Lack of precise data makes it difficult to give figures of trade union membership in Portugal and there is a large gap between the totals provided by the unions and other estimates. There are two main trade union confederations, the CGTP and the UGT, whose relationship was initially marked by conflict rather than co-operation but has now improved. Trade union structures are complex with around 400 autonomous individual unions.

There are just over a million trade union members in Portugal, according to figures provided by the unions themselves, although some of the available union density figures suggest a lower number.

There are no regular official estimates of union density for the whole economy, but the Office for Planning and Strategy (GEP) in the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity (MTSS) produces regular figures on union density in the private sector. Figures published in the 2018 updating a 2016 green paper on labour relations, show union density in the private sector 8.3% in 2016.[1] However, this is certainly an underestimate of union density across the economy, as the figures do not include public administration, where union density is higher, and they originally come from the employers, who only know about union members who pay their subscription via the employer, not those who pay directly.[2]

The ICTWSS independent database of industrial relations information calculated union density in Portugal at 15.3% in 2016.[3] This is based on a total estimated union membership of 560,000, split between the two main union confederations, the CGTP with 400,000 members and the UGT with 160,000.

These figures are well below the membership numbers the union confederations themselves have published. In figures provided to the European Trade Union Confederation, the CGTP indicated that it had 555,000 members in 2015.[4] The UGT stated that it had 458,000 members at the end of 2016, in its report to its congress in March 2017.[5] In addition, there are a number of smaller unions outside the main confederations. However, there is no information on their total membership.

The problems in establishing accurate membership figures are, in part, explained by the fragmented and complex structure of trade unionism in Portugal. The database of the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity listed 404 active union organisations of all types at the end of June 2020.[6] The 2016 green paper on industrial relations, using data from 2015,identified 377 union organisations, of which six were confederations, 43 were unions (Uniões) normally at a regional level , 27 were federations (normally industry based and 300 were independent unions (Sindicatos).[7]

The CGTP provides an example of this complexity and fragmentation. In the report presented to its 2020 congress, it states that there are 79 unions that are directly affiliated to it, but there are another 46 unions which are not affiliated but cooperate with it either on a regular basis (17 unions) or on an issue by issue basis (29). This wider group of 125 unions, known as the MSU (Movimento Sindical Unitário), breaks down between 56 which operate at national level, 65 which operate at a local level – mostly covering several districts, two which operate outside Portugal and two based in the Azores. In terms of the type of membership, 37 are occupationally based unions, 82 are industrially based unions and six are a mixture of the two.[8] The CGTP’s largest single individual affiliate is the local government union STAL, whose stated membership is 56,000 and which operates across Portugal at national level.[9]

Since the early 1990s, the CGTP has made considerable progress in rationalising these structures by getting unions to merge, reducing the number of separate unions affiliated to it from 152 in 1993, to 107 in 1999 and to 79 by 2020. The CGTP’s 10 industry federations and its 22 regional bodies now provide a much clearer structure for organisation. The CGTP organises the majority of trade unionists other than finance and energy and it is strongest in manufacturing and the public sector.

The UGT also has a mixture of industry and occupationally based unions. Most of its 49 unions are national but there are some, such as those for bank employees and teachers which only cover part of the country. (There are bank unions for the north, centre and the south of the country and the islands, for example.) Like the CGTP, the UGT has unions which, while not affiliated, work with it. There are 24 of these. There are also six industry federations and 20 regional bodies.[10] The UGT has most members in the services sector, both private and public, and is particularly strong in banking and insurance. SBSI, which represents bank employees in the south of the country and the islands, describes itself on its website as “the largest Portuguese trade union” and is reported to have 40,000 members.[11]

As well as the two main confederations CGTP and the UGT there is a much smaller confederation, the USI, which lists 14 affiliated unions on its website.[12] However, more significant in industrial relations terms are the unions which not linked to any of the main confederations. There are around 100 of these and there are some indications that their number may be increasing. A report in April 2019 noted that 22 of the 24 new unions that had been set up since the start of 2017 were not affiliated to any confederation. These new unions included two, a nurses’ union, ASPE, and a lorry drivers’ union SNMMP, which have been involved in important strikes.

There are important political differences between the two main confederations. The CGTP emerged after the 1974 revolution and initially had close links with the communist party. The UGT was set up in 1978 to provide an alternative to the CGTP's political approach by, as its own history states, trade unions with links to social democratic and liberal-conservative parties.As a result, relations between the two confederations were initially very strained. However, since the late 1980s the position has improved considerably, although clear differences remain.

One key difference is that the UGT is much more prepared to sign national tripartite agreements with the employers and the government than the CGTP. Between 2012 and the end of June 2020 there have been six separate agreements signed in the Standing Committee for Social Concertation (CPCS), the national body that brings together representatives of the government, the employers and the unions. The CGTP and the UGT are the only union bodies in the CPCS (see section on collective bargaining). These agreements have in some cases led to far-reaching changes to employment law, particularly those signed in 2012 and 2018. However, none of these agreements has been signed by the CGTP.[13]

The lack of detailed information makes it difficult to judge union membership developments in Portugal. However, the figures from the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity (MTSS), which cover union density in the private sector, show a steady fall from 10.6% in 2010 to 8.3% in 2016.[14] Over the longer term, it seems clear that while union membership has grown in some areas, particularly the public sector, membership has been adversely affected by the loss of jobs in manufacturing, and, following the financial crisis, in banking and insurance. Both the CGTP and the UGT have adopted programmes at their recent congresses aiming to increase their membership. The CGTP reporting at its 2020 congress that its target of recruiting 110,00 new members over the previous four years had been beaten, with 114,677 new members being recruited.

As in other countries, larger workplaces are likely to have higher levels of union density (18.1%) for those with more than 250 employees, but only 3.1% for those with 10 to 49, although it is important to emphasise that these figures, from the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity and published in the update of the green paper, only cover the private sector.

