The union leader who wants to have his cake and eat it too
Ah, the eternal discussion: working less without earning less. Pedro Haces, the enlightened leader of the CATEM (Autonomous Confederation of Workers and Employees of Mexico, in case anyone doubted its acronym), has decided that it is time to balance the impossible. Reduce the working day without touching the salary? What a revolutionary idea! Why didn’t we think of it before? Oh, wait… yes it occurred to us, but businessmen usually make a grimace as if they were being offered to share their yachts.
In an act of unprecedented audacity, Haces dropped this gem during a forum on the reduction to 40 hours per week (organized, of course, by the Ministry of Labor): “There should be no cut in hours if that means a cut in income”. Brilliant, Peter. And do you also want it to rain chocolate while unicorns give out free hugs? Of course, because in the magical world of union desires, companies are eager to pay the same for less work. Or could it be that Haces knows some accounting trick that the rest of the planet ignores?
The “new floor” and other euphemisms to avoid saying “we want more”
The Morenoist deputy is not satisfied with asking for the apparently impossible. No, he goes further: he suggests that 40 hours are just the “new floor” (translated: “this is the minimum, then we continue pimping”?). And, of course, he proposes a pilot program because, according to him, what works in a call center (where stress is measured in coffees and screaming customers) does not necessarily apply in a factory or the field. Wow, how insightful. Did you discover that not all jobs are the same? Nobel Prize in Economics for this man!
Meanwhile, President Claudia Sheinbaum talks about implementing the change “gradually”, which in political language means “let’s see if in a decade we can convince someone”. Instead, ask for weekly and monthly schedules, because why wait if you can demand everything now? Of course, without specifying how the hell such a marvel would be financed. Printing bills with López Obrador’s face? Or do businessmen keep mountains of gold under their desks?
The only thing that is clear is that, after the extraordinary period in the Chamber of Deputies, Morena will prioritize this issue. In other words, they will put it in the pile of “promises that sound good in the campaign but are a headache in reality”, along with free gasoline and the end of corruption.
What’s next? Ask that the 4-hour day count as overtime? Or that Fridays are optional, but paid? Anyway, while Haces and company fantasize about work utopias, the rest of us will continue here, counting the minutes until the weekend… which, for now, is still 48 hours.
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