Argentina’s Senate Backs Milei’s Labor Overhaul, Sending Bill to Lower House

Overview

• Senators approved the labor reform 42–30 and forwarded the text to the Chamber of Deputies, which can revise or block the bill.
• Large protests outside Congress turned violent as police used water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets, with injuries and detentions reported by officials and local media.
• The package reduces severance, eases dismissals, restricts strike actions, allows cash wage payments and permits split vacations, changes unions denounce as regressive.
• The government frames the plan as modernization to expand formal employment in a labor market where roughly 40–43% of workers are informal, aligning with IMF program expectations.
• To secure Senate backing, the administration negotiated about 30 changes, dropping provisions on employer income tax breaks and salary deposits to digital wallets and softening union funding measures, while targeting passage before March 1 remains uncertain.