Lisbon (EFE).- Portuguese Prime Minister Luís Montenegro stated on Wednesday that the government respects the right to strike, yet warned that the protest to demand the withdrawal of the proposed labor reform ended up affecting many people, especially those in sectors such as education, healthcare, and transportation.
«We would never question the right to strike. It would never occur to us to question the exercise of that right,» said the head of government.
Montenegro made these remarks during a press conference to announce Portugal’s election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, whose Secretary-General is the Portuguese António Guterres.
«We must balance the rights of everyone: the right of the Portuguese people to strike and send a political message on certain issues and the right of those who are not striking and want to work,» he stated.
The strike, organized by the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers-National Inter-Union (CGTP-IN), was the second of that scale in six months, after a day of protests on Dec. 11 against the government’s proposal.
