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Global HR Compliance in Argentina

If you hire an international workforce or plan to hire, then the Hiring and Firing Workforce in Argentina Guide below will help you understand the nuances of labour legislation in the country. When a company is planning to enter a new foreign market, Argentina, and needs to employ a local national there, the first question to answer is how it will make local hires. We have designed a Global Employer of Record service to help you outsource the global employment of your foreign workforce to companies like ours. This solution helps you employ your global sales force in Argentina and in other 190 countries, provide pay and benefits to your employees, and administer any business expenses with our help. Our solution differs from other hiring modes in that it helps you engage your foreign workforce in full compliance with the local labour legislation. This means you are protected from non-compliance and employee misclassification risks while we bear all employment risks, not you.

Streamline Your Global Expansion: Compliant Workforce Solutions in Argentina

So, it looks very much like hiring your in-house sales force in your home country. However, you focus only on global business development while we manage your global HR. In addition, you don’t need to open your own entities in foreign countries and can leverage our infrastructure in Argentina instead. With our service, you can become a global company with reduced costs and minimized time and effort on your end. Your employed foreign sales force will devote 100% of their time to your company product and may stay with you longer than foreign independent sales reps. The Global Employer of Record solution is 100% compliant and guarantees full compliance with local legislation in Argentina for you and your employees. We are experts in global workforce employment in Argentina, and our goal is to become your single provider. Instead of working with numerous local staffing agencies and legal advisors, Acumen International can solve your global business challenges and save you time, costs, and resources. Our team of English-speaking professionals frees you from working through language nuances. Acumen International works 24/7 and can assist you whenever you need it, regardless of time zone. Our goal is to create tailored labour solutions for you that are managed legally and fully compliant with local employment laws. With our knowledge and deep understanding of local nuances, you easily satisfy your need for skilled professionals in your global industry. With our qualified local partners, you can trust that your global workforce satisfies all local tax, social security, and immigration requirements in Argentina. See Hiring and Firing Workforce in Argentina Guide below for a general overview of labor rules and regulations in the country. Or contact us if you need to employ workers in Argentina or would like to get more details.

Hiring and Firing Workforce in Argentina

Employment Agreements

In Argentina, the contract of employment can be concluded for an unlimited period or fixed term.

Fixed-term Employment Contracts

  • This scheme requires an essential condition: a written contract in which a fixed term has been agreed upon between the parties.
  • An extraordinary requirement is also required by law in order to justify a fixed-term contract duly.
  • Making continuous use of such fixed-term contracts or in breach of legal requirements will automatically convert it into an employment contract indefinitely.
  • There is a maximum five-year term, but only if the abovementioned requirements are complied with.
  • Advanced written notice of termination is required. Failure to give such notice cannot be replaced by compensation and will convert the contract into one for an indefinite period of time. Advanced notice must be given no less than one month and no more than two months prior to the termination. The only exception is a fixed-term contract with a duration of less than one month, in which case no notice is required.
  • Regarding the compensation due for terminating a fixed-term contract, if an unfair dismissal occurs before the agreed-upon term is finished, the employee is entitled to the corresponding compensation (severance compensation due for termination without cause), plus a special compensation that is usually determined by calculating the wages due to the agreed date of termination.
  • At the end of the fixed term, the mere termination of such period does not entail the employer’s liability to pay compensation unless the contract period is more than one year. In such cases, the employer must pay a severance compensation equivalent to 50% of regular severance compensation.
  • A fixed-term contract has no trial period.

Open-ended Employment Contracts 

  • Under NEL (the National Employment Law), indefinite-term contracts are the rule as labour relationships are supposed to last until the employee is entitled to social security benefits.
  • The trial period is up to three months.
  • Termination during the trial period can occur without compensation or severance payment liability for the employer (except for prior notice of 15 days and the wages due).
  • If the employer terminates the employment without any cause and beyond the trial period, severance compensation (seniority compensation, compensation in lieu of notice, etc.) must be paid or claimed by the employee.

Employment Termination and Severance Pay (Dismissal)

On employee will 

A worker may terminate the employment relationship by constructive dismissal if the employer fails to discharge his or her obligations under the contract. In this case, the worker is entitled to payment in lieu of notice and to an indemnity equal to that which is payable by the employer in the case of dismissal without cause.

