UGT GLOBAL

T r a d e U n io n I nf or m a t i on B ul l et in Y e a r 10 n 2 20 O cto b er 1 5 , 2 0 1 7

Residual union due will be restored

Inside this number: Ministry and trade union centers sign agreement to restore residual tax balance

Residual union With the mediation of the Public Ministry of Labor (MPT), representatives from trade union
due will be 01 centers and from the labor ministry signed an agreement for the return of union dues that
restored were not passed on by the federal government to union centrals, federations and even
some unions. The amounts were retained due to errors while filling the identification codes
National of the representative entities, which meant that the collected resources remained in the
Stoppage Day 02 specific account of the Ministry of Labor, resulting in a residual tax balance that is required
against the by the union centers.
Reform
The hearing was held on October 5,
at the MPT head office, in Brasilia,
Judges say that
changes will 02
and a mediation agreement was
bring signed by seven trade union centers,
uncertainties the Ministry of Labor, the Federal
Savings Bank (CEF), the Federal
2030 Day: Attorney General's Office (AGU) and
Promoting the 03 MPT. Paulo Pereira da Silva, from
SDGs Fora Sindical; Loureno Prado,
from UGT; Quintino Severo, from
Union centers file CUT; lvaro Egea, from CSB, and
report against 03 Jos Calixto Ramos, from Nova
the Labor Reform Central, represented the trade union
centers in the audience.
Challenges in the
current situation 04 One of the points that were agreed is the commitment of the Ministry of Labor to conduct,
together with CEF, a survey related to the values that were not passed on to the trade
unions. The first act will be the revocation of an ordinance that paralyzed the processing
Benzene is of about 500 restitution proceedings. The ministry will still determine the amount of the
nothing but 04 debt, but according to the agreement, the central banks agreed to allocate 15% of the
trouble
total to actions to combat slave and child labor.
26th Commerce Trade union centers demand action of the government
Worker 04 When trade union centers identified the withholding of part of the union dues from the
Congress federal government, between 2008 and 2015, they went after Ronaldo Nogueira, Minister
of Labor, to collect the debt and they also talked to Ronaldo Fleury, Attorney General in
Unionized the Labor Bureau, to mediate the negotiation between trade unionists and the
workers earn 04
government. The talks of Fleury to Nogueira marked the first negotiating hearing, which
more
took place in the last week of September.
It is expected to identify the first amounts within the next 30 days. Once they are
identified, the beneficiaries of the residual balance will receive the due amounts; when
resources are unidentified, they should be divided proportionally between the
representation entities. Trade union federations and trade union entities that sign this
agreement are also committed to not seek civil and criminal reparation of this debt in
court.
On behalf of the MPT and society, the prosecutor thanked the will of trade union centers to
giving up 15% of the total amount to which they were entitled in favor of the supervision
of slave and child labor. Though Fleury does not have accurate information about the
amount, he believes the figures are significant.
UGT nos seus dez
HT
The Minister of Labor announced the creation of a Working Group (WG) that will be
anos de luta T
responsible for the issue of a decree containing the rites to provide for the verification of
resources and the appropriate destination. The WG will be integrated by the trade union
centers and by technicians from the Ministry of Labor, CEF and AGU. October 28 was
defined as the date for the publication of the decree.

