Unions file formal challenge against wage decree
The CTA de las y los Trabajadores and the CTA Autónoma sent a carta documento on Friday to Human Capital Minister Sandra Petovello, contesting Resolution 4/2026, which set a new value for Argentina's Minimum, Vital and Mobile Wage. Both federations are demanding that the government reconvene the National Council on Employment, Productivity and the Minimum Wage, and that it do so in person. They argue the procedure used was irregular and that the amount fixed falls short of the rising cost of living.[S1]
The two union bodies describe the resolution as absolutely and irreparably void, contending that the minimum wage was set without following the procedure laid out in Law 24.013 and without adequate justification for the criteria used to determine the increases. According to their filing, the official decision ignored the real trajectory of inflation as well as the constitutional and legal objectives the minimum wage is meant to serve.[S1][S2]
Wage increase trails inflation by a wide margin
The CTA federations point out that year-on-year inflation reached 33.3 percent as of August 2026, while the minimum wage rose only 16.96 percent over the same period. That gap, they warn, deepens the loss of purchasing power and leaves the minimum wage below the Total Basic Basket, hitting lower-income workers hardest and worsening living conditions in the most vulnerable sectors.[S1][S2]
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In their filing, the unions also argue that the minimum wage was set without regard for the evolution of the cost of living or the goals that the Constitution and labour regulations establish for it. For the CTA, the shortfall translates into a deterioration of income for workers earning the lowest wages and particularly affects lower-income households.[S2]
Demand for real negotiation and threat of legal action
The carta documento calls on the Salary Council to stop operating as a merely formal instance and to guarantee a genuine process of negotiation and social dialogue, in which the parties can put forward proposals, discuss alternatives and seek effective agreements. The unions stress that the minimum wage must emerge from a transparent and participatory debate rather than from unilateral decisions by the executive branch.[S1][S2]
On those grounds, the CTA federations gave Minister Petovello 48 hours to reconvene the Council and urged an urgent review of the minimum wage amount. They also warned that, absent a response, they will launch administrative and judicial actions and make representations to national and international bodies to demand compliance with the constitutional and legal obligations tied to the minimum wage.[S1][S2]
