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By JENNIFER DITCHBURN

2006-05-21 15:45:00

OTTAWA (CP) - A union leader at the centre of a labour crisis in Mexico has sought shelter from the storm in Canada, creating yet another awkward situation between the two countries.

The Mexican government removed Napoleon Gomez Urrutia from his post as head of the National Union of Miners and Metalworkers (Los Mineros) in February, accusing him of masterminding a $61-million money laundering scheme involving workers' funds.

Urrutia had been highly critical of national labour and safety standards during his tenure, and organized many wildcat strikes. He was replaced shortly after the death of 65 workers in a coal-mining accident that he called "industrial homicide."

His removal resulted in near chaos in Mexico's mining sector, and among the country's labour movement in general, helping to boost metal prices on world markets.

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