The Chamber is reviewing the Bill 4505/08, proposed by Deputy Luiz Paulo Vellozo Lucas (PSDB-ES), which regulates remote labor. According to the proposal, the so-called Remote Labor is any form of labor involving an employer or client and an employee or self-employed professional and is regularly and remotely performed, by means of Informatics and Telecommunication Technologies.

In order for it to be classified as remote labor, the employee should spend more than 40% of his work time outside of regular locations, such as the headquarters of the company.

The text establishes that remote labor can be performed in specific centers, equipped with computers and phones, for instance, destined to employees of one or several companies and self-employed workers. Those centers would not be considered as regular-labor locations.

Rights and duties
According to the bill, the labor relationship in remote labor will be ruled by the Labor-Laws Consolidation (CLT). Among other prerogatives, the remote worker will have the right to a salary, vacation, holidays, licenses provided for in CLT, and sick days.

Since the workday is open, the remote laborers will not have right to overtime. The remuneration should therefore adjust to regular working hours.

The duties of the worker and the distance include the constancy in the performing of the tasks and the reporting regarding ordinary and extraordinary expenses resulting from his/her duties, among others.

Also according to the bill, remote labor should serve as an instrument for the creation of new employments, including positions destined to people with disabilities.

Constitution
Luiz Paulo Vellozo Lucas reminds that Constitution provides for the protection of workers in areas undergoing an intense technological modernization. “It is about a rule whose effectiveness is limited, depending on the creation of a law for its regulation”, says the congressman.

In Brazil, Vellozo Lucas notes that remote labor is already a reality in several companies. According to his opinion, it is not adopted in a larger scale due to the lack of regulation.

Among the advantages of remote labor for the employee, the deputy mentions the increase of free time for leisure and for the family and the higher employability of people with disabilities and of women with children.

For the employer, according to him, there is the increase of productivity and the reduction of real estate costs. Among the disadvantages for the employer, the deputy mentions the possibility of data intrusion by foreign people and the difficult survey of work environment.

Procedures
The bill will be reviewed by the Committees on Labor, Administration and Public Service; and on the Constitution and Justice and Citizenship.

Report - Noéli Nobre
Editing -Marcos Rossi
Translation – Positive Idiomas Ltda