Decent Work Agenda: merits and demerits of legislative changes
This text, by João Reis, professor of law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra, analyzes the main merits and demerits of the legislative changes introduced to the Labour Code in 2023, as part 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 use of necessary arbitration to avoid the expiry of collective agreements.
In addition to these two changes, there are three others with less relevance and/or impact, in particular the ban on the outsourcing of services, the strengthening of the right to collective bargaining and the new presumption of an employment contract in the context of a digital platform. The demerits of the approved legislation relate to the fact that two fundamental institutes of collective labor law have not been reviewed: the principle of more favorable treatment and the termination of collective agreements. Criticism is also leveled at the fact that some rules that undermine the dignity of workers have not been expunged from the Labor Code.
Authors: João Reis
