ANDhe Minister of Labor and Social Security, Pablo Mieres, stated that the executive branch “bet” that in the tenth round of Salary Councils there are guidelines “who have complete recovery as their goal”, of wages lost during the pandemic period.
“The objective of this government is that by the end of 2024 we are in a situation where the real salary of the average worker has been recovered. (…) Obviously there is a part of the matter that depends on the parties (employers and unions), because wage negotiations in the private sector are between parties,” said Mieres in an interview with the program Who is Who on Diamante FM and Canal 5.
In mid-2021, the government presented the guidelines that guided the last round of negotiations. There, adjustments based on projected inflation were agreed, plus a component for the partial recovery of the purchasing power lost between the middle of 2020 and 2021 (4.1%) during the bridge period.
The commitment of the Executive Branch was that the recovery would begin to take place in 2022 and would be completed in the next round of negotiations, starting in the second half of 2023, that is, before the end of the government period.
From this point of view, the numbers today prove the authorities right. As of January, 40.5% of private sector workers (351,475) had increased their real wages compared to July 2020.
This does not mean that there is still great heterogeneity in the purchasing power situation of all workers, and in the rate at which wages are being recovered.
The Minister of Economy and Finance, lily arbelechesaid days ago that it is not yet possible to anticipate what the guidelines of the Executive Power will be like, but he did give some clues about what the central idea will be.
“The concept is: to the job creation phase, add the real wage increase phase”, limited itself to responding to the query of The Observer in that opportunity. Arbeleche added that the “reduction in inflation” expected for the coming months will contribute to the negotiation environment to reach the signing of the wage agreements.
What is likely is that they will be considered two-year agreements as in the previous round, maturing in mid-2025. Mieres said that next month they will begin to work with the Economy in the design of the new guidelines that will guide the negotiation.
“The economy needs to have a greater dynamo in terms of consumption, and some economists have raised it. I think they are right, that is, the salary increase generates the same as the tax reduction that occurred from March. They are in line with a citizenry that has better incomes, and therefore can spend more and consume more”, he stated.
special unemployment insurance
The Executive Branch is studying the possibility of implementing special unemployment insurance for seasonal workers in sectors whose harvest will be affected by drought, such as grains or citrus, for example. The measure could be implemented in April or May. “It is a letter that we have on the table,” said the minister.
