Buenos Aires, Dec 4 (NA) -- The Union of Tramway and Automotive Workers (UTA) has warned of a "work stoppage" for tomorrow if the corresponding November salaries are not paid.
"No salary, no work," they warned. "Any company that does not pay will likely cease to operate and there will be a strike."
The UTA continues to await payment of the salaries for the second-to-last month of the year and reiterates that the problem lies with the employers.
"The employers are the ones who do not provide the service, not us," the union stated.
"If the salary is not deposited by midnight, the services will not run," detailed Mario Calegari.
Calegari emphasized the position of the automotive guild and backed it up with the law, stating that "salaries must be paid on the fourth business day."
"We are not willing to finance the companies' debt with our salaries. The salary is necessary, it is the most sacred thing we have," he affirmed in statements to TN.
Start of the conflict
The UTA points to the National Government, holding it responsible for the workers "having to go on strike to receive their salaries on time and in full, which constitute the sustenance of their families," in the face of the threat from Business Chambers to pay salaries in two parts and to split the Christmas bonus (aguinaldo) into installments.
According to what the Argentine News Agency learned, the disbursement of additional funds to companies by the State, approved this Thursday in the Official Gazette, aims to convince worker representatives to call off the strike with the promise that salary payments will be normalized shortly.
So far, the UTA's decision has remained unchanged, but employers and national authorities are confident they can reverse the situation, relying on the greater capacity of response of the sector's companies following the increase in tariff compensations.
"We need our salary, we are not in a position to finance the companies," stated UTA spokesman Mario Calegari.
