MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Wages trail inflation in Argentina under Milei

Wages trail inflation in Argentina under Milei

Inflation outpaced salaries in March by 11% to 10.3%, according to a report by Argentina's National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (Indec) released Friday in Buenos Aires. In yoy terms, the Wage Index increased by 200.8% on average (231.7% in the registered private sector, 183.7% in the public sector, and 129.2% in the informal private sector) and inflation was 287.9%, the survey showed. Hence, President Javier Milei's perception that salaries were recovering turned out inaccurate.

In March this year, worker remunerations also grew by 45.5% from December's figures (50.5% in the registered private sector, 43.2% in the public sector, and 29.1% in the informal sector) while the Consumer Price Index (CPI) went up 51.6%.

The Wage Index measures since 2015 the evolution of salaries regardless of other considerations such as the number of hours worked, unpaid leaves, or productivity bonuses, it was explained. Assessments regarding unregistered workers were added in October 2016. On August 23, 2016, the Indec reinstated the publication of labor market estimates based on the Permanent Household Survey (Encuesta Permanente de Hogares, EPH) as of the second quarter of that year.

The latest Indec report came out one day after a general strike against the Libertarian government to protest against the mounting hardships to which Argentines have been exposed under Milei's chainsaw policies and the ensuing drop in consumption and therefore in production and economic activity.

Milei's assessment had been based on the RIPTE (Remuneración Imponible Promedio de los Trabajadores Estables) drafted by the Labor Ministry, according to which wages had increased 14% in March against an 11% inflation.

A recent Indec study showed that 95% of companies did not plan to hire new staff or increase the number of working hours. In the first quarter of 2024, industrial activity plummeted 30%. A similar scenario was detected in the construction sector.