The General Confederation of Labor (CGT) is working to fine-tune the details of mobilization against the government’s labor reform project. Preparations are underway under a leadership that continues to harbor anger. The text presented by the government did not take trade union positions into account and resulted in the bridges of contact between the two parties being virtually destroyed. With one complicating factor: The union began planning how to shape a progressive battle plan if the project advances in Congress. One way or another, next year’s times were brought forward significantly to December.
The main representatives of the Azopardo Street, such as Gerardo Martínez (Uocra), Andrés Rodríguez (UPCN), Cristian Jerónimo (Vidrio) and Octavio Arguello (Camioneros), noted attentively the enthusiasm shown by the ruling party to strongly offer them the possibility of negotiating with them to refine the text. Especially with the involvement of Martínez. The construction union boss also joined the Mayo Council, the body that promoted the structural reform projects. One of them was work, but there was no agreement.
After all the surveys, there were no productive conversations or meetings that would help calm the situation. For Martínez, and he made this clear to his people at the last Cegetist meetings, what happened at the Council was the chronicle of a death foretold. The regular meetings in the office of the Chief of Staff, then in the hands of Guillermo Francos, were full of discussions, with constant clashes between the union leader and Martín Rapallini, president of the Argentine Industrial Union (UIA), due to differences of opinion over the initiative to amend the Labor Contract Law.
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The tension escalated to the point that the veteran union official wrote a letter on October 22 criticizing the Libertarian government’s plans. This letter, overlooked by many members of the ruling party, said that the CGT would not confirm a reform inspired by Decree 70/2023. A categorical sentence appeared between the lines: “Every time there has been an attempt to crack down on labor rights, the result has been the same: more precarity, inequality and more exclusion.”
The position is shared by other representatives of the union, such as Andrés Rodríguez. The historical man of the Union of Civil Personnel of the Nation (UPCN) says privately that he has no contact with representatives of the LLA and that the government did not seek any government pacts after the election victory on October 26. He was one of the few heads of state and government to speak with presidential adviser Santiago Caputo. In contrast to those moments, he now closed himself into his most dogmatic wing. To illustrate this concept, he gives an example: Javier Milei decided to replace Francos, an articulator in the spirit of the state, with Manuel Adorni.
Héctor Daer, the face of the so-called “fat ones” and current trade union secretary of Cegetista, was never convinced of the success of the official project and warned against it whenever he could. Today, thanks to his good relationship with Caputo, it represents the only bridge between the CGT and the Casa Rosada. The advisor sought consensus with the trade union movement and lost to the influence of the deregulation minister Federico Rumpfenegger.
At the same time, a first set of unions began to engage in dialogue with pro-government and opposition senators to test their positions. Without intermediaries. “It means that the CGT will do its best, that is the message,” they said from outside a hearing on Azopardo Street. Luis Juez, a brand new member of the libertarian bloc, has already received a call from a relevant union member. The conversation went well and they stayed in touch.
Against this background and with the ongoing initiative, the CGT will show strength on December 18th in the face of critical libertarian voices who emphasize that the union leadership does not have a good image. With Azopardo you see this point. However, they answer with available surveys that one of society’s greatest concerns and fears is the increase in unemployment. A reason that will help shape the protest that aims to bring together 150,000 people in the Plaza de Mayo. In connection with the activity of this December 18, an organizational table was formed composed of leaders from different sectors, including Uocra, UPCN, truckers, glass, roads, health, sanitary works and insurance. The powerful Argentine Transport Workers Association (CATT), through its boss Juan Carlos Schmid, has expressed its full logistical support. They had their first meeting in Azopardo last Friday. They will continue tomorrow and Tuesday to finalize the definition of the protest in front of La Rosada and the police protocols. In principle, it has been decided that there will be a stage in the Plaza where as-yet-undetermined speakers will speak, although there is speculation that the leading triumvirate will speak. With them the CGT board and guests.
In return, all unions were asked to make every possible effort to convene their members to ensure mass participation. There were mayors and parts of Peronism who communicated with Cegetista leaders and promised them support at their bases. Miss? Determine how the columns are entered. If the organization is optimal and progress is in line with expectations, the CGT will deepen the measures. Execute a protest plan the likes of which has never been seen before. The idea of a strike is still a long way off.
“Take away individual and collective rights”
Cristian Jerónimo, one of the triumvirs of the CGT, criticized the labor reform project drawn up by the government and spoke of the mobilization that the center is planning for December 18. In radio statements, he said that the initiative “ended up addressing a project that we had seen because they made it go beyond the limits, with very sensitive points for the world of work. We understand that it is a regressive project that takes away individual and collective rights. We do not believe that this is the way out.” “In a project of this size, it is important to be able to integrate new workers into the formal sector,” explained Jerónimo. “This effectively strips workers of all types of protection,” he noted as he listed the flexibilities included in the proposal. In this context, Jerónimo ruled out that the mobilization called for by the CGT was only about restricting solidarity contributions: “This is something that the government wants to implement.” “We want to express the dissatisfaction of the world of work with a very clear measure that contradicts the needs of Argentina,” he argued.
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