Argentine President Milei Fires 1,400 Health Workers
Argentine health workers. X/ @ArgentinaBibi
January 15, 2025 Hour: 1:28 pm
In 2024, the far-right politician caused the loss of 180,000 jobs.
On Wednesday, the Argentine Ministry of Health announced that it would not renew the contracts of 1,400 workers, labeling their positions as “political posts.”
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“Out! We’re moving forward with the chainsaw,” President Javier Milei said, describing the dismissals as part of the 30% reduction in “political posts” that has been implemented since the beginning of the year.
The Health ministry that the decision not to renew contracts is part of its institutional restructuring, which involves reorganizing its responsibilities and redirecting health policies.
“This optimization of human resources within the Ministry, decentralized agencies, and national hospitals is being carried out as part of the changes to its structure,” Health Minister Mario Lugones explained.
He justified the dismissals by claiming that the health workers had failed to fulfill their duties, duplicated functions, and were irregularly hired during the presidency of Alberto Fernandez (2019–2023).
In the first nine months of 2024, the Milei administration implemented fiscal cuts that resulted in 33,291 public employees losing their jobs, according to Federico Sturzenegger, the Minister of Deregulation and State Transformation. However, this figure differs significantly from the reality experienced by Argentines.
In November, the Faculty of Economics at the University of Buenos Aires published a report revealing that between December 2023 and August 2024, the Milei administration caused the loss of 180,000 jobs: 52,000 in the public sector and 128,000 in the private sector.
teleSUR/ JF Source: EFE
