The National Union of Port Administration Workers of Portugal (SNTAP) is holding a series of strikes across the country’s main ports, including Douro, Leixões, Viana do Castelo, Aveiro, Figueira da Foz, Lisbon, Setúbal, Sines, and Algarve.
According to the union, employees of port administrations are stopping work in several stages: October 23–24, October 27–28, October 31–November 1, November 4–5, and November 7–8.
The strikes are linked to what the union describes as the government’s failure to implement an agreement signed in December 2024 on raising base salaries and revising hourly wage calculations in line with the Labor Code.
The action does not cover ports in Portugal’s autonomous regions — Madeira and the Azores — or vessels traveling from or to these regions. Minimum services required by arbitration are being maintained, but the volume of port operations has been significantly reduced.
The first strike, held on October 23–24, disrupted cruise operations. The cruise liner MSC Divina shifted passenger boarding from Lisbon to Málaga, Spain, where free transfers were arranged for tourists. Another vessel, Ambassador Ambience, canceled its Lisbon call and docked in La Coruña instead.
