10 Apr 2024 | 11:59 PM UTC
Chile: Nationwide strike planned April 11
Major labor union calls for 24-hour strike across Chile April 11; business and transport disruptions likely.
The United Workers' Central (Central Unitaria de Trabajadores, CUT), one of Chile's largest labor unions, will stage a 24-hour nationwide strike April 11. Other labor organizations, including the Interunion Public Transport Roundtable (Mesa Intersindical del Transporte Publico, MITP), which is composed of leaders of rail, bus, and taxi drivers' unions, have announced that they support the CUT's strike; workers in many sectors will likely participate in the work stoppage and cause significant business and transport disruptions.
In addition to stopping their work, striking workers will likely hold street demonstrations. The largest of these will probably be in Santiago, where strikers will gather at 12:00 in Plaza de Los Heroes. From there, demonstrators will march along Avenida Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins, commonly known as Alameda, to its intersection with Avenida Santa Rosa, where they will hold a rally. The demonstration is likely to force the partial closure of Alameda, which is the main thoroughfare through Santiago and the primary connection between the business-oriented neighborhoods in the east of the city and Arturo Merino Benitez International Airport (SCL). Other protests are likely in the main plazas of other major cities.
As well as business and transport disruptions, the strike is likely to prompt authorities to deploy an increased police presence to the sites of related demonstrations. While the protests are likely to be mostly peaceful, clashes are possible, especially during night hours, when more radical demonstrators frequently clash with police in Chile.
Avoid all protests as a precaution. If violence occurs, immediately leave the area and seek shelter in a secure, nongovernmental building. Allow for additional transport time. Reconfirm all business appointments. Heed the instructions of security personnel.
The CUT is largely supportive of President Gabriel Boric, and it has stressed that the strike does not represent a split between it and the government. Instead, the CUT has said the strike is designed to draw the government's attention to a manifesto it has released that calls for increased salaries, pension and tax reform, and strengthened collective bargaining protections.
