End of the 6×1 scale does not guarantee increased productivity, says expert

The proposed constitutional amendment that provides for the reduction of weekly working hours and the end of the 6×1 scale generated an intense political and economic debate in Brazil.

For André Portela, professor of Economics at FGV (Fundação Getúlio Vargas), the initiative is structuring for the job market, but presents significant risks if it is implemented homogeneously and without adequate adaptation time.

Portela highlights that the Brazilian economy is marked by great heterogeneity between sectors, regions and forms of production and distribution of goods and services.

According to him, imposing a uniform change overnight would cause "a very widespread disturbance with very large short-term effects on economic activity."

The professor also highlighted that the country faces specific challenges, such as high informality, high turnover and low productivity, which make an in-depth debate even more necessary before any structural change.

Regarding the so-called PEC Alternativa, which proposes hourly hiring and has gained significant support from the private sector, Portela assessed that the proposal presents both potential and risks.

On the one hand, it allows flexibility and opens up space for beneficial agreements between companies and workers. "Whenever you combine capital and labor, you generate new value, and this value must be shared between the parties in a negotiated manner", he stated.

On the other hand, the professor warned that the fragmentation of work relationships is a real risk, especially in such a heterogeneous economy. For him, it is essential that the conditions for representative and balanced negotiation between the parties are established.

International experience
When analyzing international examples, Portela observed that the countries that most successfully reduced working hours already showed productivity growth before the changes. Furthermore, none of them combined, in a constitution, the reduction of working hours with the establishment of a specific schedule.

"The scales were always negotiated by the parties below the law", he explained. The professor cited the case of Portugal, where the transition took almost four years, with gradual reductions. For Brazil, he argues that details such as scales and other components of the journey are left to collective negotiations, adapted to each context.

When asked about the relationship between reduced working hours and productivity, Portela was direct: "It is not the reduction of working hours and scale that increases productivity. On the contrary, increased productivity leads to reduced working hours."

According to him, the factors that boost productivity are linked to the qualifications of workers, the technology used, investments and the business environment as a whole.

The professor recognized that reducing working hours is relevant for the well-being of workers, but considered that other aspects - such as improving urban transport conditions and internal working conditions - should also be considered.

For Portela, increasing productivity is "essential to have a consistent reduction in working hours over time".

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Source: CNN