Argentine Workers Unions Prepare for Fifth National Protest

Argentine union workers plan to hold a fifth general strike next month to protest President Mauricio Macri’s economic policies, the General Confederation of Labor of Argentina (CGT) said Thursday.

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"The government has to respond to workers; they also have to clarify the country’s current situation, particularly the situation in communities," said CGT official Carlos Acuña, who has confronted state officials in the past due to the rise of hunger, unemployment, and the loss of workers’ rights.

Acuña says that all efforts to reach an agreement with the Macri administration has been "exhausted" and workers across the nation must mobilize.

Though date still has yet to be determined, the demonstration will be extended to 36 hours. However, Acuña assured that the CGT is confident in the movement’s success and the support of the majority of Argentina’s strongest guilds.

In September, hundreds of protesters swarmed the streets of Buenos Aires in a 24-hour strike to reject the government’s social and economic policies.

During a press conference, CGT member, Juan Carlos Schmid, said, “Collective bargaining agreements became insufficient in the face of an economic program that destroys the value of our currency. Any expectation in the government has lost its value. … What we win one day on the negotiating table, we lose the next day in the supermarket.”