The Lajes Base Workers’ Representative Committee (CRT) yesterday denounced “the serious labor situation, marked by a lack of wage increases, the paralysis of the Labor Committee, and uncertainty about the future of temporary workers.” This situation, according to a statement sent to DI (Diário Insular newspaper), jeopardizes “the smooth functioning of the base and bilateral relations.”

“As workers’ representatives, we publicly express our deep concern about the absence of meetings of the Labor Commission and the Bilateral Commission provided for in the Lajes Base Agreement, structures with fundamental responsibilities in resolving labor and diplomatic matters between Portugal and the United States of America,” the document reads. According to the CRT, “among the issues that should have been addressed at the last meeting of the Labor Commission, scheduled and not held on September 29, 2025, is the lack of salary updates for FEUSAÇORES workers in 2025.”

For the first time in several years, the more than 420 permanent workers did not receive any increase, which, “in view of inflation and the general increase in the cost of living, represents a real loss of purchasing power.” “This increase does not imply any cost to the Portuguese government, since it is fully supported by the US side,” says the CRT.

The workers’ representatives claim that “this situation, aggravated by the lack of response regarding the necessary revision of the salary scales, is a source of growing discontent and insecurity among workers.”

“The suspension of the Labor Commission’s work has also left several individual and collective complaints already scheduled for review unresolved, increasing the sense of frustration and lack of institutional communication at a time when it would be essential to strengthen dialogue and transparency,” the note reads. The CRT states “that the impasse in negotiations and the failure of the committees to meet prevents urgent issues from being addressed, compromising labor balance and the smooth functioning of bilateral relations at Lajes Base.” For the workers’ representatives, “the situation of temporary employees remains equally worrying,” given that “throughout 2025, several contracts were not renewed, and the remaining employees with contracts until May 2026 have already received formal notification of the termination of their contracts, with no prospect of continuity.”

In view of the situation described, the CRT “calls for the immediate resumption of the meetings of the Labor Commission and the Bilateral Commission, in order to ensure respect for workers’ rights and the restoration of a climate of trust and labor stability at Lajes Air Base.”

In Diário Insular-José Lourenço, director

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