Brazil’s Senate has approved a constitutional amendment to reduce the maximum workweek from 44 to 40 hours without cutting salaries SAO PAULO -- Brazil’s Senate approved a constitutional amendment Wednesday to reduce the country's maximum workweek from 44 to 40 hours without a salary cut, a move backed by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who hopes it will boost his standing against Flávio Bolsonaro in the Oct. 25 presidential runoff. Lula is expected to sign the shorter workweek into law next week after the measure passed the Senate in two rounds of voting with the same result: 75 to 1 out of 81 members. The sole vote against it came from former Vice President Hamilton Mourao, who served under President Jair Bolsonaro.
Flávio Bolsonaro, who opposed the initiative until early this week, voted for it remotely as he campaigned in southern Brazil. Analysts and politicians say his allies in the Senate stopped blocking the popular move so he wouldn't be hurt in his neck-to-neck race against Lula. The amendment gives businesses 14 months to adopt the shorter workweek, which was a key sticking point in the negotiations.
Many business leaders and lawmakers wanted the changes to be made gradually over 10 years. The constitutional amendment establishes a 40-hour weekly limit and two rest days without reducing pay. More than 37 million workers could benefit from the new rules, according to the government.
Brazil's president was quick to celebrate the decision. Those who work so hard to build Brazil also deserve to have time to live.” Many senators chanted Lula's name after the vote, while Bolsonaro supporters quickly left the chamber. He timed the decision to take place between the first and the second round of the election, which benefits the incumbent.
Recent polls indicated widespread support for the measure, despite the opposition of many business owners. Many Bolsonaro allies said in their remarks they see the cost of living going up because of the new schedule. Lula has taken a number of steps in recent days to shore up support before the runoff, including new fuel tax cuts, the extension of existing subsidies, the pledge to pardon debts of more than 3.6 million small businesses with the federal government, the decision to block signal for cellphones around prisons, and a boost in payments of a welfare program for university students.
The change in the workweek system is regarded as the pinnacle of those initiatives. Bolsonaro, who bested Lula by 2.2 million votes in the first-round election, reversed his long-standing opposition to the measure on Tuesday. He previously advocated for a more flexible payment-by-the-hour regime, called for individual negotiations between employees and employers and repeatedly called the legislation election-motivated.
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