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'Those who have more... should pay more!' - Uruguay's trade unions push for surtax on top '1 per cent' to fight growing child poverty

'Those who have more... should pay more!' - Uruguay's trade unions push for surtax on top '1 per cent' to fight growing child poverty

"Uruguay's largest labour organisation, PIT-CNT, proposed an additional tax on the country's wealthiest 1 per cent to address child poverty. "Historically, the labour movement has demanded […] that tax justice measures are implemented and that those who have more […] pay more," PIT-CNT President Marcelo Abdala said in an interview on Friday. "The richest one per cent of Uruguayan society captures 15 per cent of the income, which is the same as […] the poorest 50 per cent of the population," he continued. Commenting on Uruguay's concentration of wealth, he said there is a 'contribution capacity' that can be arranged to prevent long-term harm. Abdala also warned that if child poverty is not addressed urgently, its effects will remain 'structural', and there is a process of 'intergenerational' transfer of poverty. Bruno Giometti, representative from the organisation Espacio 1001, described child poverty in Uruguay as a 'national emergency', claiming that 1 in 3 children are in households below the poverty line. "There is a richer one per cent that concentrates a lot of wealth. We have to look for a mechanism that will allow them to contribute a little more […] I am optimistic that we will be able to generate consensus as a society in this direction," he added. The child poverty rate in Uruguay has reached 32.2 per cent for children under six and is rising, according to PIT-CNT. The union formally presented the proposal at the University of the Republic's Para info in late November 2025, attended by union leaders, Broad Front Party members, and government officials. In response, the Uruguayan government stressed that debate on new taxes is 'over' since the fiscal strategy is already set in the national budget bill. The proposal has nevertheless sparked widespread public and political debate."