UGT Global 01
 November 10
National Stoppage Day against the Reform
Trade union centers held meeting to discuss the impact of the new Labor Law
On October 2, Unio Geral dos Trabalhadores (UGT), and representatives from CUT,
CTB, Nova Central, CSB and Dieese had a meeting at the head office of Fora Sindical, in
So Paulo, to evaluate the impacts of the labor reform on the Brazilian trade union
movement and on workers.
"It is a very worrying situation, because, in my
opinion, what they have done with this labor reform
is much more related to promote an investigation
from the point of view of the life and existence of the
unions than a labor reform itself," said Francisco
Pereira (Chiquinho), UGTs director of Trade
Union Organization and Policies.
Following the line of thought of Joo Carlos Juruna, Secretary General of Fora Sindical,
UGTs leader defended the fact that the union movement needs to change its position in
relation to the forms of negotiation proposed in the new Labor Law. "We need to change
the speech, because in order to carry out the negotiated over the legislated, living entities
are necessary to conduct these negotiations," Chiquinho said.
Canind Pegado, UGTs Secretary General, emphasized that, from now on, the union
movement needs to be objective about what will happen when the reform comes into
force in order to warn society with the production of didactic material. "We need to warn
our grassroots colleagues."
The union leaders defined a schedule of action. On November 10, there will be a National
Stoppage Day to express the dissatisfaction of the union movement with the new Labor
Law and to warn society that the government will try to vote the Social Security Reform,
harming even more the poorest layer of society.
Judges say that changes in the Labor Laws will bring
uncertainties
With just over a month to go into effect, the labor reform still faces strong resistance from
Labor judges, who point out items in the text in conflict with the Constitution or with
agreements that were internationally signed.
Due to this situation, magistrates and lawyers consider that the first months of application
of the new rules can be turbulent, causing legal uncertainty and making it difficult for the
companies planning.
The National Association of Magistrates (Anamatra), which believes that many passages
run the risk of "not being effective", is ahead of criticisms. According to Anamatra, the
labor reform was approved hastily and with technical errors, thus, it will create a "legal
chaos", if applied literally, as those who advocates change want.
"For starters, the new law decided to regulate the off-balance-sheet damage and specify
what assets may be violated and be eligible to moral damages. But in the law, there is no
mention of the right to life, to freedom and to religious expression. If these rights are
violated in the labor relationship, there will be no room for moral damages?, exemplified
Guilherme Feliciano, the president of the association.
Maria de Nazar Medeiros, Labor judge in Belm (Par), is inclined to not apply part of the
changes as that of intermittent activity. She sees great chances that the Federal Supreme
Court (STF) will judge this point as unconstitutional. The intermittent work "attacks the
social value of work, which is guaranteed by the Constitution," she says.
2nd Conference
H
Part of these questions, however, can be reduced through a Provisional Measure (MP) that
on Labor the government of President Michel Temer must edit to follow the promulgation of the
Procedural Law
reform, scheduled for November 11. The MP was a promise from the government to
remarks
prevent the Senate from altering the text approved in the House, which would delay its
proceeding.
On October 10, Anamatra held the 2nd Conference on Material and Labor Procedural Law,
which was marked by the approval of 125 statements, out of which 58 were agglutinated
and 67 were individual, on the interpretation and application of Law 13,467/2017 (Labor
Reform). The event brought together more than 600 judges, prosecutors and labor
auditors, as well as lawyers and other legal operators who were divided into eight
thematic committees and discussed more than 300 proposals for statements on the new
norm. 2nd Conference on Labor Procedural Law remarks

UGT Global 02
 2030 Day: Promoting the SDGs
Unio Geral dos Trabalhadores UGTs State branch of Paran will hold the seminar
2030 Day: Promoting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), from October 29 to 31,
2017, in the city of Foz do Iguau.
This event has the national support of UGT and also of important partners, among which
Itaipu Binacional; Sanepar Sanitation Company of Paran; the Government of the State
of Paran and the City Hall of Foz do Iguau.
The SDGs were endorsed at the United Nations Summit on Sustainable Development
(September 25-27, 2015), and their implementation is a challenge that requires global
partnerships, with the active participation of all, including governments - at all levels, civil
society, private sector, academe, the media and the United Nations.
At the present time, trade union action addresses issues that go beyond the debate on
wages and working conditions. Health, education, safety, urban mobility and many other
issues have an impact on the life of workers and their entire families, permeating their
fears, dreams and challenges. This reality changes the unions' ability to interact with other
interlocutors, such as: the public power, the media, the university and other organizations
that broaden the spectrum and the work of trade union institutions, especially UGT and its
affiliated entities.
Meet the 17
H
It is the current role of trade unions to perceive people broadly, in a concept called civic
Sustainable unionism, and to work for improvements in all these spheres. The SDGs seek to meet the
Development Goals same expectations: improving living and working conditions for thousands of men and
women across the globe.
Therefore, trade union action and SDGs are integrated and complementary elements of
extreme relevance, being mentioned in initiatives of international trade union
organizations such as the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and the
International Labor Organization. It is safe to say that currently the trade union
movement is crucial to build a more just, dignified and egalitarian world, providing quality
of life for workers. SDGs are certainly part of this 2030 Day.
Paulo Rossi, President of UGT-Paran
Ricardo Patah, national president of UGT

