It’s too much. Since no one reads them, it doesn’t matter. By ceremonial, a parliamentarian is subjected to the ordeal of reading. Through the ritual, the government talks more about what it did, indicating what it intends to do in the legislative year. In its message, the government speaks well of itself, but took the opportunity to set three objectives. Two deal with issues that in three years he did not do what he could. Namely: the regulation of the rights of those who work and a project for public safety.
The third theme is innovative and will have repercussions on the functioning of the economy. This is the end of the scale of six days of work for one day of rest, which will be replaced by the 5×2 rule, with two days of rest. The text that will be adopted by the government is not yet known. It is known, however, that voting will take place after Carnival. (Read, for a date closer to the election.)
According to the carriage floor, a new scale will be approved. One of the hypotheses is the establishment of 40 hours of service per week, divided between five or six days. Millions of workers already rest on Saturdays and Sundays.
This is a profound reform in labor relations, comparable only to the institution of the 13th salary, in July 1962. Just like the 13th, the new scale will attract complaints, accusing it of being electoral. That may be so, but the president’s candidates lost that year’s election in São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul, Ceará and Bahia. (In 1962, the governments of Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais were not contested.)
Until now, the new scale has been kept out of the national discussion. It’s a shame, but that’s the standard. The Abolition of slavery was held up for more than 50 years and ended up being approved in six days, due to pressure from the streets and the escape of black people. Pindorama’s upstairs only hands over the rings after he loses a few fingers. In his message, Lula defended the end of the 6×1 scale with a simple argument: “Our next challenge is the end of the 6×1 work scale, without salary reduction. Time is one of the most precious assets for human beings. It is not fair for a person to work hard all week and only have one day to rest their body and mind and enjoy their family.”
Bringing the topic to debate, Lula will face robust contradictions. Brazilian worker productivity is low and labor is relatively expensive. Apparently, the initiative’s opponents fought in the shadows of Brasília. With Lula’s defense, perhaps they will decide to go into the sunlight. The revision of the tax table was approved without any major surprises because it affected the Widow’s tax revenue and compensated for the budget loss by taxing the richest. When the scale changes, this compartmentalization disappears. It affects everything from the banker’s butler to the bar’s cleaner, if they work with a formal contract.
That’s where the danger lies. If the new scale encourages the exodus of workers to informality, the amendment will worsen a sonnet that has been bad for decades.
LINK PRESENT: Did you like this text? Subscribers can access seven free accesses from any link per day. Just click the blue F below.
