The Minister of Economy, Sergio Massa, and the director of Anses, Fernanda Raverta, confirmed a bonus for informal workers between 18 and 64 years old in October and November who were not reached by other previous announcements. Although they prefer not to call it IFE (Emergency Family Income), what they call “income reinforcement for informal workers” has similar characteristics to the program carried out during the pandemic and on this occasion they estimate that it will cover almost 3 million people. According to Indec data, there were around 5.4 million unregistered workers in the first quarter of this year.
The benefit will be $47,000 in October and November, a figure that does not compensate for what was lost by unregistered employees who have been the hardest hit by the inflation unleashed after the 22% devaluation applied by Massa more than a month ago, the day after the PASO. Even more so considering that informal workers have accumulated a 42% drop in income since 2016.
The basic food basket (CBA) (indigence basket) prepared by Indec, for a family group made up of two adults and two children, increased 17% in the month of August, going from $111,642 to $130,590. He bono of $47,000 represents only 36% of said basket and if we take into account that double-digit inflation is expected in September, it is very likely that the amount granted by the government will cover less of said basket the following month.
The bonus excludes workers in a dependency relationship, the self-employed, monotax, social monotax and private homes; those who receive a retirement or pension will not be able to collect. They will also not be able to receive the AUH, AUE, Family Allowances or Progresar, social plans such as Potenciar Trabajo or unemployment benefits. In addition, Anses will carry out a socioeconomic and property evaluation (consumption, assets, health coverage, etc.) of each person who requests it, which may exclude more workers.
The left had been demanding a IFE of $100,000 emergency for the informal and monotributist workers of the lowest categories, on the path of the fight for genuine work because precarious work is at record levels under the IMF adjustment.
To meet the fiscal deficit goal with the IMF, Massa stated that “in order for this measure not to end up affecting public accounts and to maintain fiscal order, (…), we have made the decision to charge an advance payment.” extraordinary profit to those sectors that were the big winners of the devaluation imposed by the IMF, centrally banks, financial companies and insurance companies that will be notified tomorrow by the AFIP for the purposes of making the payment of the advance of profits. ”. It only charges an advance payment to the sectors that gained the most instead of affecting their interests.
On this Tuesday morning, it was also learned that the workers holding Unemployment benefits will collect a bonus of $20,000 in two installments of $10,000 in the months of September and October.
The new bonus to compensate for the rise in inflation in the lowest-income sectors can only be a palliative, without providing any fundamental solution to the 18 million people who are immersed in poverty and do not have the possibility of being able to cover their expenses. basic needs. The Unity Left Front proposes a series of emergency measures to address this situation, starting by guaranteeing that all workers and retirees receive an increase in your income that allows them to access the basic basket and establish the amounts that are updated according to inflation so that they do not fall behind again.
Source: www.laizquierdadiario.com
