Since the start of the health crisis, the automotive sector has been working on agreements to preserve employment and salaries in the medium term across Brazils’ vehicle and parts production facilities. In March and April, many manufacturers made use of the ability to place staff on ‘collective holidays’, but in anticipation of any business resumption, several avenues have been explored, at a time when the steep fall in demand is already a concern for the sector. Several entities within the Metalworkers' Union (Sindicatos dos Metalúrgicos) umbrella body have, already managed to obtain collective agreements that are more favourable than the government measures on short-time working (c.f. article No. 11803).
During a virtual meeting on 21 April, a collective agreement enabled four Volkswagen production facilities in the states of São Paulo and Paraná to reduce the working day to 30%, without loss of monthly net income, for some 9,000 workers over a three-month period starting in May. The agreement intends for gross salaries to be lowered by 30%, and that compensation for this loss will be covered jointly by the government’s emergency aid proposal (up to 25%) and the company, thus enabling hourly pay to be maintained, including for temporary workers (horistas).
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