The Brazilian Labor Prosecutor's Office (MPT) received a record 903 complaints of electoral harassment from 750 companies.

CUT - Electoral harassment practiced by employers to prevent voting for the candidate chosen by workers has skyrocketed in this period leading up to the second round of elections, scheduled for the 30th.

A partial report from the Labor Public Ministry (MPT) up to 15 pm on Thursday (20), shows that 903 workers denounced 750 companies that committed electoral harassment. That is, there were companies that were denounced by more than one worker.  

Reports of irregularities have increased by 325%, while the number of employers denounced has risen by 665%, compared to the 2018 election period, a record. In the previous election, there were 212 complaints against 98 companies.

“These data demonstrate the seriousness of the situation. This influences the electoral process; it is detrimental. There was this explosion starting in the second round. The cases multiplied, and it is quite astonishing,” said the chief prosecutor of the MPT-RS, Rafael Foresti Pego.

Complaints by region of the country

Most cases of harassment are concentrated in the Southeast and South regions of the country. Check out:

- Southeast: 382 complaints against 321 companies

- South: 261 complaints against 223 companies

Northeast: 140 complaints against 123 companies

- Central-West region: 69 complaints against 58 companies

- North: 51 complaints against 25 companies

According to the prosecutor, the number of complaints is so large that the structure and lack of staff at the Public Prosecutor's Office hinder the speed of analysis by the agency. Despite this, he stated, "they are managing to cope."

“We are processing all the cases that come in, especially those with more complete information. It’s a sensitive issue. It requires quick and effective action, and the justice system often lacks that capacity. We have structural deficiencies, we need more staff, but we are managing to cope,” the prosecutor explained.  

An employer cannot take away a worker's freedom to vote.

The chief prosecutor of the MPT-RS (Labor Public Prosecutor's Office of Rio Grande do Sul) emphasized that the managerial power of the employer does not authorize the suppression of the employee's freedom to vote.

“It’s important to understand limits. Any attempt to coerce or humiliate in the workplace, in an effort to manipulate or direct votes, is prohibited. Especially when it comes from the company and its managers. There is pressure from economic power in this relationship. People should have complete freedom to vote, without any fear of sanction, job loss, or expectation of benefit,” he emphasized.

Where to report the crime of electoral harassment.

Complaints can be made on the website of MPT and also on the websites of CUT Brazil and the CUT-RS and also on the exclusive website of the labor unions. All complaints made on the CUT website are sent to the Labor Prosecutor's Office.

In cases where harassment is proven, the Public Prosecutor's Office for Labor (MPT) can act in two ways. The first is extrajudicial and involves the signing of a conduct adjustment agreement (TAC) in which the employer commits to ceasing and not repeating the practices of electoral coercion, under penalty of a fine.

The agreement may stipulate, from the outset, the payment of compensation for collective damages. The agreements also include the obligation for companies to inform their employees, whether through WhatsApp groups, social media, or notice boards, that voting is a free right, including promoting advertising campaigns about this right in the media.

The other option is to file a public civil action in the Labor Court. In these initiatives, the requests are generally for the cessation of harassment, fines in case of repetition, and payments of individual and collective damages.

Companies convicted of election harassment in Rio Grande do Sul

In the state of Rio Grande do Sul, to date, 75 complaints of harassment have been registered against 63 companies, including Stara – Indústria de Implementos Agrícolas, headquartered in Não-Me-Toque with branches in Carazinho and Santa Rosa, in the interior of Rio Grande do Sul.

After the first round of voting, the company distributed a statement to suppliers, saying that it would reduce its budget by at least 30% if Lula's victory was confirmed, which would mean decreasing investments and laying off workers.

The court decision to the MPT-RS was granted by Judge Manuel Cid Jardon, of the Regional Labor Court of the 4th Region (TRT4), on Wednesday (19) and prohibits the Bolsonaro-supporting businessman, Gilson Lari Trennepohl, owner of Stara, from intimidating workers to vote for Jair Bolsonaro (PL) candidate for re-election to the presidency of the Republic.

The judge ruled that the company must refrain from displaying political party propaganda on employees' movable property and work tools. The ruling also emphasizes that owners cannot coerce employees into voting or pressure them to participate in political demonstrations.

According to the ruling, Stara must also publish a written statement to employees on notice boards, social media, and WhatsApp informing them of their right to freely choose in the electoral process. A message has already been posted on the company's Instagram account following the granting of the injunction.

The Public Prosecutor's Office has, so far, filed two more public civil actions in the Labor Court against companies for electoral harassment. The targets are councilman and businessman Aldo Menegheti (MDB), owner of the Artesanato Meneghetti store in Balneário Pinhal, and a construction company from São Gabriel.

Four agreements signed between MPT-RS and companies.

Four settlement agreements were signed after the first round of investigations between the Public Prosecutor's Office of Rio Grande do Sul (MPT-RS) and companies where instances of electoral harassment were identified, whether through pressure to vote for a specific candidate or threats of dismissal. All the business owners wanted to force voters to support Bolsonaro.

