The government’s proposal for an increase in the meal subsidy is “perfectly miserable,” Sebastião Santana stated after a meeting with the Secretary of State for Public Administration, Marisa Garrido, at the Ministry of Finance in Lisbon, highlighting that the proposal includes an annual increase of 10 cents to reach €6.30 in 2029.
The last increase in the meal subsidy for public administration workers occurred in 2023 under António Costa’s government, raising it to €6.
The meal subsidy paid via card, exempt from IRS and Social Security contributions, rose from €9.60 in 2024 to €10.20 in 2025, a measure resulting from the tripartite Social Concertation agreement.
The National Federation of Unions of Public and Social Function Workers (Frente Comum) noted that this was the only “novelty” in the proposal for an addendum to the current multi-annual agreement, accusing the government of “continuing to make public administration workers lose purchasing power for another year.”
The government “came to the table with nothing substantial,” reiterated Sebastião Santana, noting more meetings are scheduled but anticipating that the national march organized by CGTP on November 8 will be “crucial” to highlight the “struggle of workers” against a “policy that serves no one.”
Asked whether CGTP is open to calling a general strike, Sebastião Santana said he lacks the “authority” to make that decision but emphasized that “all forms of struggle are on the table,” recalling the “remarkable” strike by Frente Comum last week.
“What we have always said is that all forms of struggle are on the table. With these policies, with this ongoing attack on workers’ rights on all fronts, the path will need to progress,” he added.
According to the Front Common coordinator, the next meeting in this negotiation process is scheduled for November 12.
In the initial proposal, presented on September 26, the government maintained the values outlined in the current multi-annual agreement for 2026, 2027, and 2028 but proposes extending the agreement to cover the current legislative term, up to 2029, suggesting increases of 2.30%, with a minimum of €60.52.
The current agreement, signed in November 2024 with two public function union structures (Fesap and the Trade Union Front), anticipates increases of 2.15%, with a minimum of €56.58 for the following year.
For 2027 and 2028, the agreement establishes increases of 2.3%, with a minimum of €60.52.
Furthermore, on September 26, the Ministry of Finance indicated that the proposal presented to the public function unions includes “other relevant matters,” specifically “the revision of the current per diem regime, the evolution and revision of SIADAP, as well as the remuneration statute of managerial staff,” in accordance with the government’s program measures.
The agreement signed in 2024 updated the per diem allowance by 5% in 2025.
[News updated at 12:17]
