Georgina Saldierna
La Jornada Newspaper
Tuesday, October 8, 2024, p. 8
The reform to article 123 of the Constitution, which seeks to guarantee an annual increase in the general and professional minimum wage above inflation, advanced in Senate committees, being approved unanimously.
The opposition voted in favor, but criticized the Morenoist government. The leader and senator of the PAN, Marko Cortés, said that the regime gives with one hand, but takes away with the other. He explained that in recent years there has been one of the worst inflations and that is why people’s salaries are not enough. In addition to that, he has to spend on his health because they took away Seguro Popular and on security.
He proposed that not only full-time teachers be guaranteed the average salary registered in the IMSS, but also the rest of the teachers, and that it be added to health professionals and technicians, such as radiologists and laboratory technicians. Also, the reference for the increase is not the estimated inflation, but rather the one observed in the immediately following year, since following the first option may give the worker an income that is less than real.
The Morenista Andrea Chávez reminded the PAN member of the high inflation rates of the governments prior to that of her party, and listed the indices that allude to the country’s economic strength.
Senator Oscar Cantón pointed out that the reform approved in the Constitutional Points and Legislative Studies commissions not only stabilizes the salary above inflation, but also introduces a crucial aspect: that teachers, police, national guards and health personnel receive income in line with your responsibility. For these sectors, the salary will be at least 16,700 pesos per month.
This is a triumph for social justice, he stated, recalling that from 1977 to 2016, the minimum wage suffered a loss of 70 percent in its purchasing power, which generated a deterioration in the living conditions of workers.
When asked if this reform refers to federal or municipal police and doctors, Javier Corral explained that state governments will have to standardize their regulations with federal ones, given that the employment relationship belongs to the local level.
