Portugal: new social agreement bans controversial working time increase while adding flexibility

t signed by the Portuguese government, employers and the UGT ends a controversy on the increase of working time with no financial compensation in the private sector. This plan of adding 30 minutes to the workday jammed negotiations for several weeks. The CGTP, which left the negotiating table in November 2011, refused to take part in the last bargaining session. The “Growth, Competitiveness and Employment Compromise” adopted takes over the guidelines of the Memorandum signed by the Portuguese government and the international backer in return for 78 billion euros to support the country’s economy until 2013.