There are no official figures on union density for men and women. Figures provide to the ETUC gender equality survey show that women make up 52% of the membership of the CGTP (2015) and 45% of the UGT’s membership (2018).[15]

[1] Atualização do Livro Verde sobre as Relações Laborais 2016, Ministério do Trabalho, Solidariedade e Segurança Social 24.01.2018 https://www.portugal.gov.pt/pt/gc21/comunicacao/documento?i=atualizacao-do-livro-verde-sobre-as-relacoes-laborais-2016 (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[2] Ainda vale a pena ser sindicalizado? by Sónia M Lourenço, Expresso, 01.05.18 https://expresso.pt/politica/2018-05-01-Ainda-vale-a-pena-ser-sindicalizado- (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[3] Jelle Visser, ICTWSS Data base. Version 6.1. Amsterdam: Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Labour Studies AIAS. October 2019

[4] ETUC Annual Gender Equality Survey 2019 – 12th edition, by Lionel Fulton and Cinzia Sechi, ETUC, April 2019 https://www.etuc.org/sites/default/files/circular/file/2019-05/ETUC_Annual_Equality_Survey%202019_FINAL_EN.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[5] Relatório do Secretariado Nacional XIII Congresso UGT https://www.ugt.pt/13congresso/publicfiles/zg41n1hleeph7dmtaf4u1kmhrhte20u8agevucmm.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[6] Organizações de Trabalho – Lista de associações sindicais e de associações de empregadores , Direcção-Geral do Emprego e das Relações de Trabalho, Ministerio do Trabalho e da Solidariedade Social https://www.dgert.gov.pt/organizacoes-de-trabalho-lista-de-associacoes-sindicais-e-de-associacoes-de-empregadores#dsrcot_ws_form (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[7] Livro Verde sobre as Relações Laborais, Gabinete de Estratégia e Planeamento do Ministério do Trabalho, Solidariedade e Segurança Social, December 2016 http://cite.gov.pt/pt/destaques/complementosDestqs2/LIVRO_VERDE_2016.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[8] Relatório de Actividades (Mandato 2016-2020) http://www.cgtp.pt/xiv-congresso/documentos/relatorio-de-actividades (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[9] STAL website https://www.stal.pt/index.php/o-sindicato/quem-somos.html (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[10] UGT website https://www.ugt.pt/comissoespagina/sindicatos-verticais-e-profissionais-124 (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[11] SBSI website https://www.sbsi.pt/Pages/default.aspx and Outros poderes. Como resiste a UGT à crise do sindicalismo by Ana Suspiro, Observador, 26 December 2019 https://observador.pt/especiais/outros-poderes-como-resiste-a-ugt-a-crise-do-sindicalismo/ (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[12] USI website https://www.usi.pt/filiados/ (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[13] CES website http://www.ces.pt/concertacao-social/acordos (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[14] Figures from the 2016 green paper and its updating in 2018: Livro Verde sobre as Relações Laborais (2016) and Atualização do Livro Verde sobre as Relações Laborais (2018)

[15] ETUC Annual Gender Equality Survey 2019 – 12th edition, by Lionel Fulton and Cinzia Sechi, ETUC, April 2019 https://www.etuc.org/sites/default/files/circular/file/2019-05/ETUC_Annual_Equality_Survey%202019_FINAL_EN.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

Negotiations at industry level, between employers’ associations and the unions, have in the past been the most important element in Portugal’s bargaining arrangements, providing a high level of collective bargaining coverage – partially through the extension of agreements by the government. However, the system has been under threat because of legal changes, which have only partially been reversed

The framework

Portuguese legislation provides for three main types of collective agreement. These are:

• industry-level agreements (CCs), which can be signed at national, regional or local level;
• agreements covering several companies (ACs); and
• agreements at the level of a single company or a workplace (AEs).

In almost all areas industry-level agreements are more important than other sorts of agreements, in terms of number of workers covered. However, there are some industries where this is not the case. For example, in 2018, agreements signed jointly by several companies (ACs) covered more workers than industry-level agreements in financial services, information and communication and utilities. Individual company agreements are also important in transport and logistics, although they cover fewer workers than the industry-level agreements.[1]

Where there are competing agreements, single company agreements (AEs) take precedence over multi-company agreements (ACs) and industry-level agreements (CCs), and multi-company agreements take precedence over industry-level agreements. Legislation introduced in 2012 allowed for collective agreements to change this order of precedence.[2] However, this option seems have hardly been used – with, for example, just three cases in 2015.[3]

Figures from the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity (MTSS) show that 240 agreements of all types were signed in 2019, made up of 105 industry-level agreements (CCs), 105 company agreements (AEs) and 30 agreements signed by several companies acting together (ACs).[4] The 105 industry-level agreements had a much wider impact in terms of numbers, covering 712,989 workers, while the 105 company agreements covered just 37,676. The remaining 35 multi-company agreements covered 42,218 workers, producing a total of 792,883 workers covered by collective agreements.

These figures are well below the level of bargaining that existed before financial crisis and the economic adjustment programme of austerity measures that followed. Between 2008 and 2019, the total number agreements signed fell from 296 to 250, a 19% drop, and the number of workers covered fell from 1.9 million to 792,883, a 58% reduction. This is despite some recovery in bargaining activity after the election of a new government in 2015.[5]

Changing government policy towards the extension of collective agreements – making them binding not just on the members of the employers’ association which signed them but on the whole industry – has been a key reason for these developments. It largely explains both the initial fall in the coverage of industry-level agreements and their subsequent partial recovery

In the past, extension of industry-level agreements was often almost automatic. In 2008, there were 172 industry-wide agreements and 137 agreements were extended. However, under the terms of the financial bailout, the government agreed to limit the extension of agreements to those where that the signatory employers’ organisations employed more than half of all the employees in the industry concerned and to consider the impact of the extension on the competitiveness of that industry.[6] The result was that the number of agreements extended beyond the signatory parties fell dramatically, dropping from 137 in 2008 to 12 in 2012 and reaching a record low of just nine in 2013.[7]

However, the new extension rules led to problems in an economy dominated by small companies and in 2014, they were altered in new legislation to take into “account the representativeness of micro, small and medium-sized companies”.[8] It permitted the extension of agreements where the employers’ association signing them consisted to at least 30% of micro, small and medium-sized companies. These new rules resulted in the number of extensions more than doubling, from 13 in 2014 to 34 in 2015 and 35 in 2016.

