Buenos Aires, December 16 (NA) — The former secretary general of the General Confederation of Labor (CGT) and a historical leader of the union movement, Antonio Caló, backed the protest called by the labor central against the labor reform promoted by the national government and launched strong criticisms at President Javier Milei's administration, warning about the impact of his policies on industry and employment. In an interview on the 'Hora de Cierre' program on Splendid AM 990, Caló stated that the protest scheduled for Thursday aims to 'move the ball forward and show the government what it is doing,' and clarified that he agrees with the CGT's strategy: 'That the comrades who can go, do so, not that the CGT forces them.' The former head of the United Metallurgical Workers (UOM) harshly questioned the executive's economic course, stating that 'with these policies we are going to the UOM and the country of 2001,' while pointing out that company closures are taking place 'all over Argentina.' We battled for 40 years. In that sense, he recalled that during his tenure the union had to face a creditors' process in a context of a severe industrial crisis. Caló also flatly rejected the need for a labor reform, stating that 'a labor reform is not needed, we have been the same for 75 years and have had no problems,' instead proposing to strengthen collective work agreements. 'The young people voted for novelty, social media invaded everything a bit,' he pointed out, and maintained that the movement can resurface, although he questioned the existence of 'a caste on top that controls everything' and demanded internal party primaries. Finally, Caló expressed his discomfort with the progress of the bill in Congress and launched a strong warning to the legislators: 'This law has me feeling bad.' However, he considered that a judicial reform should indeed be advanced, by maintaining that 'anyone can file a lawsuit' and that there are distortions in the system. On the political front, the leader expressed concern about the current state of Peronism and the electoral behavior of young people.
