SAO PAULO, June 5 — Workers on Sao Paulo’s subway system will launch an open-ended strike today, the latest to hit Brazil in the run-up to the World Cup.

The strike will raise fears of transport chaos in the Brazilian economic capital, a sprawling city of 20 million people, one week before it hosts the opening match.

After negotiations broke down for a 16.5 per cent pay raise, the workers decided to go on strike from midnight Thursday (0300 GMT), a union spokesman told AFP.

The strike will affect about 4.5 million daily passengers.

Transport chaos erupted in Sao Paulo last month when bus drivers went on strike for two days, affecting more than a million passengers.

The subway acted as a key pressure valve during that strike, helping stranded commuters reach their destinations — albeit via inconvenient routes in jam-packed trains.

Brazil has been gripped by a wave of strikes ahead of the World Cup and elections in October, as well as by protests over the more than US$11 billion (RM35.6 billion) being spent on the tournament. — AFP