However, this was not the end of the story. Following a elections in 2015 which produced a government of the Socialist Party, supported by left-wing parties, new legislation was introduced in 2017. This abandoned the previous approach, based on meeting specific criteria, replacing it with a broader policy of “promoting better levels of social cohesion and equality”, particularly gender equality.[9] Under these new rules, the number of extensions increased to 84 in 2017, 75 in 2018 and 83 in 2019

However, policy on extending collective agreements was not the only area where changes were introduced during the period of the economic adjustment programme. Other examples included:

• changes to the rules on who had the right to conduct collective bargaining at company level (see section below – Who negotiates and when?);
• allowing companies facing financial difficulties to suspend collective agreements, although only with the agreement of the unions;[10] and
• altering the rules on the length of time that agreements could last and the continuing validity of the terms they contain after they expire.

Among this group of measures, the new rules on the length of agreements and what happens after they expire have probably had the greatest impact. Legislation passed in August 2014, reduced the maximum length of collective agreements from five years to three, and rather than having 18 months after this to reach a new agreement, the parties now only have six. After this point, once one the parties has reported the failure to reach an agreement to the appropriate ministry, an agreement only remains in force for a further 45 days.[11]

As with the rules on extension, the change in government in 2015 has led to the rolling back of some of these provisions, although the situation has not returned to the position that existed pre-crisis. Unions and employers agreed at meeting of the tripartite Standing Committee for Social Concertation (CPCS) in December 2016 that they would not make use of the procedure leading to an agreement ceasing to be valid, initially for a period of 18 months.[12] And legislation passed in September 2019, guaranteed that even where an agreement as a whole ceased to be valid, the terms covering parental rights and health and safety would continue to apply, while the parties are now required to provide reasons for withdrawing from an agreement.[13]

The impact of these all these changes has been that the proportion of workers covered by collective agreements has fallen since before the crisis, although there was a very slight uptick in 2018 after some of the measures introduced during the economic adjustment programme were reversed. Figures from the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity, which cover most of the economy apart from public administration, show that in 2018 a total of 2,269,555 workers were covered by collective agreements that were still valid. Most were covered by industry-level agreements (2,073,822) but another 109,690 were covered by agreements for several companies and 86,043 by single company agreements.[14] This is 78.9% of all employees in the areas covered, slightly above the 78.3% recorded in 2017, but well down on the 2008 figure of 83.7%.[15]

However, as the 2019 ETUI study on collective bargaining emphasises, figures on the number covered by current collective agreements only provide part of the picture. Pay increases are normally negotiated annually – there is no tradition of multi-year deals – so unless there is an agreement every year, inflation means that real pay will fall. Figures on the proportion of workers covered by agreements negotiated in that year give a better indication of the dynamism of collective bargaining and here the differences between different periods in the past are clear. In each year between 2006 to 2010 more than half of all employees were covered by agreements signed that year. However, from 2011 this began to fall, dropping to a low of just 10% of employees in 2013 and 2014. Since then the proportion of employees covered by an agreement signed in that year has increased to around 30% (29.7% in 2017 and 31.3% in 2018) but is still well below the levels before the financial crisis.[16]

These figures do not include agreements in public administration, which has seen an increase in the number of agreements signed from 2014 onwards. In 2018, there were 177, primarily in local government.

As well as the collective bargaining structure, Portugal has a tripartite body, the Standing Committee for Social Concertation (CPCS), in which the government, the employers and the two main union confederations, CGTP and UGT, are represented.

Many of the key developments in employment legislation and government measures affecting the labour market have been preceded by agreements reached in the CPCS. have led to government action and legislation affecting employment rights.

These include the tripartite agreement on competitiveness and employment, signed in March 2011, the agreement on tackling the crisis in January 2012 and the agreement signed in 2014 on increasing the minimum wage, an area where the CPCS has specific competence. Further agreements have been signed following the election of a government led by Socialist Party in 2015: detailed provisions on the implementation of the minimum wage increase in 2016; the agreement in 2017, which included changes to the extension rules; and an agreement in 2018, which led to legislation in 2019.[17] However, although all these agreements were tripartite, in every case the sole union signatory was the UGT. None were signed by the CGTP.

Who negotiates and when?

In the Labour Code, the negotiating parties in Portugal are the unions and the employers, either individually or in employers' federations, and the union leadership signs the agreements. However, revisions to the labour code from 2009 onwards allow the union to delegate the power to negotiate company-level collective agreements to employee representatives in the company. These can be either works councils or company level union bodies. The original threshold in 2009 was 500 employees, but in 2012 this was cut to 150.[18] In general, this change seems to have had only a limited impact, as the union must agree to delegate its negotiating rights. However, there are some companies where collective bargaining is primarily conducted by the works council. The best-known example is Autoeuropa, Volkswagen’s plant in Portugal, which employs around 5,800 people.

The Labour Code does not include rules on the representativeness of unions, establishing which have a right to negotiate and sign agreements. All officially registered unions can negotiate and sign agreements, provided the employer is willing engage with them. In practice, figures from the 2016 green paper on labour relations show that the majority of agreements are signed by unions linked to the two main confederations, CGPT and the UGT. An analysis of a sample of 74 agreements found only 10 did not involve either the CGTP or the UGT, although there were a further 15 where either the CGTP or the UGT or both had signed the agreement together with another union.[19] The figures also make it clear that only five of these agreements were signed by both the CGTP and the UGT.

In many cases two or more unions will sign identical or very similar agreements with an employer. The existence of these so-called “parallel” agreements, distorts some of the statistics on the number agreements signed each year. It also has a real-world impact where the agreements differ in some of their terms, as employers can choose which to implement

Negotiations on pay traditionally took place every year and lasted for 12 months. However, many agreements are now not renewed after 12 months but remain in place for much longer. Between 2009 and 2015, the average length of time that pay rates remained in force without being updated increased from just over a year (13.7 months) to more than three-and-a-half years (43.6 months).[20] The average period before a pay increase has subsequently fallen back, dropping to just under two years (22.5 months) in 2018 and around a year-and-a-half (16.3 months) in 2019.[21] Negotiations take place throughout the year.

