Fux overturns decision that recognized link between driver and Cabify

The Minister of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) Luiz Fux overturned two decisions of the Regional Labor Court of the 3rd Region (TRT3) that recognized the employment relationship between drivers and the Cabify application. The judge considered that the ruling, in which the TRT3 recognized the links, violated the authority of the decision given by the Court in ADPF 324. The decisions are this Thursday (28).

When judging the Claim of Non-compliance with Fundamental Precepts (ADPF) 324 and the Extraordinary Appeal (RE) 958252, the majority of ministers voted to declare outsourcing lawful in all stages of the production process, whether middle or end. Cabify appealed to the STF arguing that the TRT3’s understanding contravened the Court’s decision.

The platform stated that “application drivers are self-employed professionals, who become platform partners, and carry out activities of a strictly civil nature, without any employment relationship”. Fux accepted the request and said that “the requested ruling violated the authority of the decision handed down by this Court in ADPF 324”.

“These are precedents in which the Court declared the constitutionality of outsourcing by private companies, both of core activities and core activities, and, therefore, the non-configuration of an employment relationship between the contractor and the contractor’s employee, with the exception of the existence of subsidiary liability of the borrowing company”, he wrote.

Fux highlighted that the Supreme Court “has already decided in numerous precedents to recognize types of employment relationships other than the employment relationships set out in the CLT”. There is still an appeal against the minister’s decision. In May this year, Minister Alexandre de Moraes annulled a decision by the Minas Gerais Labor Court that recognized an employment relationship between an app driver and the Cabify platform, reported the Brazil Agency.

In Moraes’ understanding, the decision failed to comply with Supreme Court precedents on the matter. For the minister, the relationship between the driver and the company is commercial and is similar to the cases of independent transporters. The difference between the decisions of Moraes and Fux is that Moraes annulled the decision of the labor court and ordered that the case be analyzed by the common court. Fux has only determined that in other decisions handed down “the binding jurisprudence of this Federal Supreme Court on the subject” must be observed.