In a statement, the Union of Workers of Agriculture and of the Food, Beverage and Tobacco Industries of Portugal (SINTAB) explained that employees of the Madeira Beer Company (ECM) condemn “the company's continued inflexibility”.

“Under the pretext of the covid-19 pandemic, they have been refusing to discuss salary increases for three years. Even the latest [salary increases], in 2018, were absorbed by the withdrawal of subsidies that had always been paid".

According to the resolution of two workers' plenary sessions, ECM workers decided to join the overtime strike “from this date” [November 18] and strike on December 15 and 16 if “the company do not submit a proposal to increase wages and respond to the reduction of weekly working hours”.