According to calculations by the Argentine Chamber of Commerce (CAC), absenteeism reaches 35% in some provinces. Estimates indicate that around 60% of the workers who do not come to fulfill their tasks are close contacts, as a result of the advance of the third wave of coronavirus.
Businessmen demand that the Government take action on the matter, with actions that help mitigate these effects. The latest measurements of the Ministry of Health, with changes in the protocols by isolation, are an attempt to answer.
From the Argentine Industrial Union (UIA) They celebrated this decision, which allows the early return of the employee to his workplace. At the same time, although they note the problem of absenteeism from work, they estimate that the percentage is lower.
In recent days, from the UIA stated that this absenteeism, at the country level, barely exceeded 7%, according to a survey of companies in the sector.
For the Federation of Commerce and Industry (FECOBA) the level of absenteeism from work is around 20% in businesses in the city of Buenos Aires. While in the industrial sector, the loss of personnel is greater, with 27% of casualties.
However, both traders and industrialists are concerned with the issue of costs. In a context of recovery, with the opening of activities that have been showing a frank rise in numbers, the summer season is presented as a great opportunity that they do not want to miss.
From the business chambers reject the idea of closures or scheduled cuts, with the bitter taste of the 2020-2021 experience, where the toughest restrictions forced the activity to stop.
The latest measurements of the Ministry of Health They allow those who have been in close contact with a positive case and do not present symptoms to skip preventive isolation. They must also have at least two vaccines applied to meet this guideline.
The dynamics of the third wave shows, so far, that there are much more infections than deaths. At the same time, this high level of contagiousness translates into increases in isolations due to close contacts.
This forces many businesses and industries to have a drop in their productivity, and even to close temporarily. To this scenario are added the holidays, which were late last year, where everything was frozen.
In the fine yarn, the central problem is those activities where the presence of the employee is necessary. Industries are mostly the most affected in this regard.
From FECOBA They argue that closing stores and industries is not the same as in 2020, when entrepreneurs and SMEs were assisted by the State with aid for the payment of salaries and credit facilities, among other measures.
In this framework of the third wave, promoted by Ómicron, the situation of closures and “low shutters” of shops and industries could be more difficult to recover compared to that of 2020.
The level of local absenteeism recreates, to a large extent, the scenario of tougher restrictions at the beginning of the pandemic. If it continues, many businesses will have to close, unable to generate income due to understaffed workplaces.
Meanwhile, the General Business Confederation of the Argentine Republic (CGERA), proposed that industries and businesses be enabled to request the Health Pass that accredits the full vaccination scheme against COVID-19 to workers, to protect employment and prevent economic recovery from being interrupted.
“We employers ask that they allow us to request the Health Pass from our employees because we want them to be cared for and to come to work, but not in any way, but protected by vaccination, which has proven to be effective in reducing deaths and hospitalizations due to COVID-19 ”, stated Marcelo Fernández, President of CGERA.
In this sense, Fernández explained that “we agree that the Health Pass be requested in nightclubs, recitals and mass events to promote tourism, but we also believe that it is necessary for it to be accredited in industries and businesses so as not to stop the reactivation that it is being observed in the different productive sectors ”.
“Because companies did not have the possibility of having ART coverage in the case of COVID-19, we believe that the health PASE is a good measure to encourage vaccination, and in turn, reduce litigation in the workplace ”, He concluded.
Source From: Ambito
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