UTA suspends national bus driver strike in Argentina

The Unión Tranviarios Automotor (UTA) has suspended a planned 24-hour national strike for bus drivers in the interior of Argentina, originally scheduled for Friday, August 14. The suspension follows an intervention by the National Secretariat of Labor and a commitment from the Federación Argentina de Transportadores por Automotor de Pasajeros (FATAP) to present a formal wage proposal.

The core of the dispute involves a significant wage gap between drivers in the provinces and those in the Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires (AMBA). UTA is demanding that provincial salaries be equalized with the recently agreed-upon scales in AMBA, which include a basic salary approaching 1.7 million pesos by September, plus bonuses and travel allowances.

While the immediate strike has been called off to allow for continued negotiations, the union maintains a state of alert. A new formal hearing between the union and business representatives has been scheduled for Thursday, August 20, in Buenos Aires to attempt to resolve the long-standing conflict.