The state-sector union Frente Comum (Common Front) has called for a national strike by public-sector trade unions on November 20.
A resolution adopted at the plenary session held outside parliament today read that “reaffirming that they will not accept impoverishment, the devaluation of their profession or the destruction of public services, the plenary session of the Common Front’s trade unions has decided to go ahead with a general strike by public sector workers on November 20”.
The trade unionists are demanding negotiations on the Common List of Demands (PRC) for 2027, better living and working conditions, and a public administration that truly serves the people.
Speaking to journalists, Frente Comum coordinator Sebastião Santana, said the union’s aim is “to fight against a budget that is destroying the civil service” and which is “far removed from the interests of the people.
“In this regard, we see no other option but to do everything in our power to ensure this budget is not passed,” he stated.
When asked about the strike date, Sebastião Santana said it was strategic because “it allows us to stage not just a protest strike, but a strike that can have real consequences”.
The overall vote on the 2027 State Budget is scheduled for November 24.
For the strike to be called off, the coordinator of the Frente Comum said it was necessary for the “government to sit down at the negotiating table, to take up the 83 proposals we submitted on September 30, and to be willing to negotiate – which is everything it has failed to do.
“This government, it seems, is afraid of anyone who protests in any way,” Santana concluded, adding that he does not expect the strike announcement to influence meeting schedules in any way at all.
Source: LUSA
Natasha Donn
Journalist for the Portugal Resident.