Inequalities in agriculture in the middle of the 20th century. The effects of Peronist labor legislation on vineyard contractors

Abstract

The “contratistas de viña” (vineyard contractors) is an
important figure in the development of Cuyo's viticulture from
the end of the 19th century to the present day. The particularities
of the labor relationship established with the landowner led
to the interpretation of his condition as agricultural worker or
as entrepreneur/partner, especially in the first decades of the
20th century. This ambiguity in the classification of the labor
activity slowed down its regulation. The first bill legislating
the labor relationship established between the wine worker and
the landowner was passed in Mendoza in 1946 in order to
fill the gap created by the “Estatuto del Peón rural” (Rural
Laborer's Statute) enacted in 1944. Law 1578, which created
the Regulations for Vineyard and Fruit Contractors, advanced
the interests of landowners and characterized the contractor as
a salaried employee. The paper sets out to analyze, first, the
legislation produced by the province of Mendoza, which in 1946
typified the "vineyard contractor" as a worker tout court. Secondly,
the paper examines the role that justice played in the construction of this working and salaried identity, as opposed to that of
landowners and rural laborers. In order to achieve these objectives,
a variety of sources have been used, among which the press,
parliamentary debates and court rulings stand out.