"We have to return in September with the full force we have used thus far. Let's start on the first day of classes and we will do everything so that there are no classes under the trade union law, not with a strike, no more financial effort, [but] with plenaries and meetings across the whole country, with the distribution of a text to the population," Mario Nogueira told dozens of demonstrators.

This fight will continue, the unionist warned, in the week of 5 October, World Teacher's Day, "with a week of strikes from Monday to Thursday, because Friday is a holiday," although the, "strike model has yet to be set out."

"We have not yet looked at whether it will be a four-day strike for everyone, or whether it will be another model, but this is the decisive week in negotiations between the parties and the State Budget for 2019, because there must be funding for the first moment of recovery of the years worked," he warned.

Nogueira was speaking at a rally scheduled to await the arrival of the Assistant Secretary of State and Education to the municipality of São Pedro do Sul, to sign a protocol.

Alexandra Leitão, however, arrived earlier than scheduled, which the trade unionist considered to be "cowardly."

"It is a pity that we have officials who, as we have seen today, have political cowardice in their genes," Nogueira said, regretting that the secretary of state did not tell the people present whether or not she was committed to solving the problem.

Nogueira warned, however, that the education leaders or the prime minister in, "the month of July, or August, which are holiday months," could be confronted in public places.

The local mayor, Vítor Figueiredo, explained the proticil was signed an hour and a half ahead of schedule because the secretary of state had to b in Lisbon for a parliamentary group conference at 12.30.

The protocol signed was focused on a €1.1 million intervention at the Secondary School of São Pedro do Sul.