At airports across the country A very important battle is taking place against the right-wing government of Milei.. It does not only concern the aeronautical sector. Of course, they are the protagonists and the main victims of this situation. But A fight is fought that we call “witness”a political fight that sets the precedent for what is to come. We say this clearly because it is part of the struggle that exists between the government (and all its henchmen of different political colours, including pancakes, traitors, dialoguers and mercenaries), against the entire workers’ and popular movement.
Let’s see why: Frozen wages devoured by inflation are a national problem for the entire working class. Not to mention informal workers, who do not even have a pay slip. The government has put the spotlight on the workers of Aerolíneas Argentinas in an attempt to deal a defeat to all workers, by disciplining the aeronautical workers, who have been protesting because their salaries have been frozen for a year.
In second place, They want to dismantle any type of organization against the adjustment mandated by the big employers and the IMF.. And that is why they question, with Sturzenegger at the head, the right to strike. For that, they also have the priceless (or payable) help of the Bernardo Neustadts of this era, like the ineffable Fantino, who first did his thing against the oil workers of his province who shut his big mouth with a victory, and now attacks the aeronautics with dozens of weekly fakes. They call us extortionists, savages, privileged, the same ones who applauded in the middle of the pandemic for bringing vaccines from China and Russia, and repatriating thousands of Argentines from all over the world, while airports were closed. That is why they suspend, sanction and fire APLA pilots and GPS outsourced workers since the beginning of the year. The message is to generate fear and paralysisThey do the same with retirees, who are repressed once a week in Congress. They also attack university students, vetoing the budget increase that both the House of Representatives and the Senate of the Nation had voted for. While they give huge benefits to big businessmen, those are very low amounts, just like the 17 thousand pesos they took from our retirees.
Third, There is the defense of national sovereignty against vulture funds and speculators of all kinds. The Government already tried to vote for the privatization of Aerolíneas in the omnibus law and then in the basic law, and failed in both attempts. However, today it is once again insisting, hand in hand with the PRO, as extortion so that the workers accept zero collective bargaining. All in the service of zero deficit, that is, of having the dollars (which, no matter how many adjustments they try to impose, do not appear) to pay the debt and to finance the flight that the banks and multinationals are living off, which are taking it away by the shovelful. This flight is a continuation of previous governments. They want us to remain silent and complain from our homes, while they plunder the country once again..
Data related mata
For weeks they have been saying that the pilots earn more than 10 million pesos per month; that they fight to have a taxi; a free birthday and unlimited first class tickets. All lies.
A few months ago, Nicolás Posse, the former Chief of Staff, had presented a thousand-page report on the state airline at the request of the senators. It does not support any of the lies spread by the media and by his ministers in recent weeks. Despite talking about gross salaries (which is misleading because it omits the average 35% discount that must be made to determine the take-home pay), he has to admit that ground workers, who are approximately 50% of Aerolíneas’ staff, earn less than a million pesos. That is, less than the basic basket (today at $930,000) and many are below the poverty line.
The crew, who are just over 2,000 for 81 planes and hundreds of flights a day, earn very little, above a million. The same can be said of the technicians. In the case of the pilotswhich is one of those who speak because they are the best agreement at the airport, 80% charges less than 2 and a half million pesos, even though it has been flying for decades. A salary that is far behind its regional peers, and even more so if we talk about the world.
If we talk about the Aerolíneas call center, There are workers who earn less than 500 thousand pesos and the porters, who can carry up to 10 thousand kilos of luggage and cargo per day in their lowest category, They barely reach 650 thousand pesos.
Here are the supposed privileged people who are denouncing the senators who receive salaries of 9 million pesos above the table.
With rampant inflation – beyond the creative accounting of the Minister of Economy – that eats away at the salaries of millions of workers day after day, the offenses against the workers of Aerolíneas who rise up against the adjustment to their pockets must be taken as an offense to all workers.
The right to strike in question
Unfortunately we have to say that The attack on the basic right of aeronautical workers to protest is not new, far from it.It just so happens that very similar arguments are always used to call into question the passengers, who seem to suffer from Stockholm syndrome because they support their alleged kidnappers, as “hostages”.
It is no coincidence that these attacks always occur at times when what is at stake is high. It is not just the salary but the flag airline or, in this case, all state-owned companies.Let us remember: in 1992, Aerolíneas workers fought with strikes like those of today against dismissals, retirements and the loss of the agreement that was part of the emptying of the Iberia company that had taken control of our state airline. At that time, the Menemist government threatened the workers with illegality by regulating the strike.
In 2001, with Marsans at the helm and the emptying in its final stage, the measures of force that the workers carried out with significant support from society and thousands of workers from other unions, were the force necessary to save Aerolíneas Argentinas from disappearance. From there arose The slogan of Aerolíneas Argentinas is that we are allAt that time, all unions were also threatened with having their legal status revoked, declaring the strike illegal and the workers “savages.” The Spanish looters who ended up in prison, on the other hand, were “civilized.”
In 2011facing a new crisis for the flagship airline, Cristina decreed the return of air traffic control to the military to prohibit controllers from striking which are now part of the ATEPSA union. At the same time, APTA (mechanics) and APLA (pilots) were again threatened with having their legal status revoked.
Today we are faced with a new wave of attacks with the decree declaring the aeronautical service essential, but not the workers, which is why it regulates that only 50% could strike in the event of forceful measures, similar to what they want to impose on teachers, who are “allowed” to strike only 25% of unionized teachers.
There are forces to win and they do not come from heaven
The aeronautical workers have shown that they have the capacity and the predisposition to win this political fight that the government is proposing because they know that not only their salary depends on it, but also their jobs, because the plan of emptying and defunding advances with layoffs. To unleash all the strength that is contained among the Aerolíneas workers, we believe that the unity of all the aeronautical unions is very important.holding assemblies that call upon the majority of workers to discuss the plan of struggle and a unifying strategy. assemblies from below The protests that arose both in the hangars of EZE and in Intercargo EZE are an example of the predisposition that exists among the rank-and-file workers. The fact that all sectors of the union movement have spoken out this week is also important. But The commitment of the CGT, the CTA and the big unions to the Aerolíneas struggle must be effective. Declarations alone are not enough. It is necessary to create a national commission in defense of Aerolíneas Argentinas and its workers that guarantees a great fight to win.
Los Students who have already demonstrated the power they have by taking to the streets by the millionsmust be a fundamental part of the commissions that are created in each place in support of Aerolíneas workers.
The government plan has clear winners, which are the Low Cost (those that are already in the “open skies” of our country and those that are waiting to take advantage of the market that Aerolíneas will leave bankrupt by its own owners (today ARSA has approximately 70% of the internal market) and friendly businessmen like Eurnekian. That is why we believe that it is very important to affect the interests of these businessmen in the next force measures.
From the GPS Internal Commission and the dismissed workers fighting for their reinstatementwho have been part of the first line in defense of Aerolíneas Argentinas, We are available to fight this battle in unity with all the effective workers. because for us it is the same struggle.
Source: www.laizquierdadiario.com
