TAP workers’ committee calls privatization a ‘major mistake’

TAP Working Committee (CT) Coordinator Cristina Carrillo said this Thursday that the government’s decision to privatize the airline is a “mistake”, arguing that historically these decisions have “always led to losses for Portugal”.

“The workers’ committee considers this government decision a mistake. This is what we can say because we know that historically attempts to privatize a company have never been very successful, they have always led to losses for Portugal, for the state. , for the Portuguese,” said Cristina Carrillo Lusa.

The TAP CT coordinator then stated that TAP “should be 100% Portuguese, it should never be privatized”, saying she still believed the privatization plans would fall apart.

“There are always possibilities for anything, as long as there is will and understanding. Therefore, yes, there is every opportunity for the state to reverse this situation and continue to be the sole shareholder of the company, of course yes,” emphasized the head of the representative organization of workers.

The government announced this Thursday its intention to sell at least 51% of TAP’s capital, leaving up to 5% for workers, Finance Minister Fernando Medina said at the end of the Council of Ministers meeting.

“This is a minimal percentage” of alienation, he emphasized.

According to Cristina Carrillo, the 5% reserved for workers is not enough and is treated with “every skepticism.”

“I agree with what is written, no matter how much they say that it is protected, it is not,” he pointed out, noting that this percentage “does not give employees decision-making authority or influence in the management of the enterprise.” company”.

During the announcement this afternoon, Fernando Medina indicated that the chief executive was looking for a “large-scale investor” in the aviation sector in the context of the reprivatization of TAP, which returned to state ownership during the pandemic.

The idea of ​​including TAP in an external aviation group was also rejected by Cristina Carrillo.

“An airline, and in this case TAP, does not have to be included, as some would argue, in a larger group of airlines in order to continue to operate, have markets, etc.,” he said, referring to alternatives such as joint use of aircraft. or routes for multiple airlines to have a wider network.

Last week in Parliament, Prime Minister António Costa, among various scenarios, put forward the hypothesis of privatizing the entire capital of TAP, despite the fact that the amount has not yet been determined and that it will depend on the chosen partner.

Medina also ensured that the winner of the TAP privatization would not be “merely” the one who submitted the highest value proposal, but rather the best proposal that would serve the country and the national economy.