The subject of the negotiations

Agreements concentrate on pay rates and increases, although in industry-level agreements they generally set minimum rates rather than actual pay. However, as the annual report on collective bargaining in 2018 makes clear, they also cover many other issues. These include working time, including the possibility of banking hours, night work, overtime and shift work, as well as the associated premia, temporary transfers, geographical mobility, occupational training, arrangements for ending or revising agreements, flexibility and additional social benefits. Topics linked to equality and parental rights have become increasingly important in recent years, as have agreements on technology issues, such as remote working.[22]

Portugal has a national minimum wage (RMMG), which is normally increased each year in January. The formal position is that it is set by legislation after consultation with the tripartite CPCS.[23] In practices, in the past it generally went up in line with expected inflation, but more recently there have been above-inflation increases as a result of a series of an agreements in the tripartite CPCS.

[1] Table 22 Relatório Anual sobre a Evolução da Negociação Coletiva em 2018 Centro de Relações Laborais, 2019 http://cite.gov.pt/pt/destaques/complementosDestqs2/CRL_Relatorio_NC_2018.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[2] Labour Code Article 482, as amended by Lei n.º 23/2012

[3] Relatório Anual sobre a Evolução da Negociação Coletiva em 2015 Centro de Relações Laborais, 2016 https://www.crlaborais.pt/documents/10182/13326/CRL+-+Relat%C3%B3rio+Anual+NC+-+2015+%28vers%C3%A3o+atualizada+em+02.02.2017%29/17d6440b-3378-4f64-8d00-cc44ff75cedc (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[4] Instrumentos de regulamentação coletiva de trabalho publicados (continente), em 2019, DGERT https://www.dgert.gov.pt/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/IRCT-pub.-2019.12.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[5] For a detailed analysis of collective bargaining in Portugal see Portugal: reforms and the turn to neoliberal austerity by Maria da Paz Campos Lima in Collective bargaining in Europe: towards an endgame, edited by Torsten Müller, Kurt Vandaele and Jeremy Waddington, ETUI, 2019

[6] Resolução do Conselho de Ministros n.º 90/2012

[7] Instrumentos de Regulamentação Coletiva de Trabalho Publicados Atualizado 25 Junho, 2020, DGERT https://www.dgert.gov.pt/instrumentos-de-regulamentacao-coletiva-publicados (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[8] Resolução do Conselho de Ministros n.º 43/2014

[9] Resolução do Conselho de Ministros n.º 82/2017

[10] Lei n.º 55/2014

[11] ibid

[12] Compromisso Tripartido para um Acordo de Concertação Social de Médio Prazo, CES January 2017

[13] Lei n.º 93/2019

[14] Calculated from Tables 14 and 15 Séries Cronológicas Quadros de Pessoal 2008 – 2018, Ministério do Trabalho, Solidariedade e Segurança Social June 2020. This calculation excludes 211,503 workers covered by Working Conditions Ordinances (Portarias de condições de trabalho – PCT previously PRT), which are government regulations setting pay and conditions for some groups of workers not covered by collective agreements. http://www.gep.mtsss.gov.pt/documents/10182/10928/seriesqp_2008_2018.pdf/cf513838-2724-4195-8763-4d58400df0b9 (Accessed 15.07.2020)

[15] Relatório Anual sobre a Evolução da Negociação Coletiva em 2018 Centro de Relações Laborais, 2019 http://cite.gov.pt/pt/destaques/complementosDestqs2/CRL_Relatorio_NC_2018.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[16] Relatório Anual sobre a Evolução da Negociação Coletiva em 2018 and Séries Cronológicas Quadros de Pessoal 2008 – 2018

[17] See CES website http://www.ces.pt/concertacao-social/acordos (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[18] Labour Code Article 491, as amended by Lei n.º 23/2012

[19] Livro Verde sobre as Relações Laborais, Ministério do Trabalho, Solidariedade e Segurança Social, December 2016

[20] Relatório Anual sobre a Evolução da Negociação Coletiva em 2018 Centro de Relações Laborais, 2019 http://cite.gov.pt/pt/destaques/complementosDestqs2/CRL_Relatorio_NC_2018.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[21] Relatório sobre regulamentação coletiva de trabalho publicada no ano de 2019 DGERT, February 2020 https://www.dgert.gov.pt/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Relat%C3%B3rio-anual-RCT-2019-DGERT.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[22] Relatório Anual sobre a Evolução da Negociação Coletiva em 2018 Centro de Relações Laborais, 2019

[23] Labour Code Article 273.

There are two channels of workplace representation of employees for most issues – through union representatives at the workplace and through an elected works council. However, in practice works councils are relatively rare. The rights of works councils are limited to information and consultation, with no opportunity to block management decisions.

The Portuguese Labour Code provides for two channels of workplace representation: trade union delegates, representing trade unionists, who may come together in a trade union committee (comissão sindical) or joint trade union committee (comissão intersindical), and the works council (comissão de trabalhadores – CTs), representing the whole workforce. There are also health and safety representatives.

The establishment of a works council is not automatic. It requires a majority of employees to vote in favour, in a ballot requested by 100 employees or 20% of the workforce. The rules of the works council must also be approved in a vote.

In practice, works councils are relatively rare, although the statistics are somewhat contradictory. The 2016 green paper on industrial relations stated that, at the end of 2015 across the whole of Portugal, there were only 191 active works councils, defined as being constituted with current members in post. This is similar to the 196 recorded in a similar publication in 2007.[1] However, the CGTP, the largest union confederation, noted, in its report to its 2020 congress that it had details of 1,551 private and public sector companies where works councils had been established, although not all of them were still active.[2] Nevertheless, it was able to identify 295 active works councils where its members were present. One reason for this difference in numbers may be that the union is also counting sub-works councils. Each company can only have one works council, irrespective of its size.

