“It’s impossible to live on minimum wage”
Workers in Portugal’s meat sector – particularly those working for national companies Nobre and Isidoro – are on a 24-hour strike today, which has seen protests in Montijo, outside the Portuguese association of Meat Industries.
The predicament for these workers is that they struggle on minimum wages, unable to make ends meet.
The national minimum wage is €760, add to that a meals’ subsidy and a few extras, it is still an amount that falls far short of ‘feeding a family’, even ‘paying the rent’.
According to reports, STIAC – the union representing these workers – seeks to secure base salaries of €850 (starting with immediate effect), with better conditions and salary progressions included in any deal.
Some of those interviewed today have worked in the sector for decades, telling SIC they are still earning the absolute minimum, incapable of affording any kind of decent lifestyle.
This is not the first STIAC demonstration. It may not be the last – but it is a strike that shows that it is not simply workers in the public sector in Portugal who are struggling in an economy characterised by low salaries.
Source: SIC Notícias/ STIAC
