Two dozen trade union organizations affiliated with CGTP and UGT are considering a general strike to “defeat” a draft proposal to amend the Labor Code, which they view as a “labor setback” and a “serious attack” on workers.
In a “union declaration” issued from the ‘Union Conference Against Labor Setback’ held on Saturday in Lisbon, the unions express confidence that “CGTP-IN and UGT, in the face of this profound and serious offensive by the Government against the labor world, will exhaust all negotiation possibilities […] and at moments deemed convenient, will find the convergent forms of struggle necessary.”
They are particularly considering the simultaneous call for a general strike to achieve the ultimate goal of defeating the reform proposed by the government.
They argue that the government’s proposal, named ‘Trabalho XXI,’ will “inevitably lead to increased inequalities” by promoting “the reduction of workers’ rights and earnings and increasing employer power in companies, resulting in a more unjust distribution of wealth.”
Emphasizing their “firm belief that this project represents a true labor setback in Portugal,” the unions insist on combating it “firmly and without hesitation due to its intrinsic injustice and its part in a broader dangerous social regression plan by the Government.”
In this context, the unions commit to “informing and thoroughly clarifying” the workers they represent about the “harmful consequences of this proposal,” ensuring they “mobilize and participate in actions held to combat and defeat it.”
“The history of contemporary Portuguese labor and union movements and the current reality in many companies and sectors include the formation of convergences among union organizations, with clear, inclusive, and mobilizing objectives, which have achieved positive results for workers,” they emphasize.
Specifically, the unions claim the labor reform draft “undermines fundamental labor criteria,” “promotes job insecurity,” “deregulates working hours,” “attacks important workers’ rights and their remuneration,” “facilitates dismissals,” and “directly weakens union actions.”
Dated from last Saturday, the union declaration released today is promoted by various unions, including the National Federation of Doctors; Democratic Union of Postal, Telecommunications, Media, and Services Workers; Union of Captains, Pilots, Commissioners, and Engineers of the Merchant Marine; Union of Nurses of the Autonomous Region of Madeira; Union of Judicial Employees; Union of Journalists; Union of Cork Workers of the North; Union of Metallurgy and Metalworking Workers of the Viana do Castelo District; Union of Health, Solidarity and Social Security Workers; Union of Doorman, Surveillance, Cleaning, Domestic, and Various Activities Services Workers; and Union of Commerce, Office, and Services Workers of Minho.
The document is also signed by unions including the Textile Workers Union of Beira Alta; Clothing, Garment, and Textile Region North Workers Union; Transport Workers Union; Textile, Wool, and Garment Workers of the Center Union; Industry and Energy Union; Higher Education Union; Drivers and Other Workers Union; Footwear, Bags, and Related Industries Professionals Union; and Senior Technicians of Diagnosis and Therapeutics Union.
