In the statement released today, the national secretariat of the CGTP socialist wing said that the final resolution of the National Council (of May 16) was approved without any of its proposals because the various proposals presented "were rejected by the trade unionists of the PCP Trade Union Wing".

As a result, they said, the socialist wing trade unionists did not vote in favor of the resolution.

The statement lists the proposals presented and rejected, including that "this right-wing and far-right policy supported by the employers can only be countered, fought and prevented by the union, organization and struggle of workers in the workplaces, at national level, with the creation of factors that promote common actions between trade unions in the sectors and between trade union confederations, at national level, and with the convergence between all left-wing political forces" and that the "current political situation requires the CGTP-IN to value and strengthen unity in diversity, deepening internal democracy".

Another rejected proposal to integrate the National Council Resolution spoke about Russia's attack on Ukraine. According to the socialist wing, the resolution denounced and condemned the genocide of the Palestinian people and defended the State of Palestine, but said nothing about the situation in Ukraine.

The socialist wing said that, after its proposal, the resolution came to include a reference to Ukraine, but "in the midst of so many other world conflicts, the Ukrainian situation lost the importance it has".

It also added that a proposal calling for a vote in the European elections of June 9 was rejected.

In the statement, the socialist wing questions what "leads the majority of trade unionists in the CGTP-IN's PCP trade union wing to reject proposals on trade union convergences that benefit workers, solidarity with workers and the people of Ukraine, the fight against the far right, the strengthening of unity and the European elections" and defends "the trade union autonomy of the confederation in relation to political parties" and the rejection of "the gluing of the CGTP-IN's messages to those of the PCP" because "only a plural and representative confederation serves the interests of the working class".

In early May, the socialist trade unionists of the CGTP-IN did not participate in the meeting of the Permanent Commission for Social Concertation, which happened for the first time since 1987, because they considered that the Executive Committee of the inter-union does not broadly represent the world of work.

The socialist trade unionists argued that the organization "does not reflect the thinking of all its political-ideological components that exist and interact" and "leaves out the thinking of socialist, independent workers and other political-ideological currents", since the Executive Committee elected at the 15th Congress, on February 23 and 24, is "amputated from a broad representation of the world of work".

The socialist trade unionists point out that the Executive Committee does not include in its composition trade unionists from all political-ideological currents "of the left that exist, coexist and intervene in the workplaces, in particular, the socialist trade unionists", who actively participated in the Executive Committee of the CGTP since the Congress of All Trade Unions, held in January 1977.

At the inter-union congress held on February 23 and 24, in Seixal, the new National Council of the CGTP was elected (with 147 members) which elected, in turn, the new secretary-general, Tiago Oliveira, and also the Executive Committee, composed of 29 members, but the five socialist trade unionists refused to join this body whose majority wing is that of the PCP, leaving the seats vacant.

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