To all PSI affiliates in Argentina;
CGT, CTA-T and CTA-A

Ferney-Voltaire, 19 January 2024

Dear comrades,

During Public Services International’s (PSI) 31st World Congress in October 2023, General Secretary Daniel Bertossa stated we live in a world of overlapping crises - the Covid-19 pandemic, the environmental crisis, wars and deepening inequality and poverty. However, there is another crisis: the crisis of political and democratic representation. This is a crisis in which the interests of the great majority of people are not represented, but rather, extremist minorities exploit popular discontent with rising inequality, social exclusion and the current economic model to undermine democracy and implement even more extreme policies.

This phenomenon (already experienced in countries like USA, Italy and Brazil, among others) is now being repeated in Argentina. Only days into its mandate, the Milei government has attacked the collective institutions designed to protect and promote the public good. Argentinian trade unions have reacted swiftly by organising, mobilising and building alliances to confront regressive reforms.

PSI affiliates in Argentina, the national trade union centres and other allies in the broader trade union movement are preparing for a strike and mobilisation at the National Congress on January 24 to stop the advance of both the ‘Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU)’ and the so-called ‘Omnibus Law’ which contain a wide diversity of priority issues for Milei, many of with are clearly not urgent and won’t help the Argentine population to deal with the current crisis.

The decree modifies more than 300 regulations that affect and destroy critical areas of collective and public life in Argentina including health, tourism, medicines, trade, the media and regional economic integration. It presents trade unions as enemies and directly attacks the right to organise and to strike.

The ‘Omnibus Law’ has 1,649 articles that attack all areas of social and political life, including the fundamental architecture of the state. It is a law that would lead to the systematic dismantling of the public services upon which Argentinian citizens depend.

The National Strike, called by the General Central of Argentinian Workers, to which the other trade union centres (CTA-T and CTA-A), social movements and organisations, political parties, student organisations, and other allies will join, will confront and contest the use of unconstitutional legislative instruments that promote privatisation, austerity and the shrinking of the State, wage freezes, price liberalisation, precarious work, the handing over of land to foreigners, money laundering, and the increase of foreign debt.

PSI calls on its affiliates and all trade unionists around the world to support these actions and show solidarity. We know that victories in one country swiftly embolden attacks in others. At a time when multiple countries are faced with extreme right governments, and in a year when more elections are due, each loss is all our loss and each victory is a victory for all.  

For all of these reasons, PSI will join and promote the call for mobilisations and strikes on January 24 and fully supports the action plan of the Argentinian trade union centres.

In solidarity,

Daniel Bertossa
PSI General Secretary

Federico Dávila
PSI First Vice-President