Bank Clerk Strike in Buenos Aires
By now, Argentines are used to the stream of strikes that hit the country every year
. Although the strikers can range from subway workers to farmers, many of the recent strikes have taken place in the banks.
Today is no different as bank clerks in Buenos Aires go on a one-day strike.
They are asking for higher wages and safer workplaces - both of which are issues that bank clerks have been protesting about over the past few months in the South American country. Today, however, they are also demanding the reinstatement of employees who have been laid off, and the implementation of salary agreements from earlier this year.
Up to 90 banks have called off all services to the public throughout the entire day, but have promised to keep the doors open for clients who need to use the ATMs. But there will be no one to refill them when they run out of money, which is a common problem in Buenos Aires. And, judging by the long lines at almost all the ATMs, it won't be long until most have been emptied.
The last strike like this one was a two-day nationwide strike held on August 5th and 6th of this year. The Argentine banking union,La Bancaria, called for another one on September 8th, however, it had no impact to normal market operations as the Buenos Aires stock exchange, the central depository, and the Central Bank of Argentina refused to adhere to the strike.
This time, bank clerks hope that the strike will be effective. At the top of their agenda is the security issue, especially after a recent attack on a pregnant woman outside of a bank in the nearby province of La Plata.
Carolina Piparo, who was eight months pregnant at the time, left a local bank with a bag full of cash to make a down payment on her home, when two gunmen on motorcycles jumped her. After being knocked to the ground, the men shot her in the face and chest and stole her money. As Piparo lay comatose on the street, her baby was born already dead.
Piparo is now in recovery, and several suspects have been arrested, but it has increased Argentine citizens' and bank clerks' fear of crime at their banks. Although Piparo's case was extreme, smaller robberies in Argentine banks are frequent, and the government has taken little action to prevent them.
According to the Associated Press, many politicians and economists believe that the main cause of crime is Argentina's cash-based economy, and the lack of a proper banking system. Although electronic transfers would ease the situation, it is rare as most people demand cash for all types of business transactions.
If the strike is successful, the Congress will debate several bank security proposals that they refused two weeks ago. Until then, however, the banks will remain unsafe for both their workers and their clients.
By: Jasmine EnbergRead more international news at www.allmediany.com! Bank Clerk Strike in Buenos AiresBy: Rose
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