MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Air services in Argentina to be affected by workers' strike

“If flights are canceled, it will not be the responsibility of the workers,” warned ATE General Secretary Rodolfo Aguiar

Airline services might be disrupted Monday at 24 Argentine airports on Monday as workers plan to hold assemblies between 8 and 11 am to protest against some of the latest measures announced by the Libertarian administration of President Javier Milei and also in anticipation of others that may come into force should the so-called Omnibus Law bill be passed by the Senate after the Lower House's nod last week.

The measure, announced by workers affiliated to the ATE union, ”jeopardizes the normal operation of the National Civil Aviation Authority (ANAC),“ it said.

”The government's adjustment program hits commercial aviation hard and jeopardizes the sector. They want to privatize even our skies and lay off workers, and we cannot allow it. In addition to the attempt to outsource ANAC functions, there is a wage freeze. If flights are canceled, it will not be the responsibility of the workers,“ warned ATE General Secretary Rodolfo Aguiar.

During the work stoppage, only essential services will be guaranteed, such as medical flights, emergencies, bomb threats, and flights already in the air. The ATE includes ground controllers, firefighters, health workers, inspectors, and administrative staff, among others.

”It must be clear that as long as the meetings last, we will only guarantee essential services and flights. Sectoral negotiations must be convened immediately and a wage increase above the rate of inflation must be granted. It must also be guaranteed that none of the services will enter into a process of privatization,“ Aguiar added.

”If the Base Law is approved in Congress, it will be a serious setback for the entire airline industry,“ he continued. Base Law is the official name by which the so-called Omnibus Law bill is known. ”Wages are not profits. We reject any attempt to tax us again for working,” the union leader insisted.

Monday's action will be part of the strike approved by the Argentine Transport Workers' Confederation (CATT) to reject the privatization of firefighting, health, and ground control services, affecting 800 jobs nationwide, in addition to the resumption of a collective bargaining agreement to obtain a wage increase above inflation.

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