Brazil in the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA): The COVID-19 economic crisis and the possible new Labour Reforms

Abstract

In 2018, the Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA) of the International Labour Organization (ILO) released its Annual Report showing a puzzling scenario: around 50% of the complaints – 1,681 out of 3,336 – presented before the Committee since its creation have come from Latin America. If we analyse the last 10 years – i.e. from 2008 to 2018 – we find out a more astonishing situation: around 67% of the complaints – 477 out of 708 – came from Latin America. This Latin-American presence in the CFA may become even greater due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as economic downturns often impact labour rights. By the way, it was during an economic crisis in Brazil that the 2017 Labour Reform – symbolized by Law No. 13,467/2017, in force since November that year – was passed, remodelling some of the Labour Law pillars in the country. On the ILO Normlex website, we notice that three Brazilian complaints were sent to the CFA after November 2017: Cases No. 3327, 3344, and 3355. They may show us how freedom of association has been recently treated in diverse economic sectors, as well as sow the seeds of Labour Reforms amid/after the COVID-19 economic crisis. This article utilizes observational/exploratory methods to analyse these three cases, pointing out if/how the core modifications of the 2017 Labour Reform in Brazil connect with the debates in the selected CFA Cases. All in all, what about next Reforms?