The
severe adjustment that the Government of
Javier Milei
is applying
, with thousands of layoffs and terminations of contracts in the different state spheres, has deepened in the last hours. Among the numerous organizations affected is the
National Meteorological Service (SMN)
.
Lucas Berengua
was one of the employees whose employment contract was terminated overnight: they had been in a temporary plant
for 21 years
. His case came to light after a video went viral of how his colleagues gave him an emotional farewell.
"I was not a gnocchi
. I have 21 years of career within the SMN because I started working in 2003. So don't come to me here with the verse that the gnocchi are going away because
until yesterday I uploaded the weather forecasts
. I was one of the organization's spokespersons. I was in charge of the organization for years and no one can call me that way," the fired employee said angrily.
In a talk with Radio Con Vos, Berengua showed his anger: "I was collaborating with
three international centers
. I think it must have been a mistake.
The feeling of helplessness
I have at this moment is indescribable.
The criteria used to choose is perversity
. "In most cases there is a perverse finger that took advantage of the shield of adjustment to get people off."
And he added: "If the idea of reducing was for those who did not produce in the organization,
they did things wrong
. They sent one. There are a large number of services that the SMN produces daily that
today are at total risk
," he warned. "Mainly the network of meteorological observations because
there are stations in the interior that were completely decimated
. La Plata is one of those stations," he said.
Protest in front of the SMN for the layoffs announced by the Government.
Berengua admitted that "the claims exist," but that he is still
"very shocked by the situation"
and that "he has not yet received advice on the legal steps." "I know that I
am not going to receive compensation
because the concept of contract that I signed can be terminated at any moment." Government sources reported that there were
120 layoffs in that organization
, but the fired employee denied it: "Initially it was that number, but the layoff telegram reached 54 people."
In another part of the talk, the meteorologist told how he found out that he had been fired. "They didn't send me an email like most people, no. They called me to an office, and my director, who didn't want to come forward,
told me over a loudspeaker
. She fired me over the phone.
It was all very cruel.
" , he said with a pained tone.
The video of his farewell to the organization is shocking and went viral on the networks. In the images, you can see the employee who was fired, hugging a colleague and dozens of people
applauding and cheering him
when he arrives at the hall. There, Berengua hugs a woman for a long time, while the applause does not stop. Shouting
"Lucas is not leaving"
, his companions moved everyone.
"I rescue the emotional moment that my colleagues gave me. There were 200 hugs. And I have more than 400 messages still unread on WhatsApp," he admitted.
In reviewing his professional career within the organization, Berengua listed: "I joined when the SMN was not directly dependent on a ministry, but rather depended directly on the Air Force. I was hired under various modalities: I joined under a United Nations plan that It was a contractual way of projects at an international level that is usually used in public administration; then I moved to a so-called 'invoicing' modality: I invoiced the SMN or the Air Force; and since 2008 or 2009 the organization became a ministry, in the form of Article 9, which is the transitional plan".
D.D.