The Portuguese Government has proposed a minimum monthly wage of €761.58 ($A1,178.74) for Public Servants from next year — an offer quickly rejected by unions.
This would mean an eight per cent increase for workers on the base salary — almost 17 per cent of the workforce according to Government figures.
The Government’s proposal also provides for a minimum increase of €52.11 ($A80.65) for mid-level Public Servants in 2023.
Workers with salaries more than €2,600 ($A4,024) would receive a blanked two per cent rise.
However, Coordinator of Portugal’s Common Front of Trade Unions, Sebastião Santana said the increases were insufficient, falling “far short” of inflation.
Speaking to journalists after a meeting with Cabinet Minister, Mariana Vieira da Silva, and Secretary of State of Public Administration, Inês Ramires, Mr Santana said the offer “does not immediately respond to the immediate need to face up to the loss of purchasing power in 2022”.
“While talks will continue, this first impact was very far from positive because it doesn’t respond specifically to the problems of public administration workers,” Mr Santana said.
Ms da Silva also proposed a new mechanism for updating wages every year until 2026, with some revisions each year, depending on the economic and financial reality of the country.
Mr Santana was not enthusiastic — “it will be very complicated to do multi-year negotiations taking into account that every year the economy changes,” he said.
However, he was prepared to consider such an arrangement as part of successful negotiations.
The budgetary impact of the Government’s offer is expected to be around €158 million ($A244 million) next year.
Lisbon, 8 October 2022
