Policies Under Analysis
Decent Work Agenda: merits and demerits of legislative changes
The "Policies in Analysis" issue no. 12 - "Decent Work Agenda: merits and demerits of legislative changes" - is based on a presentation given by Professor João Reis, Professor of Law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra (FDUC), at the event promoted by CoLABOR entitled "Decent Work. Context and interpretations of the agenda".
This text, in addition to analyzing the main merits and demerits of the legislative changes introduced in the Decent Work Agenda (Law No. 13/2023, of April 3), also mentions the fact that some rules that undermine the dignity of workers have remained in the Labor Code.
The Decent Work Agenda, the law, and precarious employment
The Policies in Analysis No. 11 is dedicated to the theme "The Decent Work Agenda, the law and precarious employment".
While acknowledging the relevance and usefulness of many of the modifications to the Labor Code introduced by Law No. 13/2023 for job stability and security, it cannot be denied that the objective of decent work is not fully achieved with the recent revision. This text presents this critical analysis.
The prohibition of outsourcing services in the 2023 labor reform
The prohibition on contracting outsourcing services to meet the needs of workers whose jobs have been affected by collective dismissal and job elimination, as foreseen in the Agenda for Decent Work, was incorporated into Law No. 13/2023, of April 3, which amends the Labor Code.
Regarding precariousness
The right to job security is a fundamental principle, and its constitutional enshrinement implies recognition that the right to work has a human dimension, a dimension of personal fulfillment, and as such, removes from the employer's arbitrary control not only the free termination of the employment relationship, but also any and all substantial modifications to the content of the employment relationship.
The Decent Work Agenda should not ignore the fact that the strategy to combat precarious employment – which has different expressions – benefits from being framed within the constitutional objective of promoting job security, which, not being limited to merely combating precarious employment contracts, extends to other aspects of the employment relationship, reinforcing with this association the broader meaning of the concept of precariousness.
Decent work and collective bargaining
The debate surrounding the Decent Work Agenda is one of the most relevant political moments of this decade, whose lines of reflection will contribute to defining the course of labor reforms, with social and economic implications that will extend into the future, with collective bargaining assuming an unavoidable central role in said Agenda.
From the Decent Work Agenda to the Government Program
The area of work and labor relations, due to its importance in social, political, and economic terms, is one of the structuring vectors of any government strategy. With the ideas of decent work and the valorization of workers as its pillars, the Agenda identifies a set of issues and points towards the recovery of a fairer model of labor relations, notwithstanding the notable omission of fundamental matters for the promotion of dignity at work and job security.