Clarification of Secretary of the Presidency concerning alleged sackings at Lajes Air Base
Given the news that appear on Friday in the regional media about the alleged sackings of nine Portuguese workers at the service of the North American Forces stationed at Lajes Air Base, the Cabinet of the Regional Secretary for the Presidency wishes to clarify the following:
1- The situation of the the short-term contracts of nine employees that work as guards of the fuel tanks, designated as South Tank Farm, are not new and have merited, for a long time, the attention of the Regional Government of the Azores, in the context of the different levels of consultation provided by the Agreement of Co-Operation and Defence between Portugal and the United States of America.
2- It is in the context of this Agreement that the Regional Government of the Azores has vehemently expressed the following arguments to the North American authorities:
a) The adoption of short-term contract, in their present configuration, is a clear violation of Article 30º nº 5 , paragraph b) and d) of the Employment Regulation of the Agreement;
b) These workers should, therefore, benefit from work contracts with no fixed term in accordance with the stipulations of the Work Regulations of the Employment Agreement.
3) With regard to the discharge notification presented to nine workers on Thursday, the Regional Government has already expressed its disagreement to the North American authorities for the recurrence of this matter and has secured assurances that everything is being done to rectify the situation.
4) The Regional Government of the Azores will continue to be attentive to this situation so that these workers are reinstated.
5) With this aim in mind, the labour situation of these workers shall be evaluated at the meeting of the Labour Commission , scheduled for the 24th, 25th and 26th of March