 |
An aerial view of the Arena da Baixada stadium in Curitiba, Brazil (AP-Yonhap News) |
CURITIBA, Brazil (AP) ― Workers went on strike over late pay at one of the stadiums enduring the longest delays ahead of the World Cup in Brazil, officials said Saturday.
The work stoppage happened in the southern city of Curitiba, where world champion Spain is expected to be based during football’s showcase event next year.
Curitiba Mayor Gustavo Fruet said about one-third of the stadium’s 1,200 workers took part in the strike that lasted up to three days this week. He said protesting workers blocked a city avenue for about an hour on Friday.
“There was a delay of the payment and there was a strike,” he said.
The deadline for Curitiba’s stadium has already been pushed back to mid-February because of construction delays that officials said resulted from belated financing. The stadium belongs to Brazilian first division club Atletico Paranaense and is undergoing extensive renovation to host matches in next year’s World Cup.
Mauro Holzmann, the club’s marketing and communications chief, downplayed the labor unrest.
He claimed that only 150 workers were involved and they only downed tools for two hours on Friday. He also said their pay was just one day late and that the labor contractor has since been paid. He didn’t know, however, if the contractor had relayed the payment to the workers.
“It won’t happen again. It was just a little misunderstanding,” Holzmann said.
A group of workers taking a break in the stadium said they were owed one month’s pay. They said they would down tools again next week if the money promised to them doesn’t arrive.
The Arena da Baixada will host four World Cup matches, including Australia vs. Spain on June 23. The Curitiba stadium is expected to hold its first test game in February, two months after the original deadline established by FIFA for stadium delivery.
