Autor: duBluesPower | Publicado: 2015-02-25T09:44:00-03:00


RECESSION, TRUCKERS STOPPED, INFLATION IN HIGH. PORTRAIT OF A BRAZIL THE EDGE OF CHAOS




A wave of demonstrations, strikes and layoffs of workers takes care of Brazil. On Tuesday (24) truckers interdicted eight sections of federal roads in the state of Minas Gerais. The protest extends for more than 48 hours and prevents the passage of cargo vehicles. Just passenger cars and bus had released the circulation.



Yesterday, several highways were blocked by truckers protesting against high fuel, and public employees and outsourced workers crossed their arms in search of wage increases. To make matters worse, workers in the automotive industry were laid off or forced to take a vacation and companies involved in Petrobras scandal continue to close jobs because they claim not receive funds to meet commitments.



The government sparked an alert to the problems spread across all regions of Brazil. Analysts say the trend is that the situation from getting worse, since the country is plunged into a recession. They estimate that the low economic growth and rising inflation should accelerate the process of layoffs, which will result in increased unemployment. And the pressures against the measures taken by the Executive to adjust the public accounts are also criticized. In seven states in the country truckers crossed the arms but the Attorney General of the Union (AGU) filed suits in Federal Court in order to suspend the roadblocks.




Workers complain that the price of fuel has increased and the freight remains unchanged. Professional drivers still demand the fall in the price of tolls, better road conditions in the country and different tax rates in cargo transportation.



With the stopped trucks traffic, several companies were affected. In the Fiat factory in Betim, workers were released for a second day due to the prospect of missing parts for the assembly of cars.







There are about 6000 employees laid off. Whereas the plant produces about 3 thousand cars daily in two rounds of stoppage causes at least 2 million vehicles fail to be produced per day.





On Monday, about 6000 workers of the second and third rounds had already been released. According to Fiat, they are being laid off because the protest prevented the auto parts and components used in the manufacture of vehicles arrive at the scheduled time. The Betim factory is located in BR-381 (Fernão Dias highway), the main link between São Paulo and Belo Horizonte. The unit is on a high industrial concentration area, next to the refinery of Petrobras Gabriel Passos.



Fiat says it is monitoring the protest, "in the expectation that the situation returns to normal", to decide when workers must return. The automaker said the night-shift employees (23h-5h) are "mobilized" to go to work on Tuesday, if the situation of the roads improve throughout the day. The company does not rule out having to dismiss employees again tomorrow.





In the warehouse Ceasa in Contagem, the flow of goods had not been affected by the stoppage, but technicians do the survey to measure the situation.



The director of expansion, sustainability and agropecuaria BRF, Luiz Stabile, reported that without the movement of trucks for freight transportation, the company was forced to stop the activities of two refrigerators. In one of them are slaughtered daily 700,000 chickens and other birds as well &nbsp;40 000 turkeys. "It affects small farmers who will have losses. In addition, there is a health threat because, with exposure of many animals to diseases, "he said. The president of the Association of Animal Protein (ABPA), Francisco Turra, detailed that one company failed to process 1.5 million liters of milk and is 100 empty containers at a port because it can not make the goods arrive with the strike of walkers. He detailed that the sector generates $80 million a day and earns $27 million from exports, but accumulate losses from the stoppage of professional drivers.





In Minas Gerais, the protesters stopped traffic in four state highways - the BRs 381, 262 and 040, in addition to the MG-050. In BR-381, the demonstration started on Sunday continued yesterday in other parts of the highway. Truckers stopped traffic in Igarapé, Oliveira and Pardons. Together, the congestion of Fernão Dias totaled almost 40 kilometers. In BR-262, in Juatuba, the strike interrupted the flow at km 368, forming a row of more than four kilometers. In the early evening, the movement reached the BR-040, at points in Nova Lima and Count. In the North of Minas Gerais, there was the beginning of a strike on US-365, connection with the Mining Triangle. However, without massive support, the movement fell apart.



The chairman of the Union of Interstate Truckers, José Nathan, said the strike reflects the "state of despair" category. He claims that followed fuel adjustments were not incorporated into the freight amount fully for a share of customers. This made untenable the cost of a portion of carriers and self-employed truck. "The freight was already the hour of death. Now company has failed to pay off the property taxes. ", said José.




Nathan Said to Have Been reduced by 30% in the amount paid in the transport of grains and minerals due to the downturn in prices commodity. The vice president of the National Confederation of Truckers, Carlos Alberto de la Rosa, Urges the government to redo the price worksheet freight per mile. "The category wants to meet with the government to set the policy. The truck drivers are not in condition to run."



In 12 months, the IPCA inflation index is up 7.36% - the highest rate since June 2005. The most indivual impact on inflation came from electricity bills, which rose 7.7%. In São Paulo, the increase reached 12.17%. Transport helped pull up the month's inflation rate: the indicator increased from 0.75% in January to 1.98% in February, mainly reflecting the adjustments in urban bus fares.