STORY-TRÅD·politik

Brazil’s new work schedule to take effect in two months

The Brazilian Congress on Friday (Oct. 16) promulgated the constitutional amendment ending the six-day workweek with one day off (6x1) and introducing a five-day workweek with two days off (5x2), to take effect within two months. The new amendment was promulgated during a formal session attended by Senate President Davi Alcolumbre, House or Representatives President Hugo Motta, and Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Notícias relacionadas:Congress approves changes to Brazil’s working hours.Brazilian government launches campaign to change work schedules.Survey shows 73% of Brazilians support reduction in working hours.Cabinet ministers, senators, and federal representatives from the governing coalition packed the Senate chamber. Opposition leaders did not attend the session. Senate President and Congress President Davi Alcolumbre emphasized that the measure’s impacts “are incalculable.” “What is more time to care for yourself and your loved ones worth? For millions of people who have to work six, sometimes even seven, days a week, the answer is simple: these things are priceless. They are invaluable.” Alcolumbre added that it took “a lot of courage” to address an issue that “so many people would rather put off.” “It’s an issue that divides opinion, affects labor relations, and impacts the lives of millions of families. When a topic is complex, it’s easiest to let it go and avoid confronting it. But the Brazilian legislature chose the right path, not the easy one,” the Senate president added. Lower house President Hugo Motta stated that ending the 6x1 work schedule affects millions of Brazilians who “wake up before dawn, travel across entire cities, and devote a large part of their day to work.” Following the amendment’s promulgation, President Lula celebrated the measure and criticized those who had opposed the proposed constitutional amendment, arguing that it would bankrupt Brazil. “I remember the campaign for the legally mandated 13th-month payment in the early 1960s. The arguments were the same: ‘It will bankrupt companies! It will drive them out of business! No other country in the world does this.’ But companies didn’t go bankrupt. The hard truth is that whenever workers win a new benefit, they live a little better and find a little more joy in life,” he emphasized.