This text, authored by João Reis, a Law professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra, analyzes the main merits and demerits of the legislative changes introduced to the Labor Code in 2023, within the framework of the Decent Work Agenda. It argues that the two main merits were the granting of collective representation rights to economically dependent self-employed workers and the utilization of the mandatory arbitration mechanism to prevent the expiration of collective agreements.
In addition to these two changes, there are three others of lesser relevance and/or impact, namely the prohibition of outsourcing services, the strengthening of the right to collective bargaining, and the new presumption of an employment contract within the context of a digital platform. The shortcomings of the approved legislation lie in the fact that two fundamental institutes of collective labor law were not revised: the principle of the most favorable treatment and the termination of the collective agreement. Criticism is also leveled at the fact that some rules that undermine the dignity of workers were not removed from the Labor Code.
Authors: João Reis
