According to a statement from the workers’ commission at Volkswagen’s automobile factory in Palmela, Setúbal district, the general strike, called by the trade unions UGT and CGTP, “is a necessary and fair response to the labor package the Government wants to impose, which represents a direct attack on rights won over decades.”
“The Government’s justification for increasing productivity does not hold up when considering Autoeuropa, which has been one of the most productive companies within the Volkswagen Group and in Portugal for many years,” the statement emphasizes, urging massive worker participation in the general strike.
The Autoeuropa workers’ commission highlights what it sees as negative aspects of the proposed governmental changes in the new labor package, including the facilitation of dismissals, increased job insecurity, deregulation of work schedules, and greater exploitation of shift and weekend work.
The expansion of minimum services, undermining the right to strike, the possibility of ‘purchasing’ vacations, reduction of parental rights, and the facilitation of companies using ‘outsourcing’ are other aspects of the proposed changes to labor laws, which the Autoeuropa workers’ commission views as an attack on workers’ rights.
“On December 11, we will stand together with thousands of workers across the country, against the labor package, job insecurity, and the attack on workers’ rights,” reads the statement from the Autoeuropa workers’ commission.
