General strike in Brazil ends with riots in São Paulo and Rio

Friday (28) in Brazil was marked by the general strike of professional categories. In several cities, mostly capitals, road, subway, trade workers joined the stoppage, called by the trade unions in protest at pension reforms. In most of these cities, public transport services were partially or totally disrupted during the day. Bank branches, schools and shops were closed.

The unions criticize points of the reforms, such as the minimum age for retirement and the end of the obligation of the union contribution. The government argues that the changes are necessary for the payment of social security benefits to future generations and the creation of jobs.

Demonstrators carried out acts and marches. There were also blockages of roads and highways. Businesses and governments resorted to Justice for part of the employees to work on this day.

The two largest union organizations - CUT and Força Sindical - considered the strike to be successful and argued that there are proposals for a resumption of the country's growth without "loss of labor, social security and social rights." The federal government evaluated that the acts were restricted to the large centers and that there was low adherence, which means that the majority of the population supports the reforms proposed by the Executive and in process in the National Congress.

The national strike ended with clashes between protesters and police in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.