A strike by banana workers from a Del Monte subsidiary in Costa Rica ended Friday after 32 fired employees were reinstituted to their positions, Prensa Latina reported.

The dismissal of the employees had been the key point of contention in the 23-day strike that mobilized around 600 workers near the border with Panama.

According to the Syndicate of Public and Private Company Workers (SITEPP), 59 workers from the Banana Development Company (Bandeco) were fired by Del Monte in December when 500 went on strike to negotiate a collective work agreement.

Bandeco places the number of fired employees at 52.

The remaining employees that were not reinstituted will be evaluated by the Labor Relations Committee on criteria such as punctuality, output and work quality, Labor Minister Olman Segura told Prensa Latina.

Bandeco will also give extra work to those who went on strike to counteract the economic impact on families.

The company maintained that it had the legal right under the labor code to fire workers that participate in an illegal strike.

SITEPP alleges that many steps were taken to force an end to the strike, including the use of substitute employees, the aerial spray of toxic products and the blockage of food sales.

Last week a complaint was filed against Del Monte by legislature José María Villalta regarding possible labor exploitation. Villalta's complaint includes alleged violations of the country's labor laws.

Related story: Del Monte banana strikers going hungry in Costa Rica

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