"This strike is the result of the lack of response from CP – Comboios de Portugal management to what the union has systematically denounced through letters addressed to the relevant departments, stating that working conditions at this position, which were already deficient, have deteriorated in a particularly worrying way with the increase in temperatures during the summer, especially during the afternoon shift," union leader José Oliveira told Lusa.

According to the director of the National Union of Railway Workers, the union issued a "partial strike notice," which will take place for two weeks during the afternoon shift at the ticket offices of Entroncamento station, in the district of Santarém, and will be called off if the demands are met.

"Workers, specifically those who serve the public at the Entroncamento ticket offices, are exposed to direct solar radiation for several consecutive hours, a situation that results in severe thermal discomfort and clearly degrades the environmental conditions at the workplace," the union asserts in its strike notice.

Insisting that the working conditions of these employees jeopardise "not only their well-being and dignity in the performance of their professional activities, but also increase clear health risks," José Oliveira argued that "this fact, under the terms of the Labour Code, cannot be ignored by the employer."

According to the union leader, CP refurbished the commercial and customer service areas at the Entroncamento train station in 2022, but failed to address the "incidence of sunlight, which, on these hot days, makes temperatures very high" at the ticket offices.

"We've warned the company several times about the situation; it's not a recent issue, but there was no response to a problem related to working conditions, and it was in this context that the strike notice was issued," he explained.

Also, according to José Oliveira, the strike could render public service unfeasible for about two weeks, always in the afternoon, depending on worker participation.

"If everyone scheduled to work that shift actually participates, there will be no service in the afternoon, which is the shift when working conditions are worse due to the temperatures," he said, adding that "it's up to the technicians" to find a solution.

"What is needed is for CP to take some measures to prevent sunlight from hitting that location, possibly with air conditioning, but it certainly won't be a very high investment," he added.