Whatever the precise numbers it seems clear that the extent of works councils in Portugal is limited. Eurostat figures show that in 2017 there were 6,365 companies with 50 or more employees in Portugal in 2017, but figures from the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity for 2018 and 2019 show that just 421 works council members and 333 sub-works council members were elected in 2018, and only 295 works council and 210 sub-works council members in 2019.[3]

There are no similar figures on the number of union delegates and trade union committees at the workplace. However, they appear to be much more common. The CGTP’s report to its 2020 congress states that 12,745 new trade union delegates were elected at workplaces during the four years 2016 to 2020. This is more than five time the number of members of works councils it reports – 2,364.

An indication of the overall extent of employee representation at the workplace is provided by the results of Eurofound’s 2013 European Company Survey. These show that, in 2013, only 8% of establishments in Portugal with at least 10 employees had some form of official employee representation, either a union delegate, a union committee or a works council. This is the lowest percentage in the EU, and only a quarter of the EU28 average of 32%. As elsewhere in Europe, larger organisations were much more likely to have such a structure than smaller ones. The survey shows that 63% of establishments with more than 250 employees had representation, but only 25% of those with between 50 and 249 employees. In smaller workplaces in Portugal, those with between 10 and 49 employees, the survey indicates that just over one in twenty (6%) had employee representation.[4]

Numbers and structure

It is up to the trade unions and the members in the workplace to decide on the number of trade union delegates they want to elect. However, there are legal limits on the number who can benefit from specific legal rights and protections. These are linked to the number of union members (see table).

Above 500 union members there is one extra trade union delegate with protection for each additional 200 members.

If there are sufficient union delegates – there are no precise rules on this – they come together in a committee. Where there are several unions in a workplace, fairly common because of the structure of Portuguese unions (see section on unions), they may form a joint union committee, provided it has at least five union delegates or all the separate union committees in the workplace. These committees adopt their own rules of procedure.

Works councils consist only of employee representatives. There is no management involvement. By law, they can be set up in any company, included public sector companies, at the request of the employees, although in practice they are mostly in bigger organisations. There can only be one works council in any company. But sub-works councils can be set up in individual workplaces.

The number of members of the works council varies with the size of the company (see table). Teleworkers are included fully in calculating the number of employees and workers on fixed-term contracts are included in the calculation on the basis of the average number in place at the end of each month in the previous financial year. However, temporary agency workers are not included.[5] There is no indication that part-time workers are not fully counted.

The number of members of sub-works councils also varies with the size of the workplace (see table).

The are no rules on how frequently the works council should meet, but it must meet management at least once a month. The general rules of the works council (statutes) must be approved in a vote of the whole workforce.

Tasks and rights

A key part of the role of the trade union delegates is to provide a link between union members and the union, through recruitment and campaigning activity.

In the area of collective bargaining, trade union delegates ensure that existing collective agreements are properly applied; and, in the minority of companies where there is a company-level agreement, may be involved in collective bargaining. In most cases any agreement reached will need to be ratified formally by the union, although in companies with more than 150 employees (previously 500) trade union delegates, like works councils in companies of the same size, can now sign their own collective agreements (see section on collective bargaining).

Trade union delegates are entitled to information on “recent and probable development of the employer’s activities and economic situation” and information and consultation on “the situation, structure and probable development of employment”, as well as measures planned to maintain staffing levels, together with “measures likely to lead to substantial changes in work organisation”. This wording is in line with the EU framework directive on information and consultation (2002/14/EC). This information is to be requested in writing by the trade union delegates and by law it must be provided within eight to 15 days depending on its complexity. They must also specifically be informed about the use of temporary contracts and any reduction in work breaks.

In addition, if there is no works council, the trade union delegates should be informed and consulted on working hours, hours for interns, holiday arrangements, redundancy proposals, dismissals linked to capability, works rules and temporary close downs. It must also be informed of individual dismissals, if there is no works council, and can express its point of view.

The trade union committee or the joint trade union committee has the right to call all employees to a meeting in works time, subject to giving 48 hours’ notice and without prejudicing essential operations. The total time of such meetings may not exceed 15 hours a year.

The role of the works council is largely advisory and consultative. It does not have the decision-making or veto powers which exist elsewhere in Europe.

As set out in the Labour Code, its general rights at the workplace are to:[6]

• receive the information necessary to carry out its activities;
• exercise some control over the company's management;
• participate, with others, in company restructuring, in the preparation of occupational training plans and reports and in procedures related to changes in working conditions; and
• manage or participate in the management of the company's social provision (such as canteens).

The information it must receive covers:

• general activity and budget plans;
• the organisation of production and its likely impact on levels of employment and equipment utilisation;
• the supply position;
• forecasts and levels of sales;
• personnel management (including specifically workers on temporary contracts) and the establishment of basic criteria such as the overall wage bill and its distribution by occupational group, social benefits, productivity and absenteeism;
• the financial situation, including the balance sheet and profit and loss account;
• financing methods;
• tax and other similar charges; and
• any plans to change the purposes, share capital or activities of the company.

This information is to be requested in writing by the works council and it must be provided within eight to 15 days depending on its complexity.

The employer is required to consult with the works council as soon as possible on:

• changes in the criteria used for occupational classification and employee promotion;
• relocation of the company or workplaces within it;
• anything that could produce a significant reduction in the number of employees, a major worsening of working conditions; or changes in work organisation; and
• the dissolution or insolvency of the company.

This consultation should be in writing and the works should respond to the company’s request within 10 days or within a longer period if the issue is complex.

The purpose of the limited control over management, set out in the Labour Code, is to promote “the responsible commitment of workers to the company's activity”. The works council is able to:

• assess and issue its opinion of the company's budget and its changes, as well as to monitor how it is implemented;
• promote the appropriate use of technical, human and financial resources;
• promote measures that contribute to the improvement of the company's activity, particularly in relation to the use of equipment and administrative simplification;
• make suggestions and proposals to the company on initial qualification and further training as well as on the improvement of working conditions, particularly health and safety at work; and
• defend the legitimate interests of workers with the management and supervisory bodies of the company and the competent authorities.

In the specific area of restructuring the works council has a right to:

• advance information and consultation on initial restructuring plans or proposals;
• information on the final form of the restructuring planned and the opportunity to present its views before the plans are approved;
• meet those in charge of preparatory restructuring work; and
• make suggestions, complaints or criticisms to the company’s management bodies.

