POLICE used tear gas early today to clear hundreds of striking Brazilian underground workers from a station in central World Cup host city Sao Paulo.

Tube workers have frequently clashed with police in recent weeks during strikes for a 12.2 per cent pay rise.

Their state-owned employers are trying to impose an 8.7 per cent settlement.

Union leader Alexandre Roland — one of the strikers hit by tear gas at the Ana Rosa station — said that until the government sat down to negotiate, the strike would continue.

The vast majority of fans attending Brazil’s World Cup opener against Croatia on Thursday are expected to use the underground network to get to the Corinthians Arena on the outskirts of the city.

President Dilma Rousseff has vowed not to let the protest hit the World Cup, but workers again voted to continue their strike indefinitely yesterday despite a court order to return to work and threats that they would be sacked.

The Sao Paulo labour court also fined the union over £100,000 for each of the first four days of the strike and £130,000 for each additional day.

The two unions representing the workers have made it clear that they don’t want the strike to hit the tournament but blame the government for not sitting down.

“This is the way they negotiate, with tear gas and repression,” said Mr Roland.

Striking workers regrouped to march on the city centre where they joined a wide-ranging rally including landless workers demanding low-cost housing and groups calling for free public transport.