The strike, called by the National Federation of Independent Unions of Public Administration and Public Entities (Fesinap), began at midnight and will last until 11:59 pm, covering central, regional and local administration.

In statements to the Lusa news agency, the Secretary-General of Fesinap had already anticipated a "strong" turnout for the strike, especially in the health and education sectors.

Nevertheless, Mário Rui also highlighted possible impacts on other state bodies, namely the Institute of Registries and Notaries, the Directorate-General for the Administration of Justice, the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum, and the Social Security Institute.

According to the Secretary-General of Fesinap, which represents "nearly nine thousand workers," among the reasons that led to the calling of this strike are the delays in the performance evaluation of civil servants, as well as the creation of the career of teaching technical assistant and an increase in hiring for the health sector.

Regarding performance evaluation, Fesinap advocates revising the Integrated System of Management and Performance Evaluation in Public Administration (SIADAP), arguing that the current system is "unfair" and, in particular, calling for quotas to be eliminated, "similar to what already happens in the Azores," he explains.

The revision of SIADAP is one of the points included in the new multi-year agreement for the valorisation of civil servants signed in January between the Government, Fesinap and STE, with negotiations scheduled to begin in the second half of this year.

According to Mário Rui, Fesinap still wants to be received by the Government to present its proposals and participate in the usual negotiations that exist between the executive branch and representatives of the Public Administration.