The works council should also be consulted about changes in working hours, the hours for interns (student workers), holiday arrangements, redundancy proposals, works rules, and temporary work closures. It is also involved in individual dismissals, where it can express its point of view. It must be asked for its opinion on any use of biometric data or remote surveillance and informed of any reduction in work breaks. It must also be consulted about health and safety issues if there are no separate health and safety representatives.

Sub-works councils have broadly similar rights, although at the level of an individual workplace rather than the whole company.

In practice, works councils often find it difficult to ensure that they are given all the information they should receive or are consulted sufficiently.

The works council also has the right to call meetings of all employees under similar terms to those for the trade union. As with the meetings called by the union delegates, employees have a right to 15 hours a year for meetings called by the works council.

In most cases, the works council will not be involved in collective bargaining, where the unions normally have the sole right to represent the employees. However, changes to the labour code in 2009 permitted the works council to negotiate with the employer where the company employs at least 500 people, provided this has been expressly permitted by the union and in 2012 the threshold was lowered to 150 (see section on collective bargaining).

The situation described above relates to companies in both the public and private sectors. The situation is similar in public administration, following legislation introduced in 2009.[7]

Election and term of office

Trade union delegates are elected in a secret ballot by the trade union members at their workplace. The detailed rules of the election are laid down by the unions, although the employer should be given the names of the successful candidates, and the term of office cannot be more than four years.

Works council members are elected by the entire workforce and must themselves be employees. (In practice they are frequently also trade union delegates). The Labour Code makes clear that all workers “regardless of age or function”, have the right to take part in the elections both as candidates and as voters.[8] Nominations must be supported by at least 100 employees or 20% of the workforce, and voting is on the basis of a list system. Unions have no special nominating rights in these elections, but the lists of candidates are often linked to one of the union groupings. In its report to its 2020 congress, the CGTP reported that in a sample of 33 works councils 58.8% of the voters backed lists identified with the CGTP and 36.9% backed other lists.

Elections must take place at least every four years, although the precise period is fixed in the rules of each works council, which should be voted on by the entire workforce. There is no limit on the number of times that works council members can be re-elected.

Protection against dismissal

In general, all types of employee representative, whether union delegates, works council members or health and safety representatives are given the same level of protection under the Labour Code. Employers may not dismiss, transfer or act in any way to the detriment of a representative carrying out his or her functions.[9]

Trade union delegates and members of the works council can be dismissed for misconduct and if they if their skills and work are considered to be inadequate. However, the initial assumption is that their dismissal is unfair. The works council must be informed and consulted through the process of any dismissal and if the worker facing dismissal is a union representative, the union must also be informed. Failure to follows the procedure in the case of a union delegate is held to be more serious than in dismissals where this is not the case. The protections provided to employee representatives also extend to candidates for and those who have held office in the previous three years.

If the dismissal of an employee representative is found to be unfair, the compensation is set by the court at a rate of between 30 and 60 days per year of service and cannot be less than six months’ pay.[10]

Time off and other resources

Trade union delegates are entitled to five hours a month paid time off – eight if they are in a joint committee with several unions

In addition, members of the executive of a union body, from local unions to national confederations, are entitled to four days paid time off per month on the following basis.

These amounts can be combined and used by a smaller number of executives, provided the overall total is not exceeded. This allows senior union executives to work full time for their union but continue to be paid by their employer

Trade union delegates in companies or workplaces with more than 150 employees are entitled to the use of a permanent office within the company “appropriate to the exercise of their functions”. In smaller companies or workplaces, they are entitled to use an office as required. The also have the right to use of a noticeboard for union information and to distribute information from the union.

Works council members are entitled to 25 hours paid time-off a month, but only half this in very small companies. In companies with more than 1,000 employees, the members of the works council can agree that the total amount of time off, worked out on the basis of each member having 25 hours a month, can be divided as they wish. However, in these circumstances no single member of the works council can have more than 40 hours, other than in publicly owned companies of this size, where one works council can be freed from normal duties for half their total hours.

Time-off rights cannot be accumulated between the three different types of employee representation: union structures in the workplace, works councils and representatives for health and safety. For example, a works council member who is also a trade union delegate cannot add together the time off for the two functions. In all three cases, the employer should be informed at least two days in advance of the intention to take time off, except where there are unexpected reasons for doing so.

Works councils are entitled to the use of "adequate" premises as well as the material and technical support necessary for them to carry out their work.

Training rights

There are no training rights for employee representatives. Neither union delegates nor members of the works council have a legal right to paid time-off for training. However, unions have the right to participate in training linked to company restructuring.

Group representation

There is no formal structure for group level representation. However, there can only be one works council in any company. Where there are several workplaces, they set up sub-works councils and send representatives to the company works council.

The law also provides for coordinating councils of workers, who bring together works councils from different companies with the aim of creating links between them and having a positive role in economic restructuring. They may not have more members than the number of works councils they are coordinating, up to a maximum of 11, and the members are entitled to 20 hours off a month. However, figures on the number of members of coordinating councils elected each year show that they are very rare. In 2018 only 22 members were elected, and in 2019 only 11.[11]

[1] Livro Verde sobre as Relações Laborais, Gabinete de Estratégia e Planeamento do Ministério do Trabalho, Solidariedade e Segurança Social, December 2016 http://cite.gov.pt/pt/destaques/complementosDestqs2/LIVRO_VERDE_2016.pdf (Accessed 01.07.2020) and Livro Branco das Relações Laborais, Ministerio do Trabalho e da Solidariedade Social, November 2007

[2] Relatório de Actividades (Mandato 2016-2020) http://www.cgtp.pt/xiv-congresso/documentos/relatorio-de-actividades (Accessed 01.07.2020)

[3] DGERT website September 2019 https://www.dgert.gov.pt/organizacoes-do-trabalho-membros-eleitos-por-genero and June 2020 https://www.dgert.gov.pt/organizacoes-do-trabalho-membros-eleitos-por-sexo-dados-de-2019 (Accessed 23.07.2020)

[4] Eurofound (2015), Third European Company Survey – Overview report: Workplace practices – Patterns, performance and well-being, Figures for Table 44

