The Labor Court of the 3rd Region, in the 1st Labor Court of Uberlândia (MG), denied provisional stability for a pregnant intern who had been dismissed from her activities.
The decision released this Monday (1), highlighted that the internship contract does not generate employment relationship and, therefore, does not give the intern the constitutional protection guaranteed only to the “pregnant employee”. The student sought reinstatement to employment or compensation for the period of stability.
The young woman was hired in November 2023 and dismissed in May 2024, after discovering she was pregnant. The company argued that the contract was supported by Law 11,788/2008 (Interns Law) and that, for this reason, there was no need to talk about provisional stability of the pregnant woman.
The judge recognized that the law, in its Article 3, establishes that the internshipwhether mandatory or non-mandatory, does not create an employment relationship of any kindas long as legal requirements are observed, such as registration and signing of the commitment agreement.
The court decision highlighted that, in the case under analysis, there was no allegation of distortion of the nature of the contract to configure a employment relationship.
The early termination of the internship was considered legitimate by the court, since the Internship Commitment Term provided for dismissal at any time on the company’s initiative.
What the law says
The central point of the trial was based on the interpretation of the scope of maternity protection no labor law Brazilian. The Federal Constitution guarantees the leave for pregnant women 120 days, without prejudice to employment and salary. It ensures the provisional stability has “pregnant employee” whose pregnancy is confirmed during the employment contract (Art. 391-A).
The TRT-3 used the understanding that the young woman’s request does not apply to the situation of , since the legal text makes expresses reference to the pregnant employee.
The understanding is that the internship contract “does not have the same formalities and guarantees as a employment contract com employment relationship“.
