Minimum Services Set for Strike at CARAM: Animal Slaughter and Meat Distribution Ensured

The Regional Secretariat for Inclusion, Labor and Youth and the Regional Secretariat for Agriculture and Fisheries issued a joint dispatch defining the essential minimum services to be maintained during the strike called at the Autonomous Region of Madeira Slaughterhouse (CARAM), EPERAM, scheduled for March 16 to 30, 2026.

The strike, announced by the Union of Public and Social Function Workers - South and Autonomous Regions, covers all CARAM workers, the only public slaughterhouse in the Region that guarantees 100% of the regional consumption of fresh meat. The decision to set minimum services stems from the need to safeguard meat supply, prevent clandestine slaughter that compromises public health and animal welfare, and mitigate significant economic impacts for farmers, distributors, and traders.

The minimum services, detailed in an annex to the dispatch, include the slaughter and preparation of carcasses, conditioning and unloading of by-products, prevention of emergency slaughter, and meat distribution. For the week of March 16 to 20, 9 workers are planned for slaughter and preparation, 1 for emergency slaughter, and 6 for distribution on specific days, with adjustments for the following week and for March 30. These workers will be designated according to CARAM's technical organization.

The measure comes after the lack of agreement between the Union and the company on the definition of these services, despite negotiation attempts. The Regional Secretariats justify the intervention with the urgency of protecting social interests and the indispensable needs of the population, as provided for in the Constitution and the Labor Code, thus preventing the total paralysis of an activity crucial for Madeira.