#OccuparLisboa Portuguese #Revolution Protests Lisbon Portugal General Strike Precarios Inflexiveis movement Invasion On PT Contact Call-Cente
Portuguese movment take action on Portugal Telecom Call cente in Lisbon Portugal
Union-led marches are taking place in Portugal this afternoon, as part of today's general strike.
Word from Lisbon is that transport services have been badly hit by the general strike
The Lisbon subway, which carries more than a half-million passengers every weekday, stayed closed. Train, bus and ferry companies in the capital and the second-largest city Porto provided only occasional services. Long traffic queues built up on roads into both cities as commuters resorted to their cars.
There are also reports that most school children were sent home, because teachers and auxiliary staff did not show up for work, and that some medical appointments have been cancelled.
GCPW, which called the strike (more details at 8.16am). has more than 600,000 members, mainly public sector and manual workers.
But Luis Antonio, a plumber, said he was taking part (with his manager's blessing), and blamed Portugal's political class for the country's position
8.34am: There are reports from Portugal that the metro systems in Lisbon and Oporto, Portugal's second-largest city, have shut down because of the strike, and that the ferry service linking the two sides of the Tagus river in Lisbon is also suspended.
A worker, who is part of a picket line, stands in front of a train at the Rossio railway terminal in Lisbon as Thursday's general strike begins. Photograph: Rafael Marchante/Reuters
8.16am: Today's general strike has been called by Portugal's largest union, the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP). It is opposed to labour law reforms, which remove restrictions on hiring and firing staff, and lowers the compensation payments due to workers.
CGTP, which has strong communist links, hopes that all major public transport services would join the stoppage, including trains, the Lisbon underground and the ferry boats that take workers across the Tagus River to the capital. That would mean that people could be unable to reach their workplace, even if they don't support the action.
3.51pm: The head of the Portuguese union that called today's general strike has vowed to press on with more industrial action in future, and admitted that today's turnout wasn't great.
Armenio Carlos, leader of the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers, said it was hard to persuade workers to down tools when they are already struggling to earn enough to survive.
He warned, though, that if Portugal risks disaster if it continues to impose tough austerity, saying:
This is the same path that was taken by Greece, which resulted in a huge failure.
