From the Union of Administration, Maintenance and Casino Services Employees (AMS), a complaint was filed with the authorities of the Province of Buenos Aires.
Argentina.- As the summer season progresses, the peak time for visitor influx at casinos located in tourist spots, discontent grows among a sector of workers in the Province of Buenos Aires who consider the current salary situation "worrying".
In this regard, from the Union of Administration, Maintenance and Casino Services Employees (AMS), represented by its general secretary, Roberto Páez, and the treasurer secretary, Vanina Manarola, submitted a note to the Buenos Aires authorities requesting the immediate opening of a collective bargaining table. The goal is to address both the salary situation of the workers and structural problems affecting the sector's employees.
In their statement, the union emphasized the impact of the current economic crisis, exacerbated by the policies of the national government, on the purchasing power of the workers. "Salaries continue to lose purchasing power day by day, which generates a constant deterioration in the living conditions of our colleagues," the union stated.
Among the topics proposed for discussion, AMS highlighted the "urgency" of agreeing on salary increases, but also the transition to permanent staff for contracted workers and the acceleration of staff reduction processes.
They also pointed out the need to discuss the revision of the Collective Labor Agreement and the operational structures of the casinos, tenders, and the reopening of the Casino Sasso, provision of necessary work clothes and tools, and the equalization of the Compensatory Bonus for all employees.
The union communicated that it "recognizes the efforts" of the Buenos Aires government to mitigate the effects of the economic crisis, but highlighted the need for concrete actions to improve working conditions.
"We request the opening of a space for dialogue between workers and provincial authorities with the goal of alleviating this situation and finding solutions that allow the salary recovery of our affiliates," concludes the statement signed by Páez and Manarola.
See also: Labor improvements for casino workers in Buenos Aires: what is the commitment adopted by the government
Meanwhile, the National Casino Employees Association (AECN) also expressed their discontent with some situations faced by the workers. From the union, a letter was sent to the president of the Provincial Institute of Lotteries and Casinos (IPLyC) Buenos Aires, Gonzalo Atanasof, so that the provincial regulator takes urgent measures on the issues raised by AECN.
According to AECN, the current scenario of the activity in the province is "catastrophic" which is why they demand urgent measures and the reversal of other changes that have only contributed to the difficult current moment.
"Firstly, it is evident from our point of view the attempt to remove autonomy from the agency, which means that to advance in each management, the intervention of various officials and external agencies is required, who do not always certainly have the willingness to act with the speed of each case, much less the commiseration that the problems of the casinos and their workers require. In this context, we encounter two scenarios of positioning of the agency: the internal and the external," AECN explains.
According to them, this leads to internal politics interfering in issues that, otherwise, could be resolved more easily and quickly. "Tenders of Casinos and the use of QR codes have advanced at a snail's pace," exemplified by AECN.
This is compounded by other accusations about political interference. According to AECN, in the future transfer of the Ramallo bingo to the town of Escobar, there was also participation of officials unrelated to the sector.
