The protest action was called by the Union of Commerce, Office and Service Workers of Portugal (CESP) and will start at 5:00 am on Tuesday.

The strike will be two hours per shift, between Tuesday and Thursday.

A workers' plenary is also scheduled for Friday, at the Paços do Concelho, at 1:30 pm.

Speaking to the Lusa agency, Orlando Gonçalves of CESP explained that the negotiation of the claim book is at issue, accusing the management of EMEL (Lisbon Municipal Mobility and Parking Company) of not yet having resumed discussions with the unions.

According to the unionist, the workers are still waiting for the company, which is 100% owned by the Lisbon City Council, to fulfil the commitments made in 2023 and which have not been implemented.

In addition to the salary improvement, the implementation of night work is one of the issues that most concerns EMEL workers, said Orlando Gonçalves.

"In last year's process, in which we reached an agreement, it was agreed that night work would be implemented this year. The board of directors, at the last meeting we had, said that it would not implement it, postponing what had already been agreed. We also did not reach an agreement in terms of salary increases," he explained.

The unionist said that the negotiation process with EMEL workers has been dragging on for several months, with the workers being offered an increase of 52.63 euros, against the 150 euros that are being demanded.

Regarding night work, Orlando Rodrigues explained that the idea is to allow an increase of up to 40 euros every four or five years for workers.

According to Orlando Gonçalves, the strike will affect inspections and may force the closure of some shops and the Graça funicular.

Lusa tried to contact EMEL's management, but did not receive a response in a timely manner.

In turn, a source from the Lisbon City Council said that the municipality "supports dialogue in resolving labour disputes", but stressed that the local authority does not have the competence to "initiate these negotiations".

This competence, he added, lies with EMEL's board of directors.

EMEL has about 700 employees.

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