On the day that marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the national minimum wage, on May 27, 1974, the CDU organised a public session in Lisbon, within the scope of the campaign for the European elections, in which Paulo Raimundo defended that "a wage shock is urgent" in Portugal. The communist leader stated that, if the national minimum wage had been updated according to inflation and productivity, its value would have been 1,137 euros in 2019. "There are estimates that indicate that, to guarantee a dignified life in our country, that is, to guarantee access to essential goods and services for personal and professional fulfilment, the value for a couple with two children should be close to 1,300 euros of salary for each of the members of the couple", he added. The PCP's secretary-general thus defended that it is necessary to increase all wages by 15%, with a minimum of 150 euros, and to set the national minimum wage at one thousand euros by 2024 - currently, it is 820. "Here is the formula that we present: increase the minimum wage, increase public administration, put an end to the expiration of collective bargaining, put an end to burdensome norms", he stated, considering that the increase in wages only depends on the will of the Government, which he criticised. The communist leader accused the Government of being "a bad payer for the workers, while at the same time it proves to be a real cheque-passer for the economic groups". For the communist leader, the "Government is showing itself to be agile in multiplying announcements and intentions for the majority, leaving effectiveness and concrete measures for a small minority". "This Government that drags its feet in everything that is fundamental for the country, which seems more like a kind of board of directors for the interests of capital and which has quickly learned the techniques of propaganda", he said. With irony, the PCP's secretary-general said that these techniques, according to experts, advise "setting the agenda, opening TV news and then putting commentators after commentators to comment on the announcements that were made". It is "creating the idea that the problems are being addressed, when, in truth, in everything that is fundamental for the workers and for the people, what is happening is the accentuation of the sacrifice of their living conditions", he warned. In this public session, workers from various sectors, such as catering, public administration or textiles, and also the CDU's top candidate for the European elections, João Oliveira, spoke. In his speech, the candidate defended that "the right-wing policy, implemented by the PS, PSD and CDS governments, under the guidance and submissively to the EU's policies", pushed Portugal "in the opposite direction to the appreciation of wages". "When they ask us if we are not better off because of the EU, it is time to remember that April 25 did not start in Brussels and the minimum wage was not created by an EU directive", he said. João Oliveira stressed that, when Portugal joined the EU, in 1986, it was promised that it would have the same wages as Germany. "In Germany, the national minimum wage is now four five-hundred euro notes. In Portugal, it is less than two, because the second one has to be torn in half. We are in favour of these promises being fulfilled and that, immediately, our national minimum wage also gives two five-hundred euro notes in full", he stated. Read Also: Eis as frases que marcaram o 1.º dia de campanha para as europeias (Portuguese version)