Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Argentina

Hours of Work (Industry) Convention, 1919 (No. 1) (Ratification: 1933)
Weekly Rest (Industry) Convention, 1921 (No. 14) (Ratification: 1936)
Hours of Work (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1930 (No. 30) (Ratification: 1950)

In order to provide a comprehensive view of the issues relating to the application of ratified Conventions on working time, the Committee considers it appropriate to examine Conventions Nos 1 (hours of work (industry)), 14 (weekly rest (industry)) and 30 (hours of work (commerce and offices)) together.

The Committee notes the observations of the General Confederation of Labour of the Argentine Republic (CGT RA), received on 29 August 2025. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in this respect.

Legislative developments. Articles 2(b) and (c), 4 and 5 of Convention No. 1, Articles 4 and 5 of Convention No. 14, and Articles 4 and 6 of Convention No. 30. Variable distribution of hours of work. Total or partial exceptions to the principle of weekly rest. Compensatory rest. The Committee notes that section 197 bis of Act No. 20744/1976 on contracts of employment (LCT), added by section 79 of Decree No. 70/2023 on foundations for rebuilding the economy, provides that “collective agreements, respecting the minimum requirements of 12 hours of rest between working days, as well as the legal limits based on the nature of each activity, may establish arrangements that are adapted to changes in production methods and the specific conditions of each activity, taking into account, in particular, the benefit and interests of workers. To this end, overtime, time banking and compensatory time off may be collectively arranged.”

The Committee also notes that the CGT RA indicates in its observations that section 197 bis allows for the establishment of various arrangements on the legal working day, including periods of rest, which could jeopardize compliance with the legal minimums that guarantee workers’ basic rights.

The Committee notes that the Government reports that the National Labour Court of Appeal declared that sections 53 to 97 of Decree No. 70/2023 were unconstitutional and that a final ruling by the Supreme Court of Justice is pending.

In this regard, the Committee observes that section 197 bis of the LCT does not clearly define the circumstances in which variable distribution of hours of work is permitted, the reference periods or the exceptions to the principle of weekly rest, and that it only establishes a limit of 12 hours of rest between working days.

The Committee recalls that, in general, Conventions Nos 1 and 30 only authorize the calculation of hours of work over a reference period of one week, provided that the daily limit of nine and ten hours is not exceeded (Article 2(b) of Convention No. 1 and Article 4 of Convention No. 30), and that, in all other cases where the averaging of working hours over reference periods exceeding one week is exceptionally permitted, the circumstances must be clearly specified, in the following terms:

• where persons are employed in shifts it shall be permissible to employ persons in excess of 8 hours in any one day and 48 hours in any one week, if the average number of hours over a period of 3 weeks or less does not exceed 8 per day and 48 per week (Article 2(c) of Convention No. 1);
• in processes that, by their nature, must be carried on continuously by a succession of shifts, the daily and weekly limits of hours of work may be exceeded, subject to the condition that the working hours shall not exceed 56 in the week on the average (Article 4 of Convention No. 1); and
• in exceptional cases where the limits of 8 hours per day and 48 per week cannot be applied, agreements between workers’ and employers’ organizations may set a longer daily limit of work, provided that the average number of hours worked per week, over the number of weeks covered by any such agreement, does not exceed 48 (Article 5 of Convention No. 1) and that hours of work in any day do not exceed 10 hours (Article 6 of Convention No. 30).

With regard to weekly rest, the Committee recalls that Articles 4 and 5 of Convention No. 14 provide that, in cases of total or partial exceptions to the principle of weekly rest of 24 hours, proper humanitarian and economic considerations must be taken into account and employers’ and workers’ organizations must be consulted in advance. They also establish that, as far as possible, compensatory periods of rest should be provided for the exceptions.

Lastly, the Committee notes that the CGT RA indicates that the Chamber of Deputies is currently analysing several bills that propose the creation of optional alternative workday arrangements, which would tailor the working day to the nature of each activity, allowing the elimination of the daily limit of eight hours.

