Lisbon, March 24, 2026 (Lusa) - The Portuguese government is meeting again on Tuesday with the general workers’ union (the UGT) and business confederations regarding changes to the draft labour law, in a meeting that could be decisive in determining the possibility of agreement among the three partners.
The meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m at the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity, and Social Security in Lisbon. It follows the resumption of negotiations last week between the government, UGT, and employer confederations, after an appeal by the president of Portugal following a "breakdown" previously announced by the employers.
At the end of last Monday's meeting, which lasted about four hours, both the UGT and the 'bosses' highlighted a "different attitude" and "greater availability" to reach an agreement.
The minister of Labour Rosário Palma Ramalho also indicated that there are points of convergence and that the proposal under discussion "is quite different from the initial proposal," without detailing specific advances.
The government has held several technical meetings with the four employer confederations (Portuguese Business Confederation (CIP), Portuguese Confederation of Trade and Services (CCP), Portuguese Tourism Confederation (CTP), and Portuguese Farmers’ Confederation (CAP)) and the UGT to negotiate more than 100 labour law changes. The General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP), which also holds a seat in this body and presented a counter-proposal in a bilateral meeting on 3 September, has not been invited to the meetings. The executive argues that the union sidelined itself from the start by asking for the proposal to be withdrawn from discussion.
Since the draft reform titled "Work XXI" was presented by the government on 24 July 2025, more than 50 meetings (plenary, trilateral, and bilateral) have been held. It has been possible to reach a consensus on more than 76 articles, 24 of which were proposed by the UGT, according to a source close to the process.
Restrictions on outsourcing, the return of individual time off in lieu, contract durations, and reinstatement in cases of unfair dismissal, identified as "red line" measures for the UGT, are among the changes still at the centre of the discussion for an eventual consensus.
According to the Expresso newspaper, Tuesday's meeting could be decisive in seeing if an agreement is possible, as the government intends to conclude negotiations before Easter to submit the proposal, with or without an agreement, to parliament by the end of April.
Nonetheless, the final decision must pass through a plenary meeting of the unions, employers and the government, and the secretary-general of the UGT has emphasised that ratification of any decision by the union must be taken to the national secretariat.
After meeting with union leaders on Friday, the UGT decided to schedule a national secretariat meeting for 9 April, a source from the union confirmed to Lusa.
Even if no agreement is reached among the unions, employers and the government, the minister of Labour has guaranteed that the government will "take advantage of the contributions" from the partners and civil society that the executive considers relevant to the draft bill.
JMF/RYOL // AYLS
Lusa
