Brazil’s Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Luiz Marinho, visited PSI’s global headquarters to celebrate the government’s intention to implement Convention 151, with a view to guaranteeing collective bargaining in the public sector — an historic step forward for the country’s workers.

The meeting was attended by two other ministers, senior officials from Brazilian government departments, and the heads of PSI Brazil affiliates CSPB and FESSERGS. Juneia Batista (SINDSEP Brasil) represented CONTRAM-PSI - the confederation of municipal workers of the Americas.

João Domingos, President of CSPB — the Confederação dos Servidores Públicos do Brasil - said public service unions were working to ensure the bill would pass Congress. He said it remained important that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva be re-elected to safeguard the much-fought