On Tuesday, metalworkers at the Sao Jose dos Campos facility of Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer (EMBR3.SA) opted to call off a walkout they had begun earlier in the day to support increased pay.
After around three hours, the walkout was called off, according to a statement from the local union Sindmetal, because the employees felt “intimidated by the large number of police officers and security guards on site.”
At 3 p.m. local time (1800 GMT), Sindmetal announced it would propose a fresh strike to employees working a different shift.
After rejecting the firm’s pay offer, the metalworkers decided to strike early on Tuesday.
Although Embraer indicated in a separate statement that the plant was “operating normally” while talks between employees and industry organization FIESP were ongoing, the union said the action was expected to stop production at the factory.
According to Sindmetal, metalworkers were given a salary boost of 4.06% to keep up with inflation in Brazil. The union declined to provide details on the rise they wanted.
The union claims that they informed Embraer of the prospective strike on September 26 but that no adjustments were made to the pay proposal.
After Boeing (BA.N) and Airbus (AIR.PA), Embraer is the third-largest aircraft manufacturer in the world. It said it had awarded employees a 4.06% pay increase for wages up to 10,000 reais ($1,967) per month and a 406-real hike for earnings over that amount.
“That is consistent with the proposal made by FIESP, which represents businesses in the industry. The unions and FIESP are still in negotiations, Embraer said, adding that all its other plants are running regularly.
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