers on the failure to implement a collective bargaining agreement signed in May 2024, which union leaders claim is being delayed by administrative non-compliance and fiscal authorities.

Separately, the Servidores Públicos Unidos de Puerto Rico (SPUPR) is demanding that Governor Jenniffer González Colón cease the practice of imposing forced vacations on public employees. The union is protesting an executive order that designates specific dates in November and December 2026 as holidays to be charged against employees' accrued vacation leave. SPUPR president Jessica Martínez Santos argued that such measures violate labor rights and that the government should grant holidays without deducting from workers' earned leave.