Argentine Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation Jurisprudence.
On September 10, 2026, the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (the “Court”) issued its judgment in “Papel Misionero S.A.I.F.C. v. Province of Misiones, in a petition for a declaration of unconstitutionality” (Papel Misionero S.A.I.F.C. c/ Provincia de Misiones s/ acción declarativa de inconstitucionalidad), declaring unconstitutional Article 1 of Law IX No. 7 of the Province of Misiones, which, since 2008, had generally classified the entire pulp, paper, and cardboard manufacturing industry as hazardous.
The Court held that the provincial provision was incompatible with Article 200 of the Labor Contract Law and with the regulations issued by the Ministry of Labor, Employment and Social Security of the Nation concerning occupational hazards. Accordingly, in the event of a conflict between provincial regulations and national legislation, the latter must prevail pursuant to Article 31 of the National Constitution, which establishes the supremacy of national laws over local provisions.
Furthermore argued that classifying an activity as hazardous through a provincial law that generally and abstractly encompasses an entire industry exceeds the provinces’ powers in the field of labor police powers.
Why is this important?
The ruling reaffirms that the determination of hazardous working conditions must comply with the framework established by national legislation and cannot be imposed generally on an entire industrial activity through a provincial provision that conflicts with such framework.
From a business perspective, the Court’s ruling provides grounds to challenge local regulations that, under a general classification of an activity as hazardous, may impose additional labor and economic consequences on companies, including changes to working conditions, working hours, shift arrangements, and potential additional costs associated with hazardous-work regimes.
Accordingly, a determination that an activity is hazardous must be supported by the procedures established under the applicable regulatory framework and made by the competent authorities. It cannot be based exclusively on a general legislative classification enacted at the provincial level where such classification is incompatible with national law.