Union centers file report at the OAS

Unio Geral dos Trabalhadores UGT, Central nica de Trabalhadores (CUT) and Nova
Central Sindical de Trabalhadores (NCST) filed a complaint with the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organization of American States against the
Labor Reform and the Outsourcing Bill in Brazil, its appreciation will happen during the
165th regular session of this commission, which will be held from October 23 to 27 in
Montevideo, Uruguay.
The purpose of these trade union centers is to expose the actions practiced by the
Brazilian Government, which, by imposing profound changes on society without due
debate and by passing laws that have gone back centuries in terms of labor relations and
human rights guarantees, have succumbed to the market demands of groups to the
detriment of human capital.
With this measure, UGT and its sister organizations will have the opportunity, often denied
by the Brazilian Government, to show how such measures, which have already been
adopted in an unpunished manner, violate several international norms, especially those of
the United Nations Human Rights Organization of the Organization of American States and
of the International Labor Organization.

UGT Global 03
 Challenges of unionism in the current situation
On October 05 and 06, Fesmepar - Federation of Trade Unions of Municipal and State Civil
Servants of Paran held a seminar called "The Challenges of Trade Unionism in the Current
National Situation". The event took place at the Condor Hotel, in Curitiba, and brought
together trade union representatives from all over the State of Paran, as well as trade
union leaders from other Brazilian States.
On first day, Ricardo Patah,
UGTs national president, talked
about the situation of the trade
union movement, taking into
account the new scenario
resulting from the Labor Reform,
which represents an
unprecedented setback in labor
rights that were hardly achieved
over the last few years.
On first day, Ricardo Patah, UGTs national president, talked about the situation of the
trade union movement, taking into account the new scenario resulting from the Labor
Reform, which represents an unprecedented setback in labor rights that were hardly
achieved over the last few years.

Benzene is nothing but trouble

Covering the sixteen unions of gas station attendants of the State of So Paulo and one
hundred thousand state workers, a fifteen-month action will promote several activities to
prevent occupational exposure to benzene, a chemical and a carcinogen found in fuels.
The campaign "Benzene is Nothing but Trouble" was launched at the Campinas Trade
Union of Gas Station Attendants, affiliated with UGT, on October 10. The event celebrates
the month of the National Fight against Benzene exposure celebrated on October 5.
During the ceremony, Raimundo Nonato de Souza (Biro), director of Sinpospetro-
Campinas, presented an overview on the benzene prevention activities carried out on a
permanent basis by the union with the Union of Doctors of Campinas and Region
(Sindimed).

26th Commerce Worker Trade Union Congress

'The general coordinator of the 26th Commerce Worker Trade Union Congress of the State
of So Paulo, led by Luiz Carlos Motta, through lectures delivered on two days of intense
work, submits the deliberations formulated together with Walter dos Santos, executive
coordinator, and Valdecir Alves, substitute coordinator, to the congressmen.
Check out the six approved resolutions.
H

Unionized workers earn more

On average, workers associated with unions earn 33.5% more than non-unionized workers.
According to Andr Gambier Campos, a researcher at the Institute of Applied Economic
Research (Ipea), the new labor rules should deepen even further the wage gap between
these two segments.
According to a study by Campos that was recently published, non-unionized workers
earned, on average, R$ 1,675.68 in September 2015, while union members earned R$
2,237.86. The researcher used data from the National Household Sample Survey (Pnad),
Read the
H
conducted by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
Survey
The contrast can also be observed in indirect remunerations. According to the survey, 36%
Read the
of union members receive health care, compared to 20.3% of non-union members. In
H

Executive
addition, 63.9% of unionized workers have access to food allowance, compared to 49.3%
Summary
of non-unionized workers. In the case of transport allowance, the indexes are 54.4% and
49.1%.

The UGT Global is the Newsletter of International Information of the Unio Geral dos
Trabalhadores
The UGT union is an organization formed to defend the Brazilian workers across a broad trade
union movement, national, ethical, supportive, independent, democratic and innovative.
Communications Director: Marcos Afonso de Oliveira
Publisher: Mauro Ramos

UGT Global 04