Lisbon, Sept. 3, 2026 (Lusa) - The strike by bar staff on CP's long-distance trains is now in its fourth day, with a nationwide participation rate of 95%, according to a trade union source, and «most» trains running without meals or a bar on board.
«The strike continues to enjoy strong support, reaching 95% this morning, with the majority of long-distance trains running, for the fourth consecutive day, without on-board meal or bar services,» reads a statement released by the Southern Union of Workers in the Hospitality, Tourism, Restaurants and Related Industries on Thursday.
The Lusa news agency has been trying, so far without success, to speak to the management of Itau, the company which, since April 2025, has been operating the catering and bar services on Alfa Pendular and Intercidades trains.
Staff at the bars on CP's long-distance trains began a new indefinite strike on Monday to demand that Itau respect the rights set out in the Company Agreement.
The union states that the company has «chosen, from day one, to disregard the rights enshrined in the Company Agreement applicable to workers» and, more recently, has «chosen to intensify the dispute by failing to pay the 22 days' meal allowance provided for in the agreement and instead paying only for the days actually worked».
On Tuesday, the workers held a rally outside the Ministry of Infrastructure and Housing and the State Secretariat for Mobility, demanding «government intervention to resolve the dispute, specifically with the CP management, so that it may urge the concessionaire to fulfil its obligations».
According to the trade union, the chief of staff to the Secretary of State for Mobility, Cristina Dias, then received a delegation of workers and «undertook to arrange a further meeting with the Secretary of State».
«This dispute, caused by the concessionaire's failure to fulfil its obligations, severely affects workers' monthly incomes, but also harms CP passengers, who, as a result of the strikes held since 2025, are often prevented from accessing the bar and catering services to which they are contractually entitled when they purchase their travel pass or ticket», the union said.
For the trade union, «it is essential that workers' rights and earnings be fully respected, whilst passengers continue to enjoy a service that forms part of their travel conditions»; therefore, «the government and the public company CP have a vital role to play in this dispute, and they can actively intervene in the search for a solution that will bring it to a positive conclusion».
Through the strike, the workers are demanding full compliance with the collective agreement, the back payment of 22 days' worth of meal allowances, ‘fair' pay rises backdated to January, the updating of clauses relating to monetary terms, ‘decent working conditions for both on-board and ground staff', and the negotiation and signing of a new collective agreement with Itaú.
In 2025, workers in the train bars had already completed 18 days of strike action in defence of the collective agreement, and in 2026 they continued the struggle by striking on public holidays, at weekends and over overtime.
PD/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
