Thousands of Portuguese workers protest against austerity measures

Flights were grounded and public transportation halted during a 24 hour general strike in Portugal to protest against proposed austerity measures.

A deficit reduction plan is to be voted upon by parliament next week as a result of an EU and IMF bailout.

Hundreds of thousands of workers, including teachers and hospital staff, are expected to join air traffic controllers and workers on Lisbon’s metro system who were the first to go on strike late on Wednesday.

Two main labour unions representing more than a million workers are supporting the mass industrial action which is expected to be the largest in Portugal’s history.

Spending cuts across public services, including health care and the armed forces were proposed by the government along with tax increases.

The removal of Christmas and holiday bonuses equal to a month’s pay for most public sector workers was also proposed while allowing companies in the private sector to extend their workday by 30 minutes with paying overtime.

Portugal’s government must drastically reduce its deficit as a result of the €78 billion bailout and Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho said there was no other option but to slash government spending.