Portuguese union boss makes electric car proposal in attempt to end labor dispute

LISBON, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- The leader of Portugal's largest trade union argued on Tuesday that manufacturing electric cars at the Volkswagen (VW) Autoeuropa assembly plant could solve the ongoing labor dispute there.

"The time has come for the Portuguese government, together with the multinational, to guarantee the conditions required for Autoeuropa to become an integral part of a new stage in VW's strategic production," said Armenio Carlos, secretary general of the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP).

Carlos, whose comments came in an opinion piece for the Publico newspaper, was referencing an agreement between VW and the German government to invest up to 70 billion euros in electric cars.

Management and workers at Autoeuropa, in Palmela, a town some 40 km south of Lisbon, are locked in a pay dispute over new shift patterns.

The company is attempting to make the plant continuously operational, obliging staff to work on Saturdays. Management have offered workers a payrise, but refuse to meet staff demands that Saturday shifts be registered as overtime.

The dispute is being followed closely in Portugal where Autoeuropa is of great economic importance. The plant is one of the biggest direct foreign investments in Portugal and among the largest generators of export revenues.

The plant employs 3,400 staff. A worker's commission had originally agreed to the new shift patterns, but a subsequent union vote rejected the proposal.

Some have accused company directors of playing hardball by threatening to move Autoeuropa out of Portugal. Others think the CGTP is being too demanding.

The dispute has centered around the manufacture of the new T-Roc SUV, for which VW had made Autoeuropa its exclusive European base.

Observers see Carlos' mention of electric cars as an attempt to move the debate beyond the current work cycle and perhaps even encourage the government to intervene with some long-term thinking. Enditem