Appeals court backs Milei's labour reform in key ruling

An appeals court in Argentina has given the green light to President Javier Milei’s government to proceed with its controversial labour reform, overturning an injunction that had suspended it at the request of the CGT labour umbrella.

Argentina’s National Labour Appeals Court ruled that the reform is constitutional, a conclusion strongly disputed by the opposition and trade unions.

President Milei welcomed the decision. “They cannot stop the growth which is coming this country’s way. VIVA LA LIBERTAD CARAJO...!!!” the La Libertad Avanza leader wrote on his X social media account.

The so-called ‘Labour Modernisation Law’, approved in February, reduces severance pay, allows payments to be made in instalments, extends the working day to 12 hours without overtime, permits payment in kind (goods or services) and limits the right to strike, among other provisions.

The government argues that the measures will help create jobs and reduce informal employment, which currently stands at 43 percent of the workforce, according to official data.

The CGT has rejected those claims, branding the government’s arguments “false.”

“It is not by diminishing workers’ rights nor by rolling back the legal framework to times close to slavery that things will improve,” the union said.

Since Milei took office in December 2023, more than 22,000 companies have shut down in Argentina, with the loss of around 300,000 jobs. The downturn has been driven in part by falling consumer demand amid declining real wages, as well as by the opening of the economy to imports.

Industrial activity in February fell four percent compared with the previous month, while idle capacity reached 54.6 percent, according to official data.

Inflation, which Milei brought down to a third of the levels seen when he took office, has been creeping up over the past 11 months. March’s consumer price rise of 3.4 percent was the highest in a year.

In February, a general strike against the reform drew large street protests but failed to halt the law’s approval.

The CGT has announced a May Day march on April 30 to express its opposition and demand a change in the government’s economic course.

The courts have yet to issue a final ruling on whether the law violates the Constitution by introducing reforms that critics consider regressive for workers’ rights.

The government has asked the Supreme Court to fast-track the case through a “per saltum” procedure in an effort to settle the dispute.

– TIMES/AFP