VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBU #2338/01 3480846
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 140846Z DEC 07
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9900
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0695

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 002338 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB PREL ETRD PGOV AR
SUBJECT: SECRETARY CHAO'S MEETING WITH ARGENTINE MINISTER OF LABOR 
 
¶1. (SBU) Begin Summary and Introduction:  Secretary Chao, head of 
the U.S. delegation to the presidential inauguration of Cristina 
Fernandez de Kirchner, met with Argentine Labor Minister Carlos 
Tomada on December 10.  The Secretary conveyed U.S. support for 
International Labor Organization (ILO) standards which the U.S. has 
incorporated into trade agreements, and Tomada praised the ILO's 
"Decent Work" initiative.  Secretary Chao explained that the U.S. 
approach to creating well-paid jobs centered on investing to improve 
the skills of its workforce.  She described the assistance provided 
to U.S. workers displaced by trade agreements and federal-state 
partnerships to help workers throughout the U.S.  This frank 
discussion of several issues of great relevance to the GOA served us 
well in renewing Tomada's interest in closer cooperation with the 
U.S.  End Summary/Introduction. 
 
¶2. (U) Elaine Chao, U.S. Secretary of Labor, met at the Ambassador's 
Residence with Argentine Labor Minister Carlos Tomada a few hours 
before the December 10 swearing-in of President-elect Cristina 
Fernandez de Kirchner (CFK).  They recalled their previous meeting 
and the excellent cooperation and extensive contacts between their 
staffs.  The Secretary was accompanied by the Ambassador, DOL Deputy 
Under Secretary for International Relations Charlotte Ponticelli, 
and Polcouns Alexander Featherstone (notetaker).  Minister Tomada 
was accompanied by his chief of staff, Norberto Ciaravino, and 
Director of International Affairs, Julio Rosales.  Secretary Chao 
congratulated Tomada on CFK's vote of confidence in asking him to 
stay in his position, and she invited him and his team to visit 
Washington at any time.  Tomada said he had accepted the renewal of 
his cabinet position to help the new administration continue and 
deepen the implementation of Nestor Kirchner's economic and social 
model within a democratic framework.  Argentina needed to re-insert 
itself into the international community and attract greater 
investment, he said. 
 
International Labor Organization 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) In response to a question from Minister Tomada, Secretary 
Chao said that the U.S., as the biggest financial contributor to the 
ILO, tried to work within the ILO framework but has tried to avoid 
its internal politics.  She noted there were countries that did not 
like the ILO tripartite agreement, and that some European countries 
were increasingly vocal about their unhappiness with the ILO.  She 
said DG Somavia had done a good job and appeared to be 
well-positioned to win his bid for a third consecutive term.  His 
globalization study had received much attention.  The U.S. supported 
International Labor Organization (ILO) standards which had been 
incorporated into recent trade agreements. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Tomada said he thought the ILO had made a significant 
contribution by getting its "Decent Work" initiative on the agenda 
of not just the ILO but the entire UN system.  Tomada said he 
believed in UN reform writ large and that the ILO, in particular, 
needed to keep pace with global changes.  Worldwide, people were 
looking to their governments to establish the conditions necessary 
to generate employment, and in the context of globalization, Tomada 
thought the ILO's "Decent Work" initiative sent an important 
message.  Tomada agreed that Somavia had done a satisfactory job at 
the head of the ILO. 
 
Generating Skilled Employment with Decent Pay 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Secretary Chao stressed U.S. support for decent wages.  She 
said the U.S. was not interested in low-paying jobs; it was looking 
to create jobs through the private sector that were sustainable in 
the long-term.  She noted that U.S. unemployment was down to 4.7%, 
that 94,000 jobs had been created in November alone, and that 51 
straight months of employment growth had yielded 8.4 million new 
jobs.  Secretary Chao said the U.S. goal was to continue to create 
well-paying jobs, and the U.S. method of ensuring decent pay was 
tied to constant investment in the workforce to maintain higher 
skills.  Secretary Chao noted that two-thirds of new jobs were 
skilled, requiring high school or post-secondary education.  In 
addition to the major investment made by large U.S. companies in 
workforce training, DOL deployed $50 billion annually to training 
programs.   She pointed out that a key aspect of the U.S. labor 
market was worker mobility.  There were 151 million workers in the 
U.S. economy, and every year 50 million jobs changed hands.  This 
was mostly the result of workers moving to better jobs.  As a result 
of the constant search for better opportunities, the average 
40-year-old worker in the U.S. had held 10 jobs. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Secretary Chao added that U.S. workers enjoyed a 
significant safety net, with a rich benefit package.  She said that 
in cases of job loss due to trade dislocation, benefits (depending 
on the state of employment) included up to two years of unemployment 
insurance, two years of training, two years of child care and other 
assistance, and 65% of health care.  Displaced workers over the age 
of 50 who were re-hired at lower pay could get 50% of the difference 
from the government.  She said there were some in the U.S. Congress 
pushing for four years of benefits, but the Administration 
considered four years too long, since the idea was to get these 
workers back into the labor market. 
 
Federal-State Partnerships to Help Workers 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶7. (SBU) The Secretary noted that DOL often worked through state 
governments.  She said the U.S. believed in decentralization, and 
although this made it more challenging to manage a system that could 
be quite diffuse, it had its advantages.  In partnership with state 
and local government, DOL had "one-stop centers" governed by boards 
with local members, allowing communities to set priorities for their 
local one-stop labor centers and gear training opportunities toward 
local labor market conditions. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Minister Tomada said he found the Secretary's comments 
instructive because Argentina also had a federal system.  He noted 
that although the resource levels were greatly different, the two 
governments had similar responses to similar challenges, citing as 
an example his Labor Ministry's efforts to decentralize operations. 
Although Argentina had traditionally looked to Europe as a model for 
its labor relations, the Secretary's remarks reminded him that the 
U.S. was a more appropriate model.  He said that during the Kirchner 
administration, unemployment fell from 23% to 8% due to high rates 
of GDP growth.  He said the GOA's challenge was to reach workers who 
were far removed from the market economy as well as disadvantaged 
sectors, including youth and women, that were vulnerable.  He said 
Cristina Kirchner was particularly keen on seeing improvements in 
conditions for women workers.  Secretary Chao noted that DOL had a 
Women's Bureau, and that DOL had a long-standing commitment to 
assisting women with special needs.  She noted, for example, that 
young, single mothers faced limited career prospects, and that DOL 
therefore directed some of its assistance to help integrate them 
into the workforce. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Minister Tomada was genuinely pleased by his meeting with 
Secretary Chao and the frank tenor of the conversation on several 
 
SIPDIS 
issues of great relevance to the GOA.  Following on other productive 
GOA contacts at the working level with DOL's Employment and Training 
Administration and Bureau of Labor Statistics, this meeting served 
us well in renewing Tomada's interest in closer cooperation with the 
United States. 
 
WAYNE