Embattled Labour Minister Jorge Triaca can rest a little easier after a Cabinet meeting this morning in which his colleagues rallied around him in a definitive show of support.
Triaca has been engulfed in controversy following an abusive voice message he sent to a former employee and accusations that he broke labour laws.
President Mauricio Macri presided over a full Cabinet meeting where ministers expressed their support for Triaca who in turn apologised for the controversy surrounding the aggressive voice message he sent to Sandra Heredia.
Triaca did not address Heredia's accusations that he paid her under the table and used his influence to secure her a job at the Maritime Workers’ Union (SOMU).
Some cabinet members, and Macri himself, publicly defended Triaca following the scandal, saying that he made a “mistake” but should not lose his job.
CONTROVERSY
In the voice message, Triaca could be heard calling Heredia a “pelotuda” — an Argentine insult that might translate to “dumbass”, but generally means “stupid,” “inept” or “idiotic.”
“Sandra, don’t come. Don’t come or I’ll tell you to fuck off. You, dumbass!” he said.
In response to Heredia’s accusation that half of her salary had been paid to her ‘under the table,’ Triaca’s response was: “She had a formal contract”. He also claimed that his brother was Heredia's boss.
Legal manœuvres —some of which are undoubtedly politically motivated — continue against Triaca.
BUSY YEAR AHEAD
The Labour Minister — who has also been in the spotlight because of the significant number of his relatives in high-level government positions —will in 2018 face off against growing opposition to the government's planned overhaul of labour legislation.
After a well-timed stint away from the public spotlight, Triaca returned to work on Monday to also delve back into tense collective wage bargaining talks.
-TIMES
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