Fronts want to release work on holidays without union approval

The reissue of the ordinance with new rules for working in commerce on holidays, announced on Wednesday (24) by the Minister of Labor, Luiz Marinho, displeased the parliamentary fronts linked to the sector, who will insist on voting on a bill on the theme.

The new text, according to the minister, will define essential sectors that can operate normally, such as pharmacies and gas stations. The exceptions were not included in Ordinance 3,665/2023, published in November, which determined work on holidays only after approval of a collective labor agreement for the entire category of workers.

Even with the change, discussed between the government, representatives of workers and employers, nine parliamentary fronts decided to present to the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Arthur Lira (PP-AL), a request requesting urgency in voting on project 5.552/2023. The document will be delivered on February 6, at the start of legislative work.

Authored by deputy Joaquim Passarinho (PL-PA), president of the Parliamentary Entrepreneurship Front (FPA), the project allows commerce employees to work on Sundays and holidays without the intermediation of unions.

“It’s a way to guarantee the constitutional right to free enterprise, as provided for in the Economic Freedom Law, and not be at the mercy of ordinances that create legal uncertainty”, says Rodrigo Marinho, executive director of the Free Market Parliamentary Front.

Ordinance was negotiated with the sector and will bring more than 200 exceptions, says government

With Ordinance 3,665/2023, minister Luiz Marinho revoked the rules of another ordinance, 671/2021, issued during the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL), which gave permanent permission to work on holidays, as long as the working hours established in the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT).

The negative repercussion from the business community, civil entities and Congress made the minister retreat. At the end of November, Marinho modified the ordinance, publishing another, 3.708/2023, which postponed the entry into force of the rules until March of this year. He then set up a negotiation table with workers and employers in the trade to reach an agreement on the issue.

Last Wednesday, after a meeting with entities, Marinho announced the inclusion of exceptions, but maintained the requirement for unions to participate in other categories.

“We made adjustments to the entire text of the ordinance, which will be republished. There is a group of rapporteurs changing the text, who will not present the final version today. The previous ordinance had the sole objective of provoking this national conversation, with a permanent table to discuss the topic, including from now on”, stated Marinho.

According to the National Commerce Confederation (CNC), which represented the companies in the negotiation, the law only covers the trade of products. There will be more than 200 sectors linked to services, such as bars, restaurants and hotels, which will continue without the need for convention.

“The law does not cover bars and restaurants, which are part of the tourism and hospitality group. The ordinance will make clear the categories that can operate seven days a week, such as hotels, as well as other activities. The law concerns part of the commerce that takes care of wholesale and retail, merchandise trade, purchase and sales. Therefore, we treat exceptionalities with care so that everyone has equal treatment”, stated Ivo Dall’Acqua, from CNC, after the meeting.

Supermarkets are left out and will need conventions

Supermarkets, however, will need collective bargaining. In November, in the first edition of the ordinance, the Brazilian Supermarket Association (Abras) was one of the most critical of the measure, alleging consequences such as increased labor costs and reduced job offers.

The sector is responsible for selling 93% of consumer staples and employs 3.2 million workers, directly and indirectly. There are 28 million consumers served daily in 94,706 stores in the country.

On Friday (26), Abras endorsed the joint note from five parliamentary fronts supporting the vote on Bill 5,552/2023. The statement states that the new ordinance is a “setback and does not meet the demands of the productive sector and the freedom of entrepreneurs.”

According to the fronts, despite the exceptions presented, the text “made little progress towards reducing union interference in agreements established between worker and employer in essential activities for the population, as established by the labor reform”.

“Furthermore, the dialogue table established, in another ordinance, did not include the participation of representatives of freely adhering business entities, who were not consulted in the signing of the new text. Other segments such as food retail (supermarkets and wholesalers ) will need collective agreements to function. This obligation leads to an increase in the Brazil Cost and the bureaucratization of business, which can hinder employability and economic freedom”, completes the note.

Government ordinance gives unions more power through collective bargaining

For the minister, the ordinance will “correct an illegality” of the previous rule, from 2021, which allowed work on holidays without collective bargaining.

In practice, the Lula government’s measure gives more power to unions. Since the beginning of his term, Marinho has been committed to the union agenda, looking for ways to finance entities, which have lost resources since the end of the union tax in the 2017 labor reform.

“The ordinance is within the government’s declared strategy of valuing the instrument of collective convection and, consequently, of entities”, says Mariana Siqueira, from the labor area of ​​Madrona Fialho Advogados.

Roberto, Lopes, from the legal and union directorate of the National Commerce Confederation (CNC), recalls that Law 10.021, in force, already determines the need for a collective agreement. “Collective bargaining is the most appropriate forum within the union system, valued by the Supreme [Tribunal Federal]which restored the assistance contribution”, he states.

For Siqueira, however, the obligation should create many operational problems for non-unionized companies and segments, increasing bureaucracy. “Smaller companies will have a problem with holidays that occur before new negotiations,” she says.

The drafting of the new ordinance should be finalized this week, and will be submitted again to representatives of employers and workers. It should come into effect from its publication, scheduled for February 19, according to the Ministry of Labor.