Scandal in San Luis: ATE denounces that Poggi eroded nearly 90 points of state salaries

The salary situation of state workers in San Luis continues to deteriorate. According to the Association of State Workers (ATE), the responsibility lies with Governor Claudio Poggi after applying cuts that caused a sharp loss of purchasing power, wages below the poverty line, and a growing level of indebtedness among public employees.

“This government, like no other in the rest of the country, began its term in December 2023 by paying salaries in installments. No other government did that,” said the secretary general of ATE San Luis, Fernando Gatica. “In 2024 alone, more than 60% of the salary was lost relative to inflation,” he explained and stressed that, at least until June of this year, since December 2023, “nearly 90 points” have been lost relative to inflation according to INDEC data.

In 2024, Gatica asserted, the province achieved a surplus of 180 billion pesos throughout the year, equivalent to three complete payrolls that the province would have saved by not paying the salary increase for state workers, in addition to cutting budgets in education, health, and other ministries.

“A formal notice was sent to the provincial government because, until a few days ago, on the website of the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic, the funds that San Luis had for 2025 were published; there were 32 million dollars and 2.3 billion pesos that the Central Bank published as the money the province had,” Gatica said, highlighting the contradiction between the money the province supposedly has and the few increases given to workers.

“In this province there is no collective bargaining; the state unions requested dialogue with the provincial government, but Poggi does not listen to the demands,” Gatica reviews. “It cannot be denied that the Nation adjusts the provinces with revenue sharing. But to that adjustment, the province adds another adjustment on state workers,” he detailed while recalling the construction of an inter-union table.

The complex socioeconomic situation of the province, Gatica warned, has pushed “six out of ten workers today to go into debt to cover their basic needs here in our province.” On that, he specified that 30% of that sector, that is, three out of ten employees, are already in absolute default, which leaves them excluded from access to credit and cards after having suspended their payments to prioritize covering the basic basket.

The union compared accumulated inflation and salary increases. According to the information released, between December 2023 and May 2026, accumulated inflation reached 228.5%, while state workers’ salaries increased by 138.77% in the same period.

Likewise, INDEC reported that the Housing, water, electricity, gas, and fuels category registered an accumulated increase of 497.2%; Education increased by 402.5%; Communication, 352%; Various goods and services, 268.8%; Transportation, 261.2%; Health, 217.9%; Recreation and culture, 205.4%; Food and non-alcoholic beverages, 199.4%; and Clothing and footwear, 126%.

The conflict deepened after Governor Claudio Poggi announced, at the end of March this year, that state salaries would be paid through an “anti-crisis fund” and anticipated the possibility of applying new cuts. The governor defended that decision by arguing that it is a financial tool provided by the Province to face the current economic context.

In response to that proposal, ATE questioned the official justification and argued that the reports published by the Ministry of Economy of the Nation show a provincial financial situation that, according to the union, does not support the need to apply an adjustment on workers. For this reason, the union sent a formal notice to the provincial government to demand clarifications on the state of public accounts and the reasons for the announced measures.

Finally, Gatica detailed that the organization demands from Poggi a salary recomposition that recovers the lost purchasing power, the transfer of workers to permanent positions, reclassifications, and the cessation of all forms of workplace violence.

Since Claudio Poggi took office in December 2023, San Luis has faced a deep socioeconomic crisis: marked by the loss of 344 registered companies as of March 2026, and a drop of 7.22% that exceeds the national average of 5.2%. This decline aligns with an 8% drop in formal employment (4,417 fewer jobs), a 51.5% collapse in real teacher salaries, and an increase in poverty in Greater San Luis to 30.1%.

The impact is especially severe in construction, which suffered a year-on-year contraction of 10.5% in employment due to the paralysis of public works, affecting its entire local value chain; a reality that contrasts with the governor’s stance, who denies the existence of a provincial economic crisis.

In this context, between 2023 and 2026, San Luis led the fall in real teacher salaries with a 51.5% drop in purchasing power, far above Salta’s 34.4% and contrary to improvements such as Santa Cruz’s 13.6%, which would require a recomposition of 106.1% to recover what was lost. This adjustment occurs in a context where poverty in Greater San Luis reached 30.1% and the basic basket exceeded $1,400,000, leading ATE to denounce state salaries below the poverty line, a reality that Governor Claudio Poggi insists on denying by rejecting the existence of an economic crisis.

Finally, the situation of public health is not much better. ATSA San Luis denounced a 50% loss in purchasing power in the health sector and warned of strike measures due to the lack of response from Claudio Poggi. The union exemplified that a nursing salary from March 2024 ($584,115.53) should reach $1,160,387.33 in April 2026 to not lose against inflation. This demand occurs in a province with record poverty of 30.1%, inflation of 33.5% (higher than the national rate), a drop in industrial employment, and a cut in national funds of $1,183,000 per inhabitant; critical indicators that the governor insists on denying.