Luiz Marinho: government should present revision of labor legislation in the first semester.

By Elaine Patricia Cruz – Reporter for Agência Brasil - São Paulo

The Minister of Labor and Employment, Luiz Marinho, said this Monday (8), in an interview with Agência Brasil, that the government intends to present new proposals for the revision of the current labor legislation by the end of this semester. The expectation is that, in the second semester, these proposals will be sent for voting by the National Congress.

The revisions, the minister explained, are being discussed in tripartite working groups, with the participation of government, workers, and employers. Next week, on the 23rd, for example, business leaders and workers' representatives will meet to establish dates and priorities for the groups.

“At that meeting on the 23rd, we will set the goals for how long the group wants to take to complete the task of drafting the texts to submit to Congress. But I hear business and labor leaders saying that it is desirable to conclude this in the first half of the year,” said Marinho. “It’s not an easy task, but it’s the goal they are setting and with which we fully agree.”

According to him, the government has been trying to act only as an intermediary in this tripartite commission, allowing the proposals to be developed by the parties themselves: “It is a tripartite group, formed by businesspeople, workers, and under the coordination of the government. The government's purpose is more to coordinate the parties, to provoke them, so that they reach an understanding. It is evident that the government has a position, but we want the parties to build this understanding because this will surely be better for the process in the National Congress.”

On Monday afternoon, the minister participated in the 11th National Congress of Metalworkers of the Central Única dos Trabalhadores (CNM/CUT), which takes place until next Thursday (11) at a hotel in Guarulhos (SP). With the theme Rebuilding Brazil in a Sustainable and Humanized Way with Decent Work, Sovereignty, Income and Rights, the congress intends to discuss topics related mainly to work and industry.

During the event, the minister commented on the need to regulate app platforms in Brazil, such as Uber, Ifood, and 99.

“I keep wondering what the role of new technologies is, with technological innovations. It is fundamental, it is important, and it is necessary to always improve new technologies. They are very welcome. But I imagine that when we talked about new forms, new mechanisms, and new technologies, it was to create better living conditions for the population of the whole world, which would serve to end hunger and misery. And not that new technologies would serve to exploit workers even more,” said Marinho.

"What the famous platforms are doing in Brazil and around the world is turning workers into almost slaves of the algorithms. We need to react to create conditions where platform workers are respected," he added during the event.

After giving his speech and answering questions from participants, the minister spoke with reporters from Agência Brasil. He reiterated his position on the regulation of apps. According to him, this topic has also been discussed in meetings between workers and representatives of these companies, and the idea is that a proposal will be developed collaboratively.

“I think it’s more difficult to meet that deadline [for submitting the proposal] in the first half of the year. But it would be desirable. It will also depend on the maturity of the parties involved. I hope that employers will come to the table with the purpose of building a consensus,” said Marinho. “It is desirable that these proposals be developed as quickly as possible so that they can be submitted to Congress, which will have the final say,” he said.