Strike runs until midnight
Nurses across the Algarve’s public hospitals and health centres began a strike today, demanding back pay dating back to 2018, as well as compensation for holidays and rest days worked – a move that’s already sparking tension with hospital management.
The walkout, organised by the Portuguese Nurses’ Union (SEP), began at 8am and is set to continue until midnight, with a second strike day scheduled for May 8 between 8am and midnight. Nurses from Faro, Portimão, and Lagos hospitals, as well as several regional health centres covering the Central, Barlavento and Sotavento groups, are participating.
At the heart of the dispute are demands for overdue salary payments, better performance evaluations, and double pay (200%) for work done on public holidays and weekly rest days. The union claims its demands have been met with silence since a February meeting with the Algarve Local Health Unit (ULS) board.
However, hospital officials have reacted with dismay. “It was with astonishment that we received this strike notice from the SEP, considering that the Human Capital Service has been working hard and holding regular talks,” the administration of ULS Algarve said on Wednesday.
In a strongly worded statement, the ULS administration accused the union of “lying”, insisting that talks continued with a meeting in March. They also argue that paying wages retroactively to 2018 is not legally possible under current rules – with payments only allowed from 2022 onward.
The administration says it plans to process remaining back pay this month but firmly rejects the union’s 200% pay demand for holidays and rest days, citing current labour laws and the absence of a binding collective agreement.
“There is no Collective Labour Agreement (ACT) in force at the ULS or any other normative provision that establishes payment at 200% for nurses who work on public holidays or compulsory weekly rest days,” the administration argued.
It added: “SEP knows it’s illegal and that’s why it didn’t include this claim in the notice.”
Insisting that there aren’t “any real reasons to justify this trike,” the board suggests that the timing – the day after a public holiday – was “opportunistic.”