The Committee requests the Government to report on any developments regarding the precautionary suspension of Decree No. 70/2023, which added section 197 bis to the LCT, in relation to hours of work and weekly rest. Moreover, while noting that, according to the CGT RA, several bills on working time are being analysed in Congress, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that any amendment to labour legislation on hours of work and periods of rest takes into consideration the requirements established in these Articles of the Conventions.

Hours of work

Article 2 of Convention No. 1, and Article 3 of Convention No. 30. Daily and weekly limits on hours of work. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the national legislation establishes an alternative limit on hours of work of 8 hours per day and 48 per week (section 1 of Act No. 11544 of 1929 on working days, section 1 of Decree S/N/1930 and Decree No. 16115/1933, which regulate Act No. 11544, and section 1 of Decree No. 562/1930, which regulates the work of personnel assigned to maritime, river and port services). The Committee also notes that the working hours of National Public Administration personnel must be between 120 and 180 hours per month, with a daily period of rest of 12 hours between working days (section 43 of Decree No. 214/2006 approving the general collective labour agreement for the National Public Administration). In this regard, the Committee observes that section 43 of Decree No. 214/2006 does not establish daily or weekly limits on hours of work. The Committee recalls that the Conventions provide for a double limit – daily and weekly – on hours of work and that this limit is cumulative, not alternative. In this context, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to ensure, in law and in practice, that normal hours of work do not exceed 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week, both for workers in industry and for those in commerce and offices, including those in the National Public Administration.

Articles 2(b) and (c), 4 and 5 of Convention No. 1 and Articles 4 and 6 of Convention No. 30. Variable distribution of hours of work. With regard to its previous comments on section 198 of the LCT, the Committee notes that the section allows collective agreements to establish methods for calculating the maximum working day based on an average, based on the nature of the activity. In this regard, the Committee observes that the aforementioned section does not establish the specific circumstances in which the number of hours of work may be calculated on average, nor does it define the reference period for this calculation. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the reference period over which the average number of hours of work are calculated under section 198 of the LCT and under what conditions calculations based on an average are permitted. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the application of the aforementioned section in practice.

Article 2(c) of Convention No. 1. Variable distribution of hours of work over periods exceeding one week. Employment in shifts. The Committee notes that section 3 of Act No. 11544 and section 10 of Decree S/N/1930 regulate the calculation of the average number of hours of work over a period of up to 3 weeks, with a limit of 8 hours per day or 48 hours per week on average. In this regard, the Committee recalls that Article 2(c) of Convention No. 1 requires in such cases that a double cumulative, not alternative, limit of 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week be respected. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken or envisaged to ensure that, where persons are employed in shifts, the average number of hours over a period of up to 3 weeks does not exceed 8 per day and 48 per week.

Application in practice. The Committee notes that the CGT RA indicates that: (i) there has been a gradual blurring of the principle of limited working hours as a result of flexible working arrangements, extended rotating shifts and unrecorded overtime, which has intensified in sectors such as logistics, urban transport, work in distribution centres, as well as in pseudo-monotax arrangements; (ii) in the context of teleworking and the platform economy, working hours are vague, long and unrecorded; and (iii) the recent initiative to amend the LCT by means of Decree No. 70/2023, which relaxes the provisions on working days, periods of rest and labour registration, represents a step backward in the effective implementation of Convention No. 1. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in this respect.

Weekly rest

Application in practice. The Committee notes that the CGT RA claims that, in certain sectors such as oil, transport and logistics, extended working hours and rotating shifts could effectively deprive workers of their weekly rest. In this regard, the CGT RA emphasizes the effects on the physical and mental health of workers who do not have access to weekly rest and indicates that it is necessary to strengthen labour inspection mechanisms in order to guarantee such rest as an essential component of decent work. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in this respect, as well as information on the application in practice of the provisions of the Convention.

The Committee reminds the Government that it may avail itself of the technical assistance of the Office with respect to all the issues raised if it deems it necessary.