The Senate will debate the labor reform project this Wednesday from 11:00, an initiative for which the ruling coalition made concessions to allied governors and the CGT, which resisted several points of the bill. According to the Argentine News Agency, the head of the La Libertad Avanza (LLA) senators' bloc, Patricia Bullrich, announced on Tuesday an 'agreement' to debate the labor reform on February 11, calling it 'the first law of democracy to make a strategic change in labor relations'. The agreement reached with allied blocs and governors contemplated the elimination of the article reducing the Income Tax for large and medium-sized companies, which had an impact of more than 2 trillion pesos in the provinces. Another important point is that the ruling coalition ceded to the CGT's demand because the so-called 'union box' was maintained: the solidarity contribution to unions will be maintained for two years with a cap of 2%, and the contributions for social work will remain at 6%. The mandatory contribution to business chambers with a cap of 0.5% was also maintained. In addition, the banks' request to remain solely responsible for paying salaries was accepted, as virtual wallets, as stated in the original project, will not be authorized. With this agreement, La Libertad Avanza will arrive at the session called for this Wednesday at 11:00 with the guarantee that it can sanction the labor modernization law. 'It has 27 agreed-upon amendments and it is a report that has been brought to a good port after months of work,' said Bullrich about the understanding with different parties such as 'the UCR, the PRO, and provincial parties'. And she added that 'since the beginning of democracy, Argentina has been working on the possibility of adapting its labor norms to the different changes that the country and the labor market have had'. Bullrich justified the substantial changes that occurred with a phrase in which she recognized that without these reforms they did not have the votes. The Central Bank may give virtual wallets, which are not banks today, the category of bank,' she added. Bullrich also confirmed that the Statute of the Journalist will be repealed, but there will be a six-month period to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement. 'The statutes fall in six months so that they can draw up an appropriate agreement in each of the sectors. So, we are committed to that. 'The tango is danced in pairs,' she said by stating that a law 'is not the imposition of one part over the other, but the construction of an agreement'. 'In this agreement, the Government proposed a reduction in income tax'.