Employer decision 

The employer may unilaterally terminate the contract of employment with a valid reason for such termination connected with the conduct of the worker or on economic grounds owing to lack or shortage of work or force majeure. In fact, he/she may terminate the contract of employment on any grounds or with no grounds whatsoever, provided he/she gives notice and makes a severance payment. Below is a summary of the rules that apply in the case of termination of employment on the initiative of the employer:
  • Termination based on the worker’s conduct: the employer may terminate the contract of employment by summary dismissal if the worker fails to discharge his or her obligations under the contract to the extent that is prejudicial to it, and if the seriousness of this failure means that the relationship cannot continue. In this case, no notice is required, and no severance pay is due
  • Termination based on economic grounds: when the contract of employment is terminated because of lack or shortage of work, the employer must give advance notice of the termination and make a severance payment, the amount of which is roughly equal to half a month’s salary for each year of service
  • Termination without cause or cause: in such cases, the employer must give notice or payment in lieu thereof and make a severance payment, the amount of which is roughly one month’s salary for each year of service.

Mutual agreement 

The parties, by mutual agreement, may terminate the employment contract. The act must be formalized via a contract signed before a notary public or the judicial or administrative labor authority. The act that is celebrated without the personal presence of the worker and the requirements set forth above will be null and void.

Notice period in Argentina

When the contract terminates on the initiative of the employee, the notice period is 15 days. When the contract terminates on the initiative of the employer, notice depends on the employee’s length of service, in accordance with the following scale: 15 days when the employee has less than three months of service, one month when the worker’s length of service is between three months and five years, and two months, when the length of service is more than five years, except in small enterprises, where the notice period is never more than one month. Notice must be given in writing with a sufficiently clear indication of the grounds for terminating the contract. If the grounds are challenged by the worker, the employer has the burden of proving the existence of a valid reason for the termination.

Severance Payments in Argentina

In case of termination of employment without justified cause, the employer must pay the employee mandatory severance compensation provided by law within 4 days after serving notice of termination, as follows:
  • Seniority compensation: equivalent to the best monthly salary for each year of employment or period exceeding 3 months, taking as a basis the best monthly, regular and ordinary salary accrued during the last working year.
Pending days till the end of the month: If the dismissal does not take place in the last day of the month, the employer must pay compensation equal to the proportional salary for the pending days to complete the entire month in which the dismissal took place.
  • Compensation for unused vacations: The employee is entitled to compensation equal to the vacation pay in proportion to the days effectively worked of the year in which the dismissal took place.
  • Statutory Annual Bonus: The employee is entitled to the proportional amount of the 13th salary in Argentina. The severance compensation is reduced by one-half if the labour relationship ends as a result of the employee’s death.

Probationary Period in Argentina

The first three months of a contract of employment are considered a probation period, during which either party may terminate the contract at any time, provided the contract has been duly registered with the competent authority in charge of labour.

Overtime

Overtime is paid at 50% of the normal pay unless it is worked on Saturdays after 1 P.M., Sundays, and holidays, in which case it is paid at 100% of the normal pay. Part-time employees cannot perform overtime work.

Work hours

The legal working time is eight hours per day and forty-eight hours per week. However, the regular working week does not exceed 44 hours for daily work, 42 hours for night work, and 36 hours where work is performed in hazardous or unhealthy environments.

Annual Leave in Argentina

Paid leave is granted to workers who have completed at least six months of service with the same employer over a period of twelve calendar months. Its length depends on the worker’s seniority: it is 14 calendar days when the worker has less than 5 years of service, 21 calendar days from 5 to 10 years of service, 28 calendar days from 10 to 20 years of service, and 35 calendar days when the worker’s length of service is 20 years or more. Other paid leaves that must be provided by employers are:
  • For the birth of an employee’s child: two running days
  • For the employee’s marriage: 10 running days
  • For death of employee’s spouse, common-law husband or wife, child or parent: three running days
  • For death of brother or sister: one day
  • For secondary or university exams: two running days for each, with a maximum of 10 days per calendar year.

Sick Leave

A worker has the right to sick leave with full pay for a period of up to three months per year if his/her length of service is 5 years or less and for a period of up to six months if his/her length of service is of more than 5 years. If the worker has family charges, these entitlements are extended respectively to 6 and 12 months. The worker is also entitled to sick leave without pay for a further period of 12 months, during which the employer is obliged to maintain the employment relationship.

Parental Leave

Maternity leave lasts 90 days, divided into 45 days before and 45 days after the date of birth. Nevertheless, a woman may reduce the period prior to the date of birth – but not to less than 30 days – accumulating the remaining days to the period after childbirth.

Optional Employee Benefits

  • Annual incentive award (bonus)
  • Work-from-home and flexible schedule options
  • Supplemental life insurance plan
  • Family health premium plan
  • Daycare subsidy
  • Educational assistance program
  • English lessons
  • Employee assistance program
  • Recognition and award program
Acumen International can help you fast-track your possibilities of entering and expanding your business in Argentina by providing you with our Global Employer of Record services. Our bespoke global employment solutions will enable you to jumpstart your global operations immediately, cost-effectively and compliantly without needing to set up a legal entity first or afterwards.