Prefecture staff on strike over wage claims

October 2, 2012
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A group of members of the Coast Guard was quartered in a detachment located in the neighborhood of La Boca, in protest at the cuts that will suffer their salaries.

The troops are leading the strike in the South Belt Unit 24, and they say that because of the decree 1307/12, are suffering “a reduction of between 30 and 60 percent” in its assets.

President Cristina Kirchner signed the decree that was published on September 4 in the Official Gazette, which increased the salary of the police and prefects, but also eliminated the additional compensation.

The decree established four new special supplements “position of responsibility”, “for intermediate function”, “fulfillment of specific tasks for safety” and “wholesale service requirement.”

One of the protesters said: “I was earning $ 7,000 and now it’s just $ 4,100. I have 20 years of service in the force and now this salary is not enough to cover my rent of $ 2,000 plus daily expenses.”