Train traffic was disrupted Friday in Portugal due to a strike by railway workers to demand a bonus to compensate for the decline in purchasing power due to inflation.
Train traffic was disrupted Friday in Portugal due to a strike by railway workers to demand a bonus to compensate for the decline in purchasing power due to inflation.
Only 109 of the 245 scheduled train journeys have started, according to a preliminary report from the Portuguese railway company.
Running 25 percent of the scheduled trips
This means that a minimum service equivalent to 25 percent of the scheduled trips has been provided, which makes it possible to reduce the repercussions of the strike, which affected especially urban transport in Lisbon and Porto in the north and Coimbra in the center, and on trips to the provinces.
This is the first day of the strike called by unions representing railway employees, and another strike is scheduled for Monday.
The company warned that the strike could have an impact on “national train traffic” on December 25 and January 1.
Union official Antonio Salvado told local media that the railway workers had “lost purchasing power, so this bonus … will make up for … this loss”, but negotiations with management failed.
