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7 Chapter Labor Law
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Overview of working environment
Argentina has had an economic crisis for years, unemployment has multiplied and many people turn to informal employment, also mixed work days, where employees are offered hours of assistance to work places, but also hours at a distance. The country should focus on quality jobs, reduce informality so investments can increase.
Working population.According to the National Institute of Statistics and Census of Argentina, for the fourth quarter of 2018 the economically active population was 12,978,501 people, of which 67.1% were employed neither demanding nor available, 9.1% they were open unemployed, 17.3% occupied job seekers, and 6.5% employed were not applicants available. In the country, 65% of men work, compared to 41% of women.Unemployment rate.The unemployment rate increased 9.10% in the fourth quarter of 2018.Wage levelThe wage index of the total registered employees showed a growth of 3.2% in the month of January 2019 compared to the month of December of 2018, as a consequence of the increase of 3.5% of the registered private sector and an increase of 2, 6% of the public sector.Salary index. Percentage variations with respect to the previous period and index numbers.
Minimum wage.The minimum salary in Argentina is ARS 11,900 per month.Inflation rate and wage increase.Wages in Argentina increased 3.50% on January of 2019 and the inflation rate was recorded at 50.70 % in February of 2019. In 2018 there was a salary increase throughout the country, in the following table we can see the increase by sector.
Source Willis Towers Watson.Labor Union
Trade unions are guaranteed by the Argentine Constitution Article 14 bis, and protected by Law 23,551 of Professional Associations and Regulated by Regulatory Decree 467/1988.The total number of unions in the country is 3100, affiliates 3 million, figures from the International Labor Organization in 2016, showed that the level of unionization in Argentina is 40%, in Brazil 16.6%, in Chile 14.4 %, in Mexico of 9.2% and in Colombia 5.7%.Some of the main unions are the following:CGT (General Confederation of Labor of the Argentine Republic)CGT (General Confederation of Labor of the Argentine Republic)CTA (Central de Trabajadores de Argentina)CTA (Central de Trabajadores Autónoma)Union protection for workers.
The union must represent individual and collective interests, workers who are unemployed may retain their membership until six months have elapsed since the termination of the employment relationship. In case of retirement, accident, illness, disability, unemployment or military service, the members will not lose the right to belong to the respective association, but they will enjoy the rights and will be subject to the obligations that the statute establishes.Labor Union disputes.
According to the law, in order to obtain state recognition of trade union status, a trade union organization must certify that it affiliates at least 20% of the total number of workers included in its scope, and that they have worked for this purpose for at least six months, but this mechanism is only applicable for workers in the private sector, since in the public sector the law indicates that there must be a system of union pluralism. On the negotiation, the law establishes that the negotiation must be carried out between a trade union association of workers with trade union status, and a professional association of employers, an employer or a group of employers. The regulatory system in Argentina provides that collective labor agreements that are approved by the Ministry of Labor of the Nation and will be applicable to all workers in the activity or category included in the scope of the agreement, regardless of the worker or employer in particular are affiliated or not to representative organizations of workers or employers. the law gives the Ministry of Labor of the Nation the power to perform a control of legality, in order to guarantee that the agreement does not affect public order dispositions, but also allows it to carry out a control of opportunity, merit or convenience, since it enables you to refuse homologation when you consider that the agreement affects the "general interest". Union organizations, such as employers' representatives, have an obligation to negotiate in good faith. This indicates that they must appoint, negotiators with a sufficient mandate.Labor Law
Individual regulations: working hours resting days, benefits bonuses
The workday is free to be defined in the contract, however there must be a minimum pause between one and another which is 12 hours, therefore the maximum working hours period will be of 12 hours a day.
The night shift has a limit of 7 hours, this would be between 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Working days for jobs in unhealthy conditions cannot exceeds 6 hours a day or 36 hours a week.
Overtime will force the employer to pay 50% more per hour in common days, 100% more per hour in saturdays after 1 p.m. and sundays. Meaning the rest days are saturday and sunday.
