Background information

The report 'Regulamentação coletiva de trabalho publicada no 2º Trimestre 2020' by the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security/DGERT July 2020, maps the number of collective agreements published in the 2nd quarter of 2020, the number of workers potentially covered and the level wages fixed by collective bargaining in this period.

Content of measure

The report highlights that compared with the 2nd quarter of 2020, during the pandemic crisis, only 48 collective agreements were published, representing a decrease by 60%, compared with the 2nd quarter 2019.

The lower number of published agreements is reflected in the number of workers covered by agreements, which in the 2nd quarter of 2020 are less than a third of those registered in 2019, 100,828 and 355,219 employees, respectively. The manufacturing industry is the sector with more workers covered (71,093) representing 70.5% of the workers covered by updated agreements in this period. The report looks at wage bargaining in this period. The average monthly agreed wage in manufacturing industry of €730.15 was below the global average (including all the other sectors). In the manufacturing sector, as in the large majority of sectors with agreements signed in this period, the lowest wage agreed level corresponded exactly to the mandatory monthly minimum wage of €635.

Use of measure

The workers potentially covered by collective agreements in the 2nd quarter of 2020 are around 100,828.

Contents

• Pay increases

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Employees in standard employment	Applies to all businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Trade unions Employers' organisations Company / Companies	No special funding required

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative	Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Social partners jointly
• Main level of involvement: Sectoral or branch level

Involvement

The report focus on collective agreements (sector and company agreements) and results of wage bargaining, negotiated between employers organisations or single employers and unions. Collective agreements in Portugal have the force of law. The role of the government relates to the extension of the agreements once the signatory parties request such extension.

Views and reactions

By definition collective agreements outcomes reflect consensus between signatory parties.

Sources

• 01 July 2020: Regulamentação coletiva de trabalho publicada no 2º Trimestre de 202 (www.dgert.gov.pt)