Subway workers in Pernambuco threaten to escalate the strike.
According to the president of Sindmetro-PE, Lenivaldo José de Oliveira, the problem lies with the government, not with the Brazilian Urban Transport Company (CBTU) – Recife Urban Train Superintendency; the category wants a 5,13% increase.
Leonardo Lucena_PE247 - “If there is no progress in negotiations by next Monday (28), we will radicalize the strike.” The statement is from the president of the Metro Workers Union (Sindmetro-PE), Lenivaldo José de Oliveira. According to the union leader, if the Federal Government does not meet the category’s demands - a 5,13% salary increase and better working conditions, especially in the area of security - the metro workers will further reduce the fleet of metro trains in circulation, starting next Tuesday (29).
“We held a meeting with the Ministry of Planning and the Special Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic last Wednesday (23), to reach a consensus, but Thursday (24) and Friday (25) passed, and we did not receive any feedback,” says the president of Sindmetro-PE, Oliveira.
According to Oliveira, the problem lies with the government, which is unwilling to heed the union leaders' demands because, he says, the Brazilian Urban Transport Company (CBTU) – the Recife Urban Train Superintendency – is subordinate to the Ministry of Planning. "We left the meeting hopeful, but apparently, it didn't accomplish much," he adds.
However, the Regional Labor Court of Pernambuco (TRT-PE) ordered Sindmetro-PE to maintain 50% of the vehicle fleet fully operational during peak hours, from 5 am to 8 am and from 5 pm to 17 pm, and 30% at other times. Failure to comply would result in a fine of R$ 20 per day. “We can’t submit to everything either. We have our autonomy,” Oliveira concludes.