Four people - three workers and one of the tannery owners, Constantino Toupkos - from a Uruguayan tannery have been hospitalised following a violent incident at Naussa S.A. in the town of Las Piedras, 23 km north of Montevideo, Uruguay. Reports state that the tannery owners and a group of workers, armed with sticks and stones, entered the premises and attacked the workers that had been occupying the tannery days before to evict them.

The workers were awaiting a delegation from the Inter-Union Workers' Plenary-National Workers' Convention (Pit-Cnt) when they were surprised by the attack. 

Marcelo Abdala, leader of the Tannery Workers' Union (UOC) said the situation was "an unacceptable act against a peaceful occupation", adding that he expected the government to take firm action over this "outrageous violation of the right to strike".

Uruguayan Minister of Labour, Eduardo Bonomi, called the action an "irregular private eviction" beyond the scope of the conflict.

Mr. Bonomi said that he considered the event as an illegal act by the tannery owners, whilst sub-secretary Jorge Bruni insisted that the occupation was an extension of the right to strike. Mr. Bonomi agreed with this position and added that the International Labour Organisation (ILO) also states that occupation of premises is an extension of the right to strike, a position that is also accepted by international jurisprudence. 

The struggle left ten wounded in total and triggered a demonstration that brought together 200 tannery workers. Following the incident, the UOC ordered the blockade of all raw material bound for this tannery.