A climate of tension between union leaders and government authorities is throwing doubts on the prospect of students in Buenos Aires province starting classes in just 18 days.
Collective wage bargaining talks between teachers' unions and the Buenos Aires provincial government will begin tomorrow (Thursday).
Unions oppose the inclusion of a trigger clause in the deal and have already expressed their intention to reject the 15-percent wage increase offered by Governor María Eugenia Vidal's government.
Teachers say the national government and Central Bank’s 15 percent inflation target for 2018 is unrealistic and claim that what is on offer in the province will naturally eat into teachers’ real wages.
“The guideline of [private economic] consultancy firms is already at 20 percent”, teachers’ union kingpin Roberto Baradel told the C5N news channel.
As is often the case, the Buenos Aires provincial government is hoping to activate the proposed wage increase in intervals throughout 2018, a plan the unions vehemently oppose.
“It’s clear that what is happening is the reduction of wages for teachers and public workers in the province”, the SUTEBA boss added.
-TIMES
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