Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Collective Bargaining Convention, 1981 (No. 154) - Argentina (Ratification: 1993)

The Committee takes note of the supplementary information provided by the Government in the light of the decision adopted by the Governing Body at its 338th Session (June 2020), which provides detailed and updated information on the state of collective bargaining and on the collective agreements approved in the country.

The Committee also notes (i) the observations of the Industrial Confederation of Argentina (UIA), communicated with the Government’s supplementary report and relating to the role of collective bargaining in the management of the COVID-19 pandemic, alluding in particular to the adoption of bipartite protocols on action to prevent spread of the disease in workplaces; (ii) the observations of the General Confederation of Labour of the Argentine Republic (CGT RA), received on 27 September 2020, regarding the application of the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98). Those observations provide information on the situation of collective bargaining in the context of the pandemic, referring in particular to agreements between the CGT RA and the UIA in respect of a minimum wage floor and stability of employment, and recommending the automatic 60-day approval of the agreements concluded under section 223bis of the Labour Contracts Act and in accordance with the parameters agreed by the social partners. In that connection, those organizations allude to Ministerial Resolution No. 397/2020 which, as agreed, implements automatic approval of agreements; they report that certain sectoral agreements have been signed within this framework. The CGT RA adds that while most organizations postponed the formal start of 2020 negotiations, due to continued restrictions imposed by the pandemic, a number of unions began and completed their collective agreements; and (iii) the observations of the Confederation of Workers of Argentina (CTA Autonomous), received on 30 September 2020, also regarding collective bargaining in the context of the pandemic, and indicating that CTA Autonomous was not consulted in respect of the measures taken after the agreement between the CGT and the UIA, although the organization had asked to be included and had proposed measures to the authorities. It regrets that, in confronting the crisis, use had not been made of social dialogue through the Social Dialogue Commission. The observations also refer to the Supreme Court ruling of 3 September 2020, giving exclusive collective bargaining rights to workers’ organizations with trade union status. The Committee notes that CTA Autonomous goes on to refer to observations by the Association of State Workers (ATE), which affirm that: (i) not all provinces have legislation that specifically guarantees State workers’ right to bargain collectively and that very few provinces have signed a collective labour agreement; and (ii) there is no guarantee of the existence of an impartial body that can act in cases of collective disputes between the State and its employees.

The Commission welcomes the use of collective bargaining in the management of the pandemic. The Committee also stresses the importance of a broad social dialogue with all representative workers’ and employers’ organizations when taking action to address crises affecting the interests of their members. The Committee requests the Government to communicate its observations regarding the issues raised in these supplementary observations.

The Committee reviewed the application of the Convention on the basis of the additional information received from the Government and the social partners this year (see Article 5 below), and the information at its disposal in 2019.

The Committee notes the observations of the Industrial Confederation of Argentina (UIA), received on 30 August 2019. The Committee also notes the observations of the Argentine Federation of the Judiciary (FJA), received on 27 August 2019, as well as of the General Confederation of Labour of the Argentine Republic (CGT-RA), received on 3 September 2019, and of the Confederation of Workers of Argentina (CTA Workers), received on 10 September 2019.

The Committee welcomes the creation of the Social Dialogue Committee and refers, in this respect, to its observation on the application of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87).

Article 5 of the Convention. Promotion of collective bargaining in the country. The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government concerning the collective bargaining situation in the country in 2017 (in which a total of 1,004 collective agreements and accords were signed, covering 4,180,000 workers), in 2018 (in which a total of 1,653 agreements and accords were signed, covering 4,300,000 workers) and in the first three months of 2019 (during which a total of 1,518 approved agreements and accords were signed, covering 3,982,813 workers).

Collective bargaining of workers in the national judiciary. In its previous comments, the Committee urged the Government to take the necessary measures to guarantee the collective bargaining rights of workers in the national judiciary and the provinces. The Committee notes that, once again, the Government refers to the division of powers and recalls that the regulation of collective bargaining in the national judiciary falls within the exclusive competence of the Supreme Court and the legislative branch. The Government adds, in this respect, that two bills in that area had been submitted recently, which had lost parliamentary status without being addressed. Regarding the judiciaries of the different provinces, the Government indicates that progress has been made, reflected in intense bipartite negotiation activities, and indicates that collective bargaining is implemented in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, as well as in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Tucuman, Chaco, Rio Negro and Mendoza. The Committee also notes that the CGT RA states that the national judiciary continues to invoke its independence to evade the exercise of collective bargaining; and that the FJA reports that neither at the national level nor in 23 of the country’s 28 provinces is the right of collective bargaining of workers in the judicial system respected. The Committee also recalls that these inadequacies in the promotion of collective bargaining of workers in the national judiciary have been the subject of various cases before the Committee on Freedom of Association (for example, Cases Nos 3078 and 3220). The Committee trusts that the Social Dialogue Committee will carry out an analysis of the necessary measures, adapted to national conditions, including legislation, which must be adopted to ensure the right to collective bargaining of workers in the national judiciary and in all the provinces of Argentina. The Committee encourages the Government to consider the possibility of inviting representatives of the judicial and legislative powers in question to engage with the Social Dialogue Committee for the purposes of this discussion. The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of any developments in this respect.