Judicial employees announce national strike for wages: what increase are they demanding?

The general secretary of the union anticipated the cessation of activities for this Wednesday throughout the country. Salary increase and social work, among the keys

By Alejandro DiBiasi

27/02/2023 – 20,45hs

The Secretary General of the Union of Justice Employees of the Nation (UEJN), Julio Piumato, maintains his “combative mode”, ratified the state of alert and mobilization and called for this Wednesday a national strike with mobilization at 10 o’clock at the Palace of Justice, while each section will have how they are manifested throughout the country. The union made a banner last week in demand for salary improvements for the sector.

The noisy demonstration also had as a point of concentration the headquarters of the Buenos Aires courtss and was replicated in judicial offices throughout the country. The protest of the UEJN was that the Supreme Court attend to the salary demands for the first joint tranche of this year.

The union presented its proposal that consists of a 4 percent salary increase to match the 2022 guideline with official inflation values ​​and 19% retroactive to January 1 corresponding to the first tranche of this year.

Piumato, in “combative mode”: prepare measures of force in the guild

In a statement, Piumato stated: “The inflation that plagues our country is suffocating and we judicial officers will not allow it to be carried on the backs of our families economic waste”, in a clear criticism of the Government.

Far from his times when he was a member of the ruling party, the leader of the UEJN has been blaming the Executive for not releasing the items so that the Supreme Court orders the salary increase for judicial personnel. Union spokesmen explained to iProfessional that “for now the strike is not suspended because we have no news of an increase, while our salaries deteriorate day by day.”

Piumato maintained that “this week the mobilization and the cessation of activities throughout the country” and he did not rule out deepening the protests starting next week with a 48-hour strike as he did last year, where a similar situation occurred.

Courts claim for the management and operation of social work

In recent years, the UEJN presented a series of claims for the management of the Obra Social del Poder Judicial de la Nación (OSPJN), which now they are empowered by the Supreme Court trial. While the union points to administrative problems, which led to the lack of attention from members, shifts for specialists with delays of months and other issues, the Chamber of Deputies and private accusations focus on alleged irregularities in the administration.

Last year, the UEJN ratified its intention to be part of the administration of the board of directors of the social work, finally achieving a place. The spokesmen stated that “this occurred last December, now a colleague occupies an armchair in that place”. Resolution 3,407 issued by the CSJN Supreme Court appointed the Deputy Secretary of the UEJN, Maia Volcovinsky, for a period of three years to be part of the entity’s management scheme.

Likewise, it also incorporates Juan Bernardo Rodríguez del Sel by the Association of Magistrates and Officials of the Judiciary, and appoints the doctor Mariano Althabe as President of the Board of Directors of the Obra Social and the lawyer Cora Borensztejn as vice president. Another of the union’s claims was “Let the directors who have allowed this deterioration per year be fired”, which gradually occurred.

The union does not accompany the political trial to the Supreme Court

Beyond the salary proposals and the case of social work, the union made it clear that it does not support the impeachment trial against the Courtand what do you think there is an advance of the Government, more specifically of Kirchnerism. The judicial sources maintain that “we do not support this political trial, we believe that it is part of an attack against Justice that this government has been carrying out.”

They consider that it is a move that encourages the ruling party against the highest court “that In short, it threatens the division of powers and the independence of Justice that the country needs”.

Regarding the OSPJN, the project presented shows that “There are around 400 complaints in courtand judicial cases opened by the workers of the provider”. That is why they maintain that a division must be made about what can be considered bad management in the health provider and that they are not related to the other cases against the courtiers, to which that qualify as “political” denunciations.