Panama Workers Plan Protest Strike Today

Public employees have called a 24-hour general strike for today to protest planned massive layoffs of government workers as part of an austerity program urged by the International Monetary Fund.

Hector Aleman, secretary general of the Federation of Public Employees, said that workers will stage staggered work stoppages to demand that the government halt plans to fire 20,000 employees. The federation represents 33 employee associations throughout Panama’s federal government.