The Chaco Energy Workers Organization (Otech – FeTERA) is denouncing the intention from different sectors to privatize the state company Secheep (Energy Services of Chaco, a provincial state-owned Company).
He points out that the company went from a surplus of 5% to having to close sectors and outsource several services. In recent times it turned negative and had deficits of around $ 20,000 million.
“The company had a surplus of 5% and being a company that in the financial closure can not keep the sum of its surplus, in previous years these amounts translated into salary increase in the collective bargaining at the end of the year and the acquisition of materials and vehicles”, explained Diego Noguera, General Secretary of Otech.
What the union organization denounces is that there is a political decision of outsourcing and privatization of the company. In addition, he said: “Ever since the plan called “Chaco por Vos” (a housing program promoted by Governor Jorge Capitanich), the company lost 30% and the 20 sheds that Secheep had throughout the province were emptied with transformers, cables, poles”. “Service was provided to virtual users, and after all, nobody paid and that led to the company’s accounts turning red,” he added.
At the same time, in dialogue with Prensa FeTERA, he denounced that “different sectors of the company, such as Electric Fraud, were reduced and the work that sector can do was never prioritized”. He also stressed that “there is more and more hierarchic staff and less and less operational workers in the street.”
In addition, the trade union organization notes that “Secheep is outsourcing many services and, even so, it is still unprofitable.” In the last eight months the company has accumulated a debt of 5 billion pesos with Cammesa (the company that manages the wholesale electricity market) plus 15 billion pesos that it has refinanced, Otech denounces.
“The earnings of the company gets to cover 60% or 70% only of the purchase of energy from Cammesa. That is, Secheep does not earn money for salaries, at all,”said Noguera.
Finally, from Otech they recalled that Capitanich, who was re-elected last year as governor, said in his election campaign that he would privatize 49% of those companies with state funds that are deficient, such as Inssep (provincial social work), Sameep ( water) and Secheep (energy).
“Today we find that the Secheep Board of Directors is made up of people from the FATLYF (Federation of Energy Workers -CGT-), who are beginning to carefully review the numbers of the company with the objective of privatization.”
Source: FeTERA Press
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