Argentine workers stage nationwide strike to protest Javier Milei’s sweeping reforms

BUENOS AIRES (CN) — Just six weeks since far-right libertarian President Javier Milei took office in Argentina, objectors to his sweeping economic and social measures staged a nationwide strike that closed banks, halted public transportation, canceled hundreds of flights, and brought tens of thousands to march on the streets of downtown Buenos Aires.

Wednesday’s strike was led by Argentina’s largest labor unions, representing workers in air travel, banking, construction, energy, medicine, transportation, security and more. It was the first national strike in Argentina since 2019.

“We call on all upstanding Argentines to join this resistance movement,” said prominent union leader Pablo Moyano, speaking from a stage in front of Congress at Wednesday’s march. “Our homeland is not for sale,” Moyano added, echoing one of the crowd’s rallying cries.

Workers downed their tools in protest of Milei’s economic and social overhauls, which the president has rapidly pushed forward in his first 45 days in office. Already, Milei has made steep cuts to spending, laid off thousands of government employees, and halved the number of public ministries from 18 to nine. More broad proposals are detailed in a lengthy emergency decree, which Congress will have the opportunity to repeal in March, and a reform bill known as the “omnibus law,” which is currently being debated in Congress.

Together, the presidential decree and the legislation include hundreds of controversial measures that scale back workers’ rights, privatize state companies, slash spending, deregulate industries, limit the right to protest, and remove environmental protections. The bill would also confer more power to the president.

These wide-ranging proposals are consistent with the promises Milei made throughout his presidential campaign. A self-described “anarcho-capitalist,” Milei went from being a fringe television pundit to landing in Argentina’s presidential Casa Rosada by presenting himself as a populist alternative to Argentina’s ruling “political caste.” He often wielded a chainsaw at his campaign rallies, emblematic of the huge spending cuts he intended to make as president. 

In December, buckling under triple-digit annual inflation and rising poverty, 55.7% of Argentines elected Milei over center-left establishment candidate Sergio Massa.

Argentina's inflation has only worsened since Milei came into power last month. In December, Argentina became the country with the highest inflation in Latin America, surpassing Venezuela’s rate with a staggering annual inflation of 211.4%. Prices increased 25.5% from November to December, compared with 12.8% the month before. The spike in Argentina’s already skyrocketing inflation was partially spurred by Milei’s rapid move to devalue local currency by more than 50%.

The president warned Argentines about such financial disaster in his inaugural address, stating that the country has been “left with no choice” but to endure economic shock. Public opinion polling suggests that, so far, most Argentines remain on board with Milei’s plans, with a recent poll showing the president has an approval rating of about 52%.

While working in a butcher shop in Buenos Aires’ central Almagro neighborhood, Walter Pedro Pascua watched coverage of Wednesday’s strike on TV. Pascua is older than Argentina’s retirement age of 65, but keeps working to make ends meet. “I understand why people are striking,” he said. “Things are expensive, people don’t have jobs, people have been fired by the president.”

That said, even though he voted for Massa, Pascua said he is holding out hope for Milei. “He says he will get this country out of this mess, and hopefully he does,” Pascua said. “But it’s only been a month, and you can’t fix things from one day to the next.”

Down the street, Nelson Martínez runs a small shoe repair business, which he kept open on Wednesday. As inflation has forced him to spend more on his own expenses, Martínez said that he has in turn raised prices for his customers. Martínez describes himself as “apolitical,” but says he’d like to see the president implement his reforms at a slower pace. “The buses, the subway, and the trains have all raised their fares so much that it doesn’t even make sense for some people to commute to work,” he says. “How are they supposed to feed their families?”

Commuting to work was especially difficult on Wednesday, with the nationwide strike disrupting transportation and daily life in Buenos Aires and across the country. Around the world, unions in countries like Brazil, France, Germany and Uruguay marched in solidarity, while Argentines living in major cities like London, Madrid and New York led small demonstrations.

Gaia Cespedes, 26, took the day off of her studies in Adrogué, a city located south of Buenos Aires, to attend Wednesday’s protest with her mother. “I’m here because I’m a student, I’m a woman, and I’m a worker, and I think this government is hurting all those groups,” Cespedes said. She held a poster that read: “When tyranny is the law, rebellion is a right,” a quote attributed to Venezuelan independence leader Simón Bolívar.

Maximiliano Marote, who works in private security, also took the day off to march along Buenos Aires’ July 9 Avenue, a major street named in honor of Argentina’s Independence Day. He did so in the company of fellow members of Argentina’s leading union for security workers.

“We’ve been through this many times before. A new government says there’s a change, but keeps implementing the same neoliberal and anti-worker policies as they always do,” Marote said. “I want the president to know that the people still have a social conscience.”

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