All of the excerpts transcribed above have been circulated in the news section on the website of the Superior Labor Court (TST) in recent months. The professionals who have been litigating in the Labor Courts for some time know that decisions favoring greater reasonableness and flexibility in the application of procedural law were not common.
Every day, about 60 billion messages are sent on WhatsApp, an application that reached the mark of 1.5 billion active users per month this year.[1] In Brazil, the instant messenger reached 120 million users about a year ago, equivalent to more than half of the country's inhabitants. Parallel to this rapid spreading in recent years, there has been a significant increase in dismissals due to the improper use of software in Brazil due to the tenuous line between their use in private and professional life.
Law No. 13,699/2018, published on August 2, amended article 2 of Law No. 10,257/2001 (the City Statute) so as to refer to conditions applicable to domestic workers:
Recent news articles published on the internet have raised doubts among companies about the obligation under the Consolidated Labor Laws (CLT) to extend maternity leave of employees in the event of hospitalization of the newborn, but in fact they referred to decisions rendered in favor of public servants, and not employees covered by the CLT.
With the enactment of Federal Law No. 13,467/2017 (the Labor Reform), various provisions of the Consolidated Labor Laws (CLT) have undergone significant changes, and a number of them have been incorporated into social security legislation through specific adjustments in Federal Law No. 8,212/91. Among the topics common to both universes, the controversy over the legal nature and the form of medical care granted by the company to its employees deserves special mention.
Among the changes introduced by Law No. 13,467/2017 (the Labor Reform), the introduction of fees for loss of suit (article 791-A of the Consolidated Labor Laws) has raised controversies not only regarding the timing of its application, but also its parameters for setting such fees.
On June 7, the Individual Disputes Section (SDI) of the Superior Labor Court (TST) decided to apply the three-year statute of limitations for civil suits in a suit filed by a deceased employee's family seeking damages caused by the death of the family member due to a workplace accident or occupational disease.
Presidential Decree No. 808/2017, promulgated by President Michel Temer in order to amend sensitive points of Law No. 13,467 (the Labor Reform), lost its effectiveness on April 23, 2018, as a result of a lack of consensus among congressmen in approving conversion of the Decree into law.
Since the Labor Reform came into force in November of 2017, the number of lawsuits filed with the Labor Courts to question the mandatory discounting of union contributions has almost tripled. Between December of 2017 and May of 2018, according to information released by the Superior Labor Court (TST), 15,551 actions involving union contribution were filed.
The extension of paternity leave and maternity leave for cases of birth of twins has generated recurrent discussion, although the bill on the subject was already rejected in 2009.
When analyzing the development of new legislation over the world, it is possible to verify that there is a global trend to create different types of flexible working engagements to allow new forms of work on demand. These new working arrangements try to give more flexibility to employers, but also to employees, who sometimes do not want to have a full-time job.
Since the enactment of the Labor Reform (Law No. 13,467/2017, effective as of November 11, 2017), there has been much debate about the possibility of applying the changes in the rules of substantive law to employment agreements entered into before the Reform.
Diseases that give rise to social stigma are a subject that is not much debated but which is extremely delicate and relevant. In 2012, the Superior Labor Court (TST) issued the precedent No. 443, which states as follows: "The dismissal of an employee that is HIV-positive or has other serious illness that causes stigma or prejudice is presumed to be discriminatory. If the act is invalid, the employee has the right to reintegration into employment."
The National Association of Magistrates of the Labor Courts (Anamatra) has approved the legal theory that Law No. 13467/2017 (the Labor Reform) should only prevail for lawsuits and employment contracts initiated after November 11, 2017, when the new rules entered into force. The decision was reached on May 5, during the National Congress of Magistrates of the Labor Courts (Conamat).
The Specialized Collective Dispute Division (SDC) of the Superior Labor Court (TST) authorized the Brazilian Post Office to collect from its employees’ monthly pay and co-share payment for their health plan (at the rate of 30%, provided that it does not exceed 5% of salary in the case of coinsurance payment and between 2.5% and 4.4% in the case of monthly pay, depending on the salary). In turn, spouses will pay 60% of the monthly fee. Until then, the Brazilian Post Office covered 90% of the costs of the health plan, as provided for in the collective bargaining agreements in force up to July 31, 2018.
