The Santa Fe Legislature approved this Thursday the creation of a multi-sector commission to analyze what path to adopt to guarantee the sustainability of the Santa Fe Retirement Fund. The project had half a sanction from the Senate and underwent modifications during treatment in Deputies, which minutes later were ratified in the Upper House. It is expected that changes in the pension regime in the province will emerge from the debate in that commission. The unions maintain that there are no valid arguments to face a reform and they understand that the Executive seeks to raise the retirement age and the contribution rate. For this reason, this Thursday morning they demonstrated to the Legislature expressing their rejection of the initiative. The position of the unions does not sit well with the government, where they assure that the idea is to put the issue up for discussion among all the actors involved. “The unions have difficulties reading and understanding text, that’s why I always send the union members to school,” criticized the vice governor, Gisela Scaglia. “The commission is a staging, because they already know the changes they want to make,” the unions analyzed.
The formation of the commission was approved in Deputies with 37 votes in favor and had the vote against Carlos Del Frade, Fabián Oliver and Claudia Balagué (Frente Amplio por la Soberanía), as well as the abstention of Lucila De Ponti (Santa Fe without Fear), Alejandra Rodenas (Justicialist Commitment), Miguel Rabbia (Building Future), Natalia Armas Belavi (Life and Family) and Juan Domingo Argarañaz (Inspire). The opinion that was discussed in Deputies had a series of modifications to the initiative that had half a sanction in the Senate, on April 25. After its approval it was returned to the Upper House, which immediately gave final sanction.
The modifications are not minor. The original project marked the need to reform the province’s pension regime, because the government understands that they do not give the numbers: only in the first four months the cash deficit exceeds 90 billion pesos. But the new text moves the axis of the reform to focus on the analysis of the current situation and the submission of a report to the Executive, before debating modifications. Furthermore, the text guarantees that the Retirement Fund continues to be within the orbit of the province and maintains “its solidarity character.”
The changes were introduced after an arduous internal debate within Unidos para Cambiar Santa Fe. The thing is that in Socialism the idea of a commission that agrees on an opinion with reforms, which then becomes a draft law, was not closed. . In fact, the socialist Paco Garibaldi was the only one who did not accompany the vote in the Senate. In his speech, deputy Joaquín Blanco clarified the situation. “What we are creating is a commission to analyze the sustainability of the pension regime and the contribution that this chamber makes is substantial with respect to the half-sanction that came from the Senate,” he expressed and added: “With very good sense, this Chamber What he is sanctioning today is for that commission to prepare a report.”
Finally, the commission will be made up of the presidents of the Constitutional and General Legislation Commissions of both chambers, in addition to six senators, eight deputies, four representatives of the Executive Branch and four representatives of the unions that contribute to the fund. Even after converting the project into law, the Senators quickly chose who would participate in the discussion: Alcides Calvo, Rubén Pirola, Hugo Rasetto, Esteban Motta, Oscar Dolzani and Joaquín Gramajo. The commission will have 45 days to submit its report to the Gray House.
The guilds
The situation that the pension regime is going through in the province suggests a heated debate. The unions had already expressed their rejection of the discussion when the formation of the commission was just a rumor. And this Thursday they ratified their position with a mobilization in the Legislature. For the unions, the commission is still an “excuse” with which the government seeks to advance on two key points: an increase in the retirement age and the increase in the contribution rate, which today is 14% of the salary.
“We do not agree with the analysis that is made, that it is necessary to reform the retirement system due to the deficit in the retirement fund. We believe that it is a momentary deficit due to the funds that the national State owes to the province of Santa Fe,” evaluated Rodrigo Alonso, secretary general of Amsafé, in dialogue with Rosary/12. “That is why we believe that the government should not adjust the workers, but rather demand that the Nation comply with the law and transfer the resources it has to transfer,” he added.
In addition, the union leader recalled that the State of Santa Fe also has responsibilities over the Retirement Fund. “The State has to guarantee rights not only to education, health, housing and work, but also to retirement. Here they want to discuss this with a supposed deficit, which is still 3.90% of the budget. Is it wrong for the province to put resources into guaranteeing decent retirements? No, that is why we believe that the government is taking the path again against the workers.”
Also consulted by this medium, Diego Ainsuain, from Siprus, considered that from the officials’ own statements it is clear that the government already has its own reform in mind. “It seems to me that the commission is going to be an excuse. The ruling party is already very clear about the changes it wants to propose,” he said and added: “Some officials are already talking about increasing contributions from assets and raising the minimum to 17%, which would imply a salary reduction to salaries that have already been reduced.” lost 50 points against inflation.”
For the representative of Santa Fe health professionals, the other point under discussion is the retirement age: “They propose an increase in the retirement age because they say there is an increase in life expectancy. They intend for a worker who has been working in a health center for 30 years to continue doing so at the age of 67 or 68. This not only impacts the worker himself, but implies other situations in relation to the care that he can provide.”
Meanwhile, Lorena Almirón, from ATE Rosario, agreed that “there is no need” to reform the fund in this context. “Of all the points that are listed as possible changes, none are favorable for us and that is why we rejected it from the beginning,” she said. “But also, the commission reserves four places for unions for which we do not know who the representatives are or how they will be chosen. What we propose is that we must demand that the national government pay its debt and that if there is a shortage it comes from another place, not from the pockets of the workers,” she remarked in dialogue with this newspaper.
He sent them to study
The unions’ position does not sit well with the government, where they understand that the modifications are necessary for workers to continue collecting their pensions. And that anger was evident in the statements of the lieutenant governor, Gisela Scaglia, who came out with her caps on end to criticize the mobilization of the unions this Thursday in the Legislature. “Unions have difficulties reading and understanding text. That’s why I always send the union members to school, because they have a problem understanding what it’s about. This is a commission that is going to evaluate, with them inside, what is the best reform that the retirement fund should have,” she questioned at a press conference.
Likewise, the official confirmed that “there is no specific reform project,” but rather a commission that will work, with voices from different sectors, on solutions for this deficit. “Let’s discuss it openly. “It is a difficult discussion, but it must be given,” she assessed. And she added: “If I were an education union member, I would be worried about any teacher who enters the system today and who in 25 years will not be able to retire. That is what they have to transmit, not the fear and panic they are transmitting.”
The governor himself, Maximiliano Pullaro, also spoke out this Thursday on the issue and said that the deficit of the Retirement Fund in June will reach 40 billion pesos, with the payment of the bonuses. “It is the equivalent of 40 kilometers of road, there are eight schools that we are not going to build in the province, there are more than the 840 patrol cars that we are buying,” he compared. “Unfortunately, the Fund had many delays, because it is an extremely old law. But it does not mean that we are going to take rights away from any worker; On the contrary, we are defending the rights of future retirees from the province of Santa Fe,” he assured.