The agreements involved a meatpacking plant in Miraguaí, a farm in Lavras do Sul, a bakery in Cerro Grande do Sul, and a mining company in Soledade. The companies pledged to respect freedom of vote and cease coercive conduct against employees, under penalty of fine. They also agreed to issue retractions on social media and notice boards, highlighting the right to individual choice.

Some of the agreements involved investing money in awareness advertising campaigns: this is the case of the Miraguaí meatpacking plant, which will have to invest R$ 100 in broadcasting the campaign by the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) against voter harassment in media outlets in the region.

From farms to bakeries, CUT and other labor unions receive 166 complaints of electoral harassment.

The national CUT and other trade union centers received, until 19:30 pm this Thursday (20), 166 complaints of electoral harassment in the workplace. The complaints were made through the two channels created exclusively for workers to report employers who commit this crime against their employees. Discover: Below is a list of the companies that were reported.

The list is updated daily and forwarded to the Labor Prosecutor's Office (MPT). The workers' complaints are against employers who are engaging in electoral harassment by coercing, intimidating, and threatening employees with dismissal if they refuse to vote for their preferred candidate. All those denounced demand votes for Jair Bolsonaro (PL), the candidate seeking re-election.

No allegations of electoral harassment have been made to benefit the candidacy of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT).

Since the first round of elections, the CUT, Força Sindical, UGT, CTB, NCST, CSB, Pública, CSP-Conlutas, Intersindical – Central da Classe Trabalhadora and Intersindical Instrumento de Lutas labor unions have been working together to denounce and combat electoral harassment, a crime stipulated in articles 299 and 301 of the Electoral Code.See the full articles at the end of the text.).

Of the total 166 complaints, 116 were made through the exclusive channel created on the portal of National CUT, since October 7th, and the other 50 in the open space on the 14th, by central, in a unitary manner.

The 166 complaints refer to 128 industries, businesses, services, and agricultural businesses – this total does not include municipalities and public agencies. The number is lower than the total because some companies, such as the Terra Boa Group (with six complaints), were reported more than once and by more than one worker.

The complaints came from 118 municipalities, in 19 of the 27 Brazilian states. There are no registered complaints from Acre, Amapá, Amazonas, Pará, Rondônia, Roraima, Piauí, and the Federal District so far.

The Southeast and South regions, respectively, lead in the number of complaints. São Paulo (40), Minas Gerais (24), and Rio Grande do Sul (17) are the three states with the highest number of reported cases. Paraná (13), Santa Catarina (12), and Goiás (11) follow in this ranking of electoral harassment against the working class. In São Paulo, there are complaints from 24 municipalities.

The industry, commerce, agriculture, public service, and service sectors account for the largest number of complaints. Among those denounced are stores, supermarkets, farms, city halls, hotels, medical services, bakeries, public companies, and even a preschool.

Some of the complainants identified themselves and attached screenshots, photos, audio, and videos—in other words, some kind of proof of the complaint described—but all requested anonymity. They report being afraid of being persecuted and fired by their abusive employers.

“All complaints are analyzed by LBS Advogados, the legal counsel for CUT, and subsequently, after identifying the company, municipality, state, and content for classification, they are forwarded to the Labor Prosecutor's Office and the Federal Prosecutor's Office,” explains lawyer Antonio Megale, from LBS.

Among the companies and employers denounced is Havan, in Natal (RN). The whistleblower recounts that “the store manager demanded that all employees not vote on October 2nd, and informed them that, after the election, the store supervisor would accompany all workers to the city's electoral court to verify if the employees had any outstanding debts (fines for not voting) with the Electoral Court. If they did not have such debts, the employee would be fired.” Other well-known companies are also mentioned, such as Ypê (cleaning products), JBS (food), and the Terra Boa Group.

“It is very important that workers report electoral harassment, and to do so, it is not necessary to identify themselves through the reporting channels of CUT and other labor unions, as well as on the websites of the Labor Prosecutor's Office and the Federal Prosecutor's Office,” advises lawyer Antonio Megale.

He explains that, as evidence, audio messages, photos, videos in WhatsApp groups, photos from social media pages, emails, etc., can be used. "Contacting unions is essential. Unionism plays a central role in preventing and reporting harassment."

Check out the list of companies denounced for workplace harassment on CUT's channels and those of other labor unions.

(Access the PDF with larger font available here.) 

Articles dealing with electoral harassment

It establishes the Electoral Code.

Art 299. To give, offer, promise, solicit, or receive, for oneself or for another, money, gifts, or any other advantage, in order to obtain or give a vote and to secure or promise abstention, even if the offer is not accepted:

Penalty - imprisonment for up to four years and payment of a fine of five to fifteen days' wages.

It establishes the Electoral Code.

Art 301. Using violence or serious threats to coerce someone into voting, or not voting, for a particular candidate or party, even if the intended goals are not achieved:

Penalty - imprisonment for up to four years and payment of a fine of five to fifteen days' wages.

Law No. 4.737 of July 15, 1965