In the first five months of Javier Milei’s Government, almost 200,000 layoffs were reported, to which more than 100,000 were added. 10,000 cases of licenses, voluntary withdrawals and suspensionsMost of the job losses occurred in the private sector and in construction.
According to a report published on Tuesday by the Center for Political Economy of Argentina (CEPA)in the private sector there were 167,205 layoffs and 10,452 suspensions between November 2023 and April 2024. Almost all of this deterioration in employment levels was caused by staff reductions as a result of the recession.
At the sector level, construction led this undesirable list, with 100,000 layoffs estimated by the Argentine Chamber of Construction (CAMARCO). Industry followed with 76,311 cases.while in the services sector 1,346 cases were verified.
“Since taking office, the Executive Branch has had an anti-industrial bias: economic policy measures were complemented with Repeal of industrial protection laws local via DNU, defunding of transcendental organizations such as the INTI, and the final blow is the RIGI (Incentive Regime for Large Investments), which puts the local productive framework in jeopardy,” CEPA stressed.
In parallel, In the State another 29,604 dismissals were recordedmainly at a national level, whether in the Central Administration or in State-owned companies such as Correo Argentino or Radio y Televisión Argentina SE.
It is worth clarifying that these numbers only consider the losses, without taking into account the new additions.
The 6 most resonant cases of layoffs and suspensions in the private sector:
1) Acindar (Industry-Steel Industry)
The policies implemented by the Government have led to a halt in public works and a collapse in domestic consumption of products that require steel inputs, such as cars and household appliances.
As a corollary, steel production suffered a cumulative decline of 34.2% so far in 2024; the May figure was 22.2% below the average of the last 9 years.
In this context, Acindar, one of the most important companies in the sector, belonging to the Arcelor Mitta group, announced the production halted at its plants for a month -from March 18 to April 15- granting its staff early or pending vacations, compensation for days off and suspensions.
According to interviews conducted by CEPA members, the delegate of the company’s internal committee had assured at the end of May that “600,000 tons of production is what is planned for the year (50% lower than the historical average) and the company does not plan to recover.” “Next week, some sectors will be suspended for 15 days and the following week, suspensions will also be made in the steelworks,” he had added.
At the end of June, the company announced that In the second half of the year, only 2 of the next 6 months will workThat is, 2/3 of the semester will remain closed. The suspended workers, for their part, will receive 83% of their pocket salary in July, reducing it to 80% in August and from September until the end of the year, 75%..
2) Tenaris SIAT (Industry-Steel)
Tenaris Siat, a company belonging to the Techint Group, announced the dismissal of more than 200 workers at the end of June. “In May, three supervisors affiliated with the Association of Supervisors of the Metalworking Industry of the Argentine Republic (ASIMRA) and two members of the Metalworkers Union (UOM) were fired without any justification. It was a series of arbitrary and discriminatory dismissals, under accusations of not complying with quality procedures, when in reality they were following direct orders from their superiors,” the report explained.
3) Whirlpool (Industry-White Goods)
Following the drop in consumption and the reduction in import tariffs, the appliance company Whirlpool fired 60 workers in May due to the reduction in production at its plant in the Pilar Industrial Park.
4) Briket (Industry-White Line)
The producer of refrigerators, display cabinets and freezers, Briket, laid off 300 workers so far this year. Its head, Roberto Lenzi, who is also vice president of the Argentine Chamber of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Industries, said: “We had to start suspending first and then firing, something very painful from the human point of view and also because we are losing highly qualified personnel.”
“Between 25% and 30% of the workforce is being cut in each of the industries in this sector,” he added.
5) Canale (Industry-Food)
At the end of June, the Canale company, which has 80 years of history in the production of sweet foods, announced its definitive closure, which left 38 people unemployed.
“The food sector is usually one of the last to suffer from economic crises. However, the magnitude of the recession also affects the food industry: in May it fell by 6.4% compared to the previous year and by 7.7% so far this year,” warned CEPA.
6) Ferrum and FV (Construction)
As a result of the crisis in the construction sector, Ferrum already laid off 100 workers in 2024. For its part, FV, the largest faucet manufacturer in the country, arranged in May the Suspension of 800 workers.
The company established a “scheme agreed with the Metalworkers Union (UOM) that includes a reduction of the workday by 10 days in May, 9 in June and 10 in July, with payment of 80% of the net salary,” explained Diego Espeche, head of the San Miguel branch.
Source: Ambito
