“The UGT strongly opposes this proposal, which it views as a significant regression in labor rights, weakening worker protection and skewing labor relations in favor of employers,” asserts the trade union center in the document titled “A Resounding No to Labor Reform for Employers,” released today.
In this document, the UGT compares, point by point, the current legal provisions, the government’s proposed draft, and what workers stand to lose if the reform progresses.
Among the most concerning changes highlighted are the “easing of dismissals and the increased difficulty of reinstatement in cases of unlawful dismissal” and the “worsening of precariousness, with longer fixed-term contracts and less protection for retired workers.”
It also underscores the “restriction of the right to strike, with the generalization of minimum services,” the “rollback of parental and family conciliation rights,” and the “undervaluation of collective bargaining and union action in the workplace.”
“For the UGT, this proposal does not modernize the labor market — it weakens it, jeopardizing fundamental principles of labor justice, stability, and equality,” it emphasizes.
Calling for reflection and public debate around the government’s draft bill, the union reiterates its “full availability to discuss solutions that promote more dignity, security, and balance in labor relations.”
The government’s draft bill for revising labor legislation, currently being debated with social partners, foresees the revision of “more than a hundred” articles of the Labor Code.
The Minister of Labor, Rosário Palma Ramalho, has repeatedly stated that the government is “in no rush” to negotiate the labor review draft, but warned that it “will not perpetuate” discussions in Social Concertation.
The proposed changes, described as “Labor XXI” and presented by the government on July 24 as a “profound” revision of labor legislation, cover areas from parenthood (with changes in parental leave, breastfeeding, and gestational mourning) to flexible work, company training, or trial periods of employment contracts, also foreseeing an extension of sectors covered by minimum services in the event of a strike.
