Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Portugal (Ratification: 1964)

The Committee notes the adoption of Act No. 13/2023 amending the Labour Code.

The Committee notes the Government’s response to the 2022 observations of the Confederation of Portuguese Business (CIP) and the General Workers’ Union (UGT), which concern matters examined by the Committee. It also notes the observations of the UGT and the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers – National Trade Unions (CGTP-IN) received on 11 September 2025, as well as those of the CIP communicated by the Government, which also refer to these matters, and the Government’s reply in this regard.

Article 4 of the Convention. Promotion of collective bargaining. Extension of collective agreements. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government, according to which: (1) the increase in the number of extension ordinances, begun in 2021, has continued, returning to its pre-COVID-19 pandemic level, and (2) the coverage rate of collective agreements, that is, the number of workers covered by collective agreements against the total number of workers in activity, has fallen slightly (-0.7 per cent) as compared to data from 2020 (75.9 per cent in 2023). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide up-to-date statistics on the number of extension ordinances and on the coverage rate of collective agreements in the country.

Conditions for the expiry of collective agreements. In its previous comments, the Committee observed that: (1) despite the 2019 amendments to sections 501 and 502 of the Labour Code, the provisions on the expiry of collective agreements that were denounced by the CGTP-IN (that is, the provisions terminating, after a period of three years and under certain conditions, the clause subordinating the expiry of validity of a collective agreement to another instrument of collective labour regulation) have not been abrogated, and (2) according to the CIP, Act No. 11/2021 constitutes a barrier to the adoption of new collective agreements. In this regard, the Committee requested the Government to continue tripartite dialogue on the matters raised by the CGTP-IN and the CIP within the framework of the Standing Committee on Social Dialogue (CPCS). The Committee notes the observations of the CGTP-IN and the UGT, according to which the expiry regime, which was not included in the 2023 revision of the Labour Code, could undermine collective bargaining, by allowing the employer, in fine, to terminate an agreement without the obligation of renewal, thereby placing workers in a situation of legal uncertainty. The Committee notes the CIP’s contrary view that the expiry regime answers to the phenomenon of stagnation and inaction in respect of collective agreements. The Committee observes the Government’s indication that: (1) instituting expiry of collective agreements does not call either collective bargaining or the duty of the State to promote collective bargaining into question; the interested parties conduct the process of negotiation in conformity with the principle of autonomy; (2) the Labour Code, by regulating the extension and expiry of collective agreements, following denunciation by one of the parties, requires the parties to enter into negotiations during the period necessary for revision (12 or 18 months minimum); (3) it is only after exhausting all possibilities that might lead to agreement on the revision of the agreement, including through a range of dispute resolution mechanisms, that the law provides for the expiry of the collective agreement, seeking to ensure the correct balance between the rights and the defence of the interests of the workers and employers represented at the negotiation; and (4) the Labour Code, in its sections 501 and 502, creates no new causes for the expiry of collective agreements but formalizes situations already provided for in law (including legal dissolution of the employer, final court ruling and specific contractual clause). In view of the divergent positions expressed, the Committee encourages the Government to continue and to reinforce tripartite dialogue within the CPCS, working with the CGTP-IN, the UGT and the CIP to find balanced solutions to the concerns raised regarding the expiry regime of collective agreements provided by the Labour Code. The Committee requests the Government to report any new development in this regard.

Compulsory arbitration. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to report on any new cases involving the application of sections 508(1)(c) and 509 of the Labour Code, which allow the Labour Minister to take a reasoned decision to have recourse to compulsory arbitration. It notes that the Government reports that no decision to have recourse to compulsory arbitration under the cited sections was made during the reporting period. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on any new case involving the application of the above-mentioned provisions.

Representativeness of organizations. The Committee had previously requested the Government to determine and lay down objective, precise and predetermined criteria to evaluate the representativeness and independence of employers’ and workers’ organizations forming part of the Economic and Social Council (CES) and the CPCS, and to amend section 9 of Act No. 108/91, which designates by name the trade union organizations that are to form part of the CES. The Committee again notes with regret that the Government does not provide any new information in this regard, restricting itself to indicating that the rules governing the composition of the CES have not been amended. The Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures, in consultation with the social partners, to establish objective, precise and predetermined criteria to evaluate the representativeness and independence of the employers’ and workers’ organizations forming part of the CES and the CPCS, and to amend the legislation accordingly. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any progress achieved in this regard.