The notice arrives two days after delivery and presentation. “It is a budget for continuity and deepening of the problems that exist in public administration”, commented the coordinator of the union structure, Sebastião Santana, at a conference held today to make public the first analysis of the OE2026 proposal.
“The proposal falls far short of what is the necessary response to the continued loss of workers’ purchasing power,” he added.
O in the Assembly of the Republic, maintaining the initial proposal for salary increases for the public service provided for in the multi-annual agreement signed in November 2024 with Fesap and the Frente Sindical.
For 2026, the expected increase is 56.58 euros or 2.15%, rising to 60.52 euros in 2027 and 2028, extending until 2029. The Public Administration remuneration base, currently 878.41 euros, will increase to 934.99 euros in 2026, including progressions, promotions and salary agreements, for an estimated total of 1,248 million euros in personnel expenses.
A Maintaining the initial proposal thus led the Common Front to maintain the general civil service strike scheduled for October 24th, if the Government does not present improvements.
Sebastião Santana argued that “the planned salary increases are insufficient and are already committed to previous agreements“.
“The same Government that points to an increase in personnel expenses of around 891 million euros forgets after dissecting this. There are already agreements established for very insufficient salary increases, and nothing new is presented”, he stated.
Among the criticisms, Sebastião Santana also highlighted the Government’s fiscal options, considering them unfair. “The loss of tax revenue with the reduction in the IRS rate amounts to 196 million euros, at the same time that the Government gives large companies a tax free of 300 million in IRC”, he pointed out.
“Indirect taxes, which account for around 56% of tax revenue, mainly affect populations with lower salaries. Those who earn 25 thousand euros per month pay VAT as well as those who earn the national minimum wage. They are blind, unfair taxes, and continue to have a brutal weight on the State budget”, he pointed out.
The Common Front also warned of the 25% increase in investment in public-private partnerships (PPP), considering it a sign of “the Government’s lack of responsibility for essential areas”, such as health.
“The same Government that estimates inflation of 2.1% increases the health budget, but half of it goes directly to the large economic groups”, he accused.
In contrast, he highlighted the 14.5% growth in defense funds, ironizing: “It seems that in Portugal citizens today have more defense problems than health problems, which we all know is not true”.
Sebastião Santana recalled that there are 760 thousand workers in public administration, around 15% of total employment, below the European average of 20%, and warned of the lack of personnel and growing precariousness.
“It is not possible to continue working in the public administration with very low salaries, with an evaluation system that prevents progression and with precariousness growing, at the same time that we see State resources being wasted in favor of the private sector”, he stated.
Faced with this scenario, the coordinator reaffirmed that “the necessary response to this budget is the general strike”, scheduled for October 24th.
“Os workers will fight this budgetary policy. We do not choose workers based on union membership — anyone is welcome to join. Unity is created in concrete, in proposals“, he stated, defending a 15% increase for all workers, with a minimum of 150 euros, the revocation of the evaluation system and the guarantee of the public appointment bond for everyone.
