There is still no end in sight to the ongoing feud between Portugal’s drivers of dangerous materials and their employers. The truce only lasted two days, as no sooner had the fuel strike been called off on Sunday than a new one was scheduled between September 7 and 22.
The announcement was made by Portugal’s union of drivers of dangerous materials (SNMMP) on Wednesday afternoon following a new round of failed negotiations on Tuesday.
But unlike the previous strike, this one will only happen during “overtime hours, weekends and holidays”. In other words, it is unlikely to have the same impact as the two previous strikes which caused many fuel stations around Portugal to ‘run dry’. During the latest strike, drivers were limited to just 15 litres of fuel at the special filling stations (REPA stations) and 25 at all the others.
The situation was particularly serious in the Algarve, the country’s main tourist destination whose population more than doubles during summer.
SNMPP president Francisco São Bento says this new “surgical strike” aims to show how companies rely on “unpaid overtime work”. As a sign of “good faith”, this strike has an end date.
The government-brokered talks that were due to take place on Tuesday involving SNMMP and employers association ANTRAM, and which many hoped would finally bring an end to the conflict, did not even take place, as the union demanded that the association commit to paying drivers their overtime hours before the meeting even started.
ANTRAM did not agree, and thus the talks involving the government as a mediator never took place.
Pedro Pardal Henriques, the ‘face’ of the truckers’ plight and the vice-president of the syndicate, said that ANTRAM refused to avoid a “new strike and new forms of protest” for not wanting to commit to a “minimum” €50 raise for around 800 truckers.
The union says it is still open to new government-brokered talks so long as the truckers have the guarantee that “the law will be respected” and that they will receive what they deserve.
As Observador newspaper points out, this new strike will come to an end one day before the start of the official campaigning period for the upcoming legislative elections, which will be held on Sunday, October 6.
michael.bruxo@algarveresident.com
Photo: Pedro Pardal Henriques, leader of truckers’ union SNMMP
