Sao Paulo subway system likely to be closed on World Cup opening day

Employees of the underground system of Sao Paulo will continue the strike until their salary is raised by 12.2 percent.

It is possible that the city's subway system may thus be closed on June 12, when the World Cup kicks off on Itakeran stadium in Sao Paulo. According to the organizers of the FIFA World Cup, it is the subway system that should serve as the main type of transport during the days of the championship.

"If no agreement is reached with the government of Sao Paulo, the subway will not work on Thursday," the general secretary of the trade union of subway workers, Alex Fernandes, told reporters.

Noteworthy, subway employees previously asked the authorities to raise their salaries by 35 percent. However, the management of underground system refuses to discuss an opportunity of salary raise by more than 8.7%.