Profit sharing, if convened in the contract, the workers will be entitled to earn a percentage of the profits.
Vacations
workers may have an uninterrupted vacations period as follows:-14 days when seniority of worker is not greater than 5 years.
-21 days when seniority of workers is greater than 5 years.-28 days when seniority of workers is greater than 10.-35 days when seniority of workers is greater than 20 years.To have the right to a vacation period, employees must have worked for at least the middle of business days of the corresponding year.
Bonuses
Salary can be paid in money, kind, room, food or through the opportunity to obtain benefits or profits.
Protection children and female workers.
Once reached the 18 years old, a person can ask for work.
The minimum age for work would be 15 years old, but it requires authorization form the parents or legal representatives.Discrimination over sex, race, nationality, religion, political opinion, union affiliation or age is forbidden by the labor law.
Any other aspect in a labor contract with women or children will be the same as any worker, it can never go to inhuman conditions or reducing the rights of the workers.
Maternity rights:
a.Maternity leave during 90 days 45 prior and 45 after childbirth,b.2 Lactation daily breaks of 30 mins,
c.Women with a seniority of more than one year may opt for not working, with no salary, from a period between 3 to 6 months.
d.Compensation for the time of services, in case the women renounces during the maternity leave.
e.Special indemnification, equivalent to one year of salaries if the employer dismisses the women between the seven months previous or after childbirth.
Resignation
If the Worker decides to leave his duties, there are two ways to do it properly:
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Telegraph. The worker must go to a telegraph office, prepare his resignation message, identify his personality and send it.
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Administrative Authority offices. These a labor offices in which the worker can go an inform his desire for leaving his duties, the offices will later notify the employer.
if the above-mentioned conditions are not met, the resignation will be null.
it is important to consider that a bad attitude from the employer resulting in the resignation of the worker will entitle the latter to start a labor trial, the labor authorities may resolve forcing the employer to pay as unjustified dismissal.Rules of employment contract
Depending on the duration, the labor contract has two initial options, determined and undetermined contracts.
Determined contract has an specific date for termination and the following characteristics:
- 5 year duration is the limit.-The activities involved are so specialized that they will eventually finish.- Unjustified dismissal will entitle the worker to several inseminations.Undetermined contracts lasts until the worker is apt for retirement, these are the standard contracts for the majority of labor relations.
The Law also allows other types of contracts:
Season contract, seasonal situations in which a Company needs employees that will only work under certain conditions provided once a year.
Eventual contract, in this type of contract the employee enters the company to provide an specific service over an specific and extraordinary and transitory tasks.
Team or group contract, when the company hires a group of workers, this situations includes unions, workers organized.
Community contract, when a company request the services of an association or community decides to undergo the provisions or certain services in a permanent and exclusive ways, this type of contract allows children to work, under the proper conditions.
These types of contracts, will imply the same labor right for every worker, proving that the title of the contract and the conditions are adequate to the activities is responsibility of the employers.
Social security.
Social insurance in Argentina has universal coverage, all members of society are entitled to them, various instruments, these rights, such as the National Constitution, 14 bis, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 22 and the International Covenant of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Article 9.The benefits of Argentine social security are the following:A) Family allowances: are intended to help families, there are two types of family allowances. The single payment, consisting of one-time amount in the case of marriage, birth or adoption of a child and also those of periodic payment, which consist of the monthly payment for persons who have children up to the age 18 years old or with some disability. There is also a benefit for unborn children, which applies from the third month of pregnancy. These allowances cover the families of workers with a salary lower than the amount indicated by the system of allowances, to families of pension and retirement benefits, of work risks and by unemployment insurance.B) Unemployment insurance: This insurance covers those who have been laid off in a dependent employment job and involuntarily find themselves unemployed. The time during which workers can receive this benefit increases according to the duration of work registered prior to unemployment. During the period in which they collect this unemployment insurance, beneficiaries are also entitled to health coverage, family allowances and pension contributions.
