The prison guards’ strike has already led to the postponement of more than a thousand trials and more than 90% of the scheduled sessions, according to the National Union of Prison Guard Corps (SNCGP).
The guards have been on strike since February 13 and, according to the union, membership is now around 100%, with an impact on prisoner transportation.
“We’re talking about the postponement of around 90% to 95% of trials,” Frederico Morais, from the SNCGP, told Lusa, noting that more than a thousand sessions had been postponed in two weeks.
According to the union leader, in the Lisbon and Porto prisons, the strike led to the postponement of all trials.
The strike is also having an impact on medical appointments and, in this case, the minimum services are making it possible to ensure only 10% of appointments, with the rest being postponed.
The guards are on strike until March 9 to demand the “valorization and dignification of professionals”, the “restructuring of remuneration supplements” and the “approval of the completed performance evaluation system for prison guard professionals”.
“The strike has to do with the dissatisfaction of the prison guards and the lack of answers from the government. We’ve been on strike for two weeks and no one has even deigned to talk to the prison guards,” said Frederico Morais.
Prison guards have also been part of the security forces’ protests over the last month, motivated above all by the allocation of a mission allowance to the PJ that left out not only prison guards, but also the PSP and GNR.
Lusa questioned the Ministry of Justice about the impact of the strike on court proceedings and is awaiting a response.
