Argentine President Eliminates 47,925 Public Sector Jobs

(Patria) - Argentine President Javier Milei claims that nearly 48,000 public sector workers have been laid off since his administration took office 17 months ago, writes Buenos Aires Times, as reported by Index.

In total, the number of employees has been reduced by 9.6 percent as part of Milei's austerity policy dubbed "chainsaw", one of his main approaches to governance.

This has resulted in annual savings of approximately 1.89 billion US dollars (1.67 billion euros), according to a report from the Ministry of Deregulation and State Transformation published this week.

About 942 million dollars (834 million euros) relates to unpaid salaries, with a similar amount attributed to "workplace infrastructure costs". It is unclear whether this amount includes severance costs for laid-off workers.

According to the report submitted by the Ministry's impact assessment unit, between December 2023, the first month of Milei's administration, and April 2025, 47,925 positions were removed from the state payroll.

Data analysis shows the largest reductions were recorded in the National Public Administration (APN) and state-owned enterprises, with declines of 13.7 and 16.4 percent, respectively.

The number of permanent and temporary employees fell by eight percent, while the number of people employed under the Framework Law (Law 25.164, legislation specifically written for hiring state workers) decreased by 20 percent, and the number of "monotributista" freelancers was reduced by 55.2 percent.

The Ministry of Deregulation and State Transformation stated that these figures "reflect the government's commitment to reducing public spending and its determination to fulfill promises of efficiency and savings in public administration".

The Ministry, headed by Federico Sturzenegger, said that Milei's "chainsaw" approach will be intensified this year through further staff reductions and the elimination of departments that do not serve an essential purpose.

Further layoffs are likely to face opposition from public sector employees, many of whom have taken to the streets this year to protest against austerity measures.

Trade unions have organized a series of general strikes since Milei, a self-proclaimed "anarcho-capitalist" libertarian economist, came to power in December 2023.

Milei came to power with a promise to fix Argentina's long-crisis economy by cutting public spending and deregulating.

Last year, the country recorded its first budget surplus in a decade, and rampant inflation has fallen significantly, but purchasing power, employment, and consumption have also declined.