Development: On 12 February, Luis Barrionuevo became the latest of Argentina’s most powerful trade union leaders to distance himself from the general strike being organised by Hugo and Pablo Moyano for 21 February.
Significance: Barrionuevo’s decision to come out against the general strike is a coup for President Mauricio Macri. It was Barrionuevo, the leader of the union of tourism, hotel, and restaurant workers (UTHGRA), who had issued a stark warning to Macri last month not to “twist the lion’s tail”, pointing out that previous presidents who had attacked the country’s trade unions had failed to finish their terms. Barrionuevo was referring to the unprecedented surge in arrests of union leaders accused of corruption. That he has not seen fit to rally to the side of the Moyanos, who stand accused of money laundering, is telling.
- Barrionuevo is the latest in a steady stream of union bosses to abandon the Moyanos, who lead the Sindicato de Camioneros truck drivers’ union. It follows the decision by Carlos Acuña and Héctor Daer, two members of the ruling triumvirate of the country’s largest trade union movement, Confederación General del Trabajo (CGT), to desert the Moyanos.
- Juan Carlos Schmid, the third member of the CGT’s triumvirate, still supports the Moyanos, but, crucially, other transport union leaders have opted out of the general strike: Roberto Fernández, the leader of the bus, tram, and trolleybus union Unión Tranviarios Automotor (UTA), and Omar Maturano, the leader of the national railroad union, La Fraternidad.
- The labour, interior, and transport ministers, Jorge Triaca, Rogelio Frigerio, and Guillermo Dietrich respectively, have redoubled their efforts in recent days to try and isolate Moyano. The aim is to give the impression that he is part of an intolerant minority within the trade union movement spurning the government’s offer of dialogue.
Looking Ahead: The Macri administration looks like reaping the reward of its divide and rule tactics. In a clear indication that he is feeling cornered, Hugo Moyano lashed out yesterday at what he described as “a CGT subordinated” to the government.