Portugal truckers plan another strike, risking gas supplies

LISBON, Portugal — Portuguese tanker truck drivers have announced a new walkout, just days after returning to work and resuming talks with employers in a pay dispute.

The Hazardous Materials Drivers Union said Wednesday its about 750 members — from a total of some 900 in Portugal — will refuse to work overtime and on weekends and public holidays Sept. 7-22.

The union says truckers work many overtime hours to keep the country’s 3,000 gas stations stocked.

Truckers ended a seven-day walkout on Sunday, after government emergency measures prevented gas pumps from running dry. Talks with employers broke down late Tuesday.

A spate of strikes has tested the Socialist government, traditionally sympathetic to trade unions. But with a general election less than two months away, the centre-left is wary of taking sides.

The Associated Press

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