Portugal: Constitutional Court rejects 180-day trial period

In a ruling passed on 17 June, Portugal’s Constitutional Court rejected a 2019 rule change that extended initial trial periods for employees in their first job and those previously long-term unemployed from 90 to 180 days. The adoption of the reform to article 112 of the Portuguese labour code in 2019 provoked strong opposition due to its perverse effect. Employees hired on a permanent contract having previously completed several fixed-term contracts were obliged to remain on probation for 180 days. According to the court, the rule change “substantially impacts the right to job security” and creates disproportionate instability. The court’s ruling that the reform is unconstitutional is effective retroactively from 1 October 2019, when law 93/2019 of 4 September 2019 came into force. Trial period suspensions and non-hiring may be challenged. Workers will also be able to negotiate a reduction in the length of the 180-day trial period.