Argentina Transport Sector To Strike Thursday

The transport sector will hold a three-hour strike Thursday to press the government to reduce income tax pressure, a protest that could last longer if demands are not met, a union leader said Tuesday.



The strike "will paralyze" airline, bus, port, subway, train and truck services early Thursday, said Hugo Moyano, a trucker who runs the General Labor Confederation, the country's largest labor umbrella group. 



While only for three hours, Moyano said on Radio America that the walkout "could be extended" if the government of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner doesn't meet protesters' demands.



This is the latest labor unrest to hit Latin America's third-largest economy this year, as rising inflation cuts spending power and the economy contracts. The International Monetary Fund expects the economy to shrink 1.7 percent this year and 1.5 percent in 2015.



Bankers and teachers have walked off the job in the past month, while oil workers have also threatened similar action.



A main source of contention is dwindling spending power as inflation surpasses 40 percent, according to private estimates complied by opposition lawmakers.



This is the first year that salaries have not kept pace with annual inflation since it reached double digits in 2007 and sped up to 25 percent between 2010 and 2013.



With the current inflation spike, the spending power of salaries has dropped for the first time since the ruling Front for Victory party took power in 2003. Orlando J. Ferreres y Asociados, an economic consulting firm in Buenos Aries estimates the decline to be about 8 percent.



Moyano said the transport workers will likely demand that the government raise the exemption threshold for paying income taxes, helping to increase take-home pay and preserve spending power.



They also may ask companies to pay an end-of-year bonus, Moyano said.



The protest "is to tell the government, 'Pay attention to our demands because they are fair,'" Moyano said. "If there is no response, we will analyze this and then make a decision on what to do next."



www.aa.com.tr/en - Arjantin