It could be said that the proposed system is more expensive for the employer, who must contribute for all his employees and at the same time that it is also, apparently, more beneficial for the workers, who would be assured of the quick and certain collection of compensation. So why are there employers who look at this scheme with sympathy, while other sectors think that it is a removal of rights? The reforms of the last decades filled the labor regime with ambiguities that led to multiple interpretations; increasing demands and amounts paid. This is today one of the most important factors why SMEs prefer not to hire people and the investments do not arrive. From that place, any norm that comes to give some certainty, creates expectation. And why do some think that this would take away rights? Some understand that what the employer pays in the face of dismissal is not compensation but a fine, a punishment to deter. With this system, the supreme value – mentioned above – would not be protected, thus leaving the worker unprotected.
The problem is that nobody is discussing what the new values should be that the law has to protect against the change in the production model and the rapid expiration of knowledge. The pandemic has caused a true tsunami in the world of organizations, accelerating times and challenging many current paradigms. Technology was incorporated quickly, even to the point of replacing people in repetitive, low-value-added activities; Organizational charts were noticeably flattened, and more transparent links between teams and leaders were promoted. And in the face of the advancement in the skills revolution, agile and permanent learning became a key factor. It is then necessary to rethink the problem and ask ourselves the questions that allow us to move forward. Is employability the new right that the law should protect and what new public policies should be agreed to protect the worker? Can we think of modernizing labor laws without agreements between all the relevant actors? Are we capable of articulating the necessary consensus?
Today employment is a central theme of the political campaign, and beyond shared painful diagnoses it is necessary to overcome distortions, reduce litigation and modernize the regulatory framework. Standards do not create jobs, but they can be a major stumbling block to a country’s development. The bridge that joins the desire to transform with reality is investment, and there will be no investment without agreements that guarantee predictability. Let’s all be able to get out of the eternal Argentine return.
Director General de ManpowerGroup Argentina
