The reduction on the workday by means of a constitutional amendment split the opinion of experts who participated in a public hearing at the Chamber, on Tuesday (19). During the meeting, held by the special committee reviewing that matter, representatives of the institute on Applied Economic Research (Ipea), and of the Inter-union Department on Statistics and Social-Economic Studies (Dieese), defended the approval of PEC 231/95, which proposes the reduction of the maximum workweek, from 44 to 40 hours. Only the representative of the Foundation Institute of Economic Research (Fipe) challenged the effectiveness of that measure.

The coordinator of Education at Dieese, Nelson Karam, argued that productivity has grown 23% in Brazil, from 2002 to 2008, but that that increase has not been shared with the workers. Dieese calculates that the workday reduction could generate around 2,500,000 new employments. He defended the workday reduction and the increase of salaries.

For the researcher Roberto Henrique Sieczkowski Gonzalez, from Ipea, the reduction on the workday, enforced by law, offers equal conditions to all workers. He considers that the reduction obtained by means of agreements and collective conventions, despite efficient, depends on the negotiation capacity of the unions, and varies according to the economic cycle and the activity sector.

According to Gonzalez, the 2007 National Research by Residence Sample, of IBGE, showed that nearly one third of the workers had a workweek of more than 44 hours. He stressed that the workweek reduction should be associated to the improvement of salaries. “If not, workers try to find other jobs to complement their income”.

Real conditions
Professor Afonso Celso Pastore, of Fipe, though, adverted that the reduction on the workday, associated to a salary increase, should take into account the real conditions of economy. Pastore reminded that the countries which reached that target have made it by means of unions’ negotiations, and not legislation.

The expert also alerted that that measure could be turned against workers. “The most affected sectors, in which the work cost and load become very important, will adopt automatism, change shifts, adjust work hours, eliminate some days-off and will not hire employees.”

Pastore suggested measures which would guarantee the generation of good jobs. Among them there are: stimulating productive investments; waving taxes on investments generating jobs; waving taxes on exports; reducing hiring expenses; creating special contracts; and regulating outsourcing.

Report - Marise Lugullo
Editing - Maria Clarice Dias
Translation - Positive Idiomas Ltda