“The decision will be ratified at the national secretariat on the 13th,” said an official UGT source, confirming discussions with the CGTP.
The general strike was announced this Saturday by CGTP Secretary-General Tiago Oliveira at the end of the national march against the labor package in Lisbon.
“With positions already taken or in the final decision process by many union structures, it was possible to establish convergence for a general strike on December 11,” he stated.
The last time both union federations called for a joint general strike was over a decade ago, during the ‘troika’ period.
This general strike has been called in protest against the government’s draft project for revising labor legislation, currently under discussion with social partners, which involves revising “more than a hundred” articles of the Labor Code.
The UGT’s Secretary-General had already criticized the labor package at the end of October, stating that “the discourse on salary appreciation was often replaced by talk of companies, companies, companies, and productivity,” a stance he believes is “embedded in the draft labor legislation reform.”
Mário Mourão reiterated that the UGT “has always favored dialogue and negotiation” and remains “at the negotiating table,” but issued a warning: “Between choosing a bad agreement or a street fight, we prefer to fight in the street.”
The proposed changes—termed “Work XXI” and introduced by the government on July 24 as a “profound” revision of labor legislation—address areas from parental issues (including parental leave, breastfeeding, and gestational mourning) to flexible work, company training, and trial periods for work contracts. It also proposes expanding sectors required to provide minimum services during strikes.
A march against the labor package organized by the CGTP brought thousands of workers to Avenida da Liberdade in Lisbon this Saturday, protesting the labor law changes proposed by Luis Montenegro’s government.