C) Coverage of work risks: These services are provided by private companies, called Labor Risk Insurers (ART), controlled by the Superintendency of Occupational Risks, which depends on the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security of the Nation.
D) Health coverage: The health system has three sectors, the public sector, private sector and social work. The public sector provides universal and free care to the entire population, social works provide health services to workers in dependency relationship and their families. The private sector groups independent professionals and establishments that provide services to social work and prepaid medical companies that offer health services to those who hire them.
E) Retirement and pension coverage:
1)Retirement: To receive a retirement, workers must have at least 30 years of contributions and have reached the age of 60 in the case of women and 65 in the case of men. For the calculation there must be two components, the universal basic benefit (Prestación básica universal PBU) and the amount that is calculated in terms of the number of years of contributions and wages received.2)Pensions:
Disability pension: Is the loss of the working capacity of 66% or more, and must be dictated by a medical commission. The worker with this benefit has the right to receive the corresponding pension provided that he has complied with the requirements for contributions. The value of the pension is 70% of the average income of a worker and has the same maximum and minimum caps as with retirement.Pension for Death: it is granted to the beneficiaries of the deceased worker, the amount is approximately 50% of the average of their previous income. In case the person who dies is retired, the amount will be 70% of the retirement pension that the person received. The beneficiaries are entitled to family allowances and health coverage.
Residence.
Foreigners who wish to work in Argentina must apply for a work visa, the most common visas are the Article 29 Visa, which is temporary, is issued for short-term work, the Article 15 Visa is issued for employees or contracted in Argentine companies, the minimum duration is 6-12 months. When applying for this visa, the person will be considered as an Argentine employee and must request a unique Labor Identification Code. Another type is the Article 15 Visa, for workers sent out by their companies for a period of not less than 6-12 months, they do not require a work permit.Those who have a contract with a company or institution in Argentina must sign a labor agreement in the presence of the consul and those sent to Argentina by foreign companies have to sign the labor agreement required with the corresponding company. The spouses and children of applicants for a temporary work permit who want a residence permit in Argentina have to prove their family bond.
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References:
Mercado de Trabajo, Tasas e Indicadores socioeconómicos, Cuarto Trimestre 2018. Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos. https://www.indec.gob.ar/
Argentina Unemployment rate, Trading Economics, 2019.
https://tradingeconomics.com/argentina/unemployment-rate
Índice de Salarios 2019, INDEC.
https://www.indec.gob.ar/nivel4_default.asp?id_tema_1=3&id_tema_2=38&id_tema_3=111
Argentina Minimum Monthly Wage, 2019
https://tradingeconomics.com/argentina/minimum-wages
El País Argentina, 2019,
https://elpais.com/internacional/2016/08/22/argentina/1471869918_784064.html
Ley de Asociaciones Sindicales - Ley Nº 23.551
http://trabajo.gob.ar/downloads/acciones/ley23551.pdf
NORMAS Y POLÍTICAS LABORALES Y SOCIALES, LA NEGOCIACIÓN COLECTIVA EN ARGENTINA, Luis Campos y Guillermo Gianibelli 2013.
http://www.relats.org/documentos/DERECHOCamposGianibelli.pdf
Argentina Inflation Rate, and wage increase , 2019.
https://tradingeconomics.com/argentina/
Sueldos 2019: ya hay sectores que se perfilan "ganadores" con plan de aumentos sobre la inflación.
Seguridad Social, Ciencias Sociales, Programa de Capacitación Multimedial. Mayo 2012.
http://www.trabajo.gob.ar/downloads/domestico/explora_SeguridadSocial.pdf
Permisos de Trabajo, Cuándo y cómo solicitarlos, 2019.
https://www.justlanded.com/espanol/Argentina/Guia-Argentina/Empleo/Permisos-de-Trabajo
http://servicios.infoleg.gob.ar/infolegInternet/anexos/25000-29999/25552/norma.htm
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