“The current law only covers a specific set of professions, such as miners […] and our goal is to extend the legislation to include other groups of workers,” stated Rogério Silva, the coordinator of the Federation of Metal, Chemical, Electrical, Pharmaceutical, Pulp, Paper, Printing, Energy, and Mines Industries (Fiequimetal), in a statement to Lusa.
The union leader also noted that some workers handle “chemical agents that are highly dangerous and harmful to health.”
Regarding their demands, the union calls for access to early retirement at age 55 with 20 years of service when “workers with occupational diseases are identified.”
Rogério Silva further asserted that the Social Security system “has the capacity to support” these workers’ needs and added that it “is in a very healthy situation.”
Today, a public petition with over 13,000 signatures demanding recognition of rapidly aging professions and access to early retirement without penalties for industry workers will be debated in the Assembly of the Republic.
The petition includes workers from sectors such as electrical equipment manufacturing, automotive, pharmaceutical, metallurgy, chemical, aerospace, as well as workers from the paper industry and water treatment.