[5] Articles 146, 171 and 189 of the Labour Code

[6] Article 423 and following Labour Code

[7] Guiao: Comissões de Trabalhadores (constituição e eleição dos seus membros), direção-geral da administração e do emprego público July 2019 https://www.dgaep.gov.pt/upload//RCT/docs/Guiao_CT_21_ago_2019.pdf (accessed 01.07.2020)

[8] Article 415 Labour Code

[9] Article 406 Labour Code

[10] Articles 410 and 411 Labour Code

[11] DGERT website September 2019 https://www.dgert.gov.pt/organizacoes-do-trabalho-membros-eleitos-por-genero and June 2020 https://www.dgert.gov.pt/organizacoes-do-trabalho-membros-eleitos-por-sexo-dados-de-2019 (Accessed 23.07.2020)

There are constitutional provisions giving Portuguese employees the right to elect representatives on the governing bodies of state-owned companies and other public bodies. However, these provisions have been implemented in a way which means that they only have a consultative role, and relatively few state-owned companies are covered. There is no employee board level representation in private companies.

The Portuguese Constitution states in Article 54 that works councils “have the right … to promote the election of workers' representatives to the governing bodies of enterprises that belong to the state or other public entities, as laid down by law”.

The Labour Code similar states that the works council of a “ public corporate entity promotes the election of workers' representatives to the governing bodies” of that entity, and that the voting system shall be as set out in the Labour Code “in terms of the list of electors, voting sections, voting and counting of results”. However, it goes on to state that the number of employees to be elected, as well as the body on which they sit, are to be determined by the company’s own statutes (Article 428).

In practice, it appears that relatively few state-owned Portuguese companies have implemented these provisions. Research in 2011 found only a small number of state-owned companies – all but two in the health sector – with employee representatives on company bodies and in every case they were limited to a single individual on a consultative board “conselho consultivo”, whose duties are advisory.[1]

The legislation (a Decree Law) covering bodies in the health sector (Decreto-Lei n.º 18/2017, which replaced earlier legislation – Decreto-Lei n.º 233/2005) provides for one employee representative in a consultative board of seven or eight members. The election method is not specified, and the terms of office is three years. At the end of 2019, there were 41 hospitals and other local heath units which had the form of a public corporate entity “entidade pública empresarial”.[2]

The two public bodies outside the health sector with employee representatives on the consultative board are Comboios de Portugal (the railways), whose consultative board was established by Decreto-Lei n.º 137-A/2009, and Metropolitano de Lisboa (Lisbon metro), whose consultative board was established by Decreto-Lei n.º 148-A/2009. In Comboios de Portugal, the employee representative is one of six normal members, with the possibility of further co-options, and, in Metropolitano de Lisboa, one of 10. In neither company is the method for selecting the employee representative specified. Like other members of the consultative board, their period of office is three years, although, in the case of Metropolitano de Lisboa, this mandate can only be renewed up to three times.

Separate legislation, passed in 1976 and amended in 1984, which gave employees the right to elect one member of the board of directors in state-owned companies, was repealed in 1999.[3] The justification for the repeal at the time was in part that the number of state-owned companies had been greatly reduced and subsequent privatisations have further cut the number of companies owned by the state.

In the private sector, there is no effective legislation giving employees the right to be represented at board level. Legislation permits employee representation to be agreed between employers and unions, but in practice this does not happen.

[1] Based on research by Aline Conchon ETUI (March 2011) The companies with employee representatives in consultative boards at that time were 47 state-owned companies in the health sector (in accordance with art. 18 of the Decree-Law 233/2005 regulating the statutes of health state-owned companies), plus Metropolitano de Lisboa (Lisbon metro) and Comboios de Portugal (railways)

[2] List of state holdings, General Directorate of Treasury and Finance, http://www.dgtf.pt/centro-de-documentacao-e-legislacao?tabid=993 (Accessed 30.06.2020)

[3] This right was provided in Decreto-Lei n.º 260/76 and amended in Decreto-Lei n.º 29/84. It was finally abolished in Decreto Lei n.º 558/99

All Portuguese members of bodies concerned with European Works Councils or European Companies are chosen in the same way – appointed by agreement with the works council and the unions, or by the unions if there is no works council, and they represent sufficient employees.

European Works Councils

Portuguese members of the special negotiating body of an EWC are appointed by agreement between the works council and the unions, provided the unions represent at least 5% of the employees. If there are no unions, the works council chooses the Portuguese members. The unions can choose the members, provided that in total they represent at least two-thirds of the employees, or, where this cannot be shown, provided that each union involved represents at least 5% of the employees involved. Unions representing less than 5% of the employees can together choose one of their number to participate in choosing the Portuguese members of the SNB. If there is no agreement, or the unions do not represent 5% of the employees, or if a third of the employees require it, the members of the SNB are elected by the employees as a whole. Candidates must be nominated by at least 100 employees or 10% of the workforce. The law does not state whether Portuguese members of the SNB have to be employees.

The procedure is the same for members of an EWC set up under the fall back procedures in the annex to the directive.

European Company

Portuguese members of the special negotiating body of a European Company are appointed by agreement between the works council and the unions, provided the unions represent at least 5% of the employees. If there are no unions, the works council chooses the Portuguese members. The unions can choose the members, provided that in total they represent at least two-thirds of the employees, or, where this cannot be shown, provided that each union involved represents at least 5% of the employees involved. Unions representing less than 5% of the employees can together choose one of their number to participate in choosing the Portuguese members of the SNB. If there is no agreement, or the unions do not represent 5% of the employees, or if a third of the employees require it, the members of the SNB are elected by the employees as a whole. Candidates must be nominated by at least 100 employees or 10% of the workforce. The law specifically states that a union representative who is not an employee can be one of the Portuguese members of the SNB.

The procedure is the same for Portuguese members of the SE representative body, set up under the fallback arrangements in the annex to the directive, although here there is no provision for non-employees to be members.

The same rules apply to employee representatives from Portugal taking seats on the board of a company under the fallback provisions in the annex.

