Paraguarí municipal officials hold sit-in over five months of unpaid wages

Sixteen municipal employees in Paraguarí have entered the third day of a sit-in protest, demanding payment for five months of overdue salaries. The demonstrators are calling for an explanation from Mayor Marcelo Simbrón (ANR) and have warned of potential legal action if their demands are not met.

The employees, all of whom hold permanent positions, are protesting the non-payment of wages for March, April, May, June, and July 2026. They state that the total salary debt exceeds 500 million Paraguayan guaranis (approximately $70,000 USD), severely impacting their families' finances. Despite the ongoing protest, they report receiving no concrete response from the municipal authorities.

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The workers feel "powerless and indignant" because their labor rights are being violated.

Adding to their grievance, the 16 employees from various municipal departments claim they are victims of selective wage discrimination. They point out that while some municipal workers have been paid on time, they have not received any remuneration since March.

Arminda Boschert de Cantero, a spokesperson for the group, expressed the workers' feelings of powerlessness and indignation over the violation of their labor rights. She asserted that the municipal budget for 2026 includes funds for salary payments and questioned the whereabouts of these funds. The group plans to continue their protests indefinitely until a favorable response is received, and they are considering legal recourse if the municipal executive fails to regularize the outstanding payments. Attempts to reach Mayor Simbrón for comment were unsuccessful, as he reportedly diverted calls and did not respond to messages.

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The municipal budget for 2026 includes the resources for the payment of remunerations, and we question what happened to those funds, considering that we are not being paid.