The health and safety representation of employees in Portugal is provided by specially elected health and safety representatives. They should meet the employer at least once a month and have the right to be consulted in writing and in advance and in good time on a range of issues at least once a year. Joint employer/employee health and safety committees can be set up where there is a collective agreement to that effect.

Basic approach at workplace level

Employers should ensure that employees work in conditions that protect their health and safety and any obligations imposed on employees do not remove the overall responsibility of the employer.

Employee health and safety bodies

Employees in Portugal have a legal right to elect employee representatives for safety and health at work (representantes dos trabalhadores para a segurança e a saúde no trabalho). It is also possible to set up joint employer/employee safety and health committees (comissões de segurança e saúde no trabalho), where a collective agreement provides for this.

Numbers and structure

There is no minimum threshold for the election of health and safety representatives. In other words, they can be elected at all companies. As the number of employees increases, the legislation provides for a larger number of health and safety representatives up to a maximum of seven (see table). However, it is important to note that these thresholds relate to companies not to workplaces. There are examples where a single company has a large number of separate workplaces but still only has the number of health and safety representatives set out in the table.

Collective agreements can, however, provide for a larger number of health and safety representatives.

The legislation also allows for the creation of joint health and safety committees, with an equal number of employee and employer representatives, but a collective agreement is needed to set them up. The employee members are the elected health and safety representatives

Research by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work in 2014 found that 24% of workplaces in Portugal had health and safety representatives and 11% had a health and safety committee. These figures are both well below the EU-28 averages, which are 58% for health and safety representatives and 21% for health and safety committees. (The results relate to workplaces with five or more employees.)[1]

Tasks and rights

At least once a year, health and safety representatives should be consulted in writing and in advance or in good time on the following issues:

• risk assessments, including for those facing special risks;
• the implementation of health and safety measures – if possible before implementation;
• technological changes which have a health and safety impact;
• health and safety training;
• the appointment of employees with particular health and safety functions;
• the appointment of those responsible for first aid, fire fight and evacuation;
• the use of external health and safety services; protective equipment; and
• a list of fatal and serious accidents (causing at least three days’ absence), together with any reports on them.

In providing this information, the employer should give the health and safety representatives access to the appropriate technical and medical reports (which should not identify individuals) as well as any external reports. The health and safety representatives should respond to the material within a period of 15 days, which may be extended if the material is complex. The initial consultation material and the responses to it should be recorded in a register held by the company.

Health and safety representatives also have the right to make their own proposals to reduce occupational risks.

Health and safety representative should also be specifically informed about temporary workers and consulted about the health effects of night working.

Frequency of meetings

Health and safety representatives have the right to meet management at least once a month to discuss issues related to health and safety.

Election and term of office

Safety representatives are elected by all employees with nominations coming from unions or at least 20 % of the workforce. The legislation contains very detailed provisions covering the election procedure.

The term of office is three years.

Resources, time off and training

Health and safety representatives have a right to five hours’ time off a month, which does not include the time spent in meetings.

Health and safety representatives should have the material and technical resources necessary to carry out their duties, as well as the right to distribute information about health and safety issues and to display material in an appropriate room.

They also have a right to training in order to carry out their functions. In some cases this training may be supported by the public authorities.

Protection against dismissal

Health and safety representatives should not be dismissed or suffer other disadvantages as a result of their duties and the Labour Code provides for specific protection against dismissal or transfer.

Other elements of workplace health and safety

All but the smallest employers are required to set up a health and safety service, which in most cases can be internal, external or a common service shared by a number of employers. However, larger organisations – those with 400 or more employees – and organisations, where at least 30 employees are exposed to higher levels of risk, must set up an internal health and safety service, using their own employees. (Activities considered to involve higher levels of risk include construction, mining and quarrying, steelmaking and working with dangerous chemicals.) Employers are able to ask the authorities for exemption from the requirement to have an internal health and safety service if the operations do not involve high risks and they can demonstrate accident rates and rates of occupational illness that are below the average for the sector in which they work.

External health and safety services must be authorised by the Authority for Working Conditions (see below), and where an employer uses an external or a communal health and safety service, he or she must designate an employee with appropriate training, to help with the monitoring and implementation of the organisation’s health and safety work.

In organisations which do not employ more than nine employees and are not high risk, the employer can ask for authorisation to undertake health and safety work in the company, provided he or she has the appropriate training. Alternatively the employer can designate an employee to do this work.

National context

The ministry responsible for health and safety at work is the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security (Ministro do Trabalho, Solidariedade e Segurança Social – MTSSS). The body responsible for ensuring compliance with health and safety law in Portugal is the Authority for Working Conditions (Autoridade para as Condições do Trabalho – ACT) which also monitors compliance with labour law more generally and has a role in resolving industrial disputes.

Trade unions and employers are able to influence health and safety policy at national level through their membership of Consultative Council for the Promotion of Health and Safety at Work (Conselho Consultivo para a Promoção da Segurança e Saúde no Trabalho). This is the consultative body for the Authority for Working Conditions. Unions and employers are also member of two tripartite bodies with a wider remit, the Economic and Social Council (Conselho Económico e Social – CES) and the Permanent Commission for Social Dialogue (Comissão Permanente de Concertação Social – CPCS).[2]

The main Portuguese health and safety legislation of 2009 refers specifically to psychosocial risks, including the obligation “to reduce psychosocial risks” to the list of ways that the employer should adapt the work to the individual (Article 15 (2)). This was further emphasised in later legislation passed in January 2014 (Lei n.º 3/2014), which requires the employer to ensure that exposure to “chemical, physical and biological agents and psychosocial risk factors do not constitute a risk to workers’ health and safety” (Article 14 (2)).

Key legislation

Law No. 102/2009 the legal arrangements for the promotion of occupational safety and health 10 September 2009 (and subsequent amendments)

Labour code 2009 (and subsequent amendments)

Lei n.º 102/2009 de 10 de Setembro: Regime jurídico da promoção da segurança e saúde no trabalho

Código do trabalho 2009

[1] Second European Survey of Enterprises on New and Emerging Risks, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2016

[2] For more information on the national context see OSH system at national level – Portugal, by José Miquel Cabeças, OSH Wiki https://oshwiki.eu/wiki/OSH_system_at_national_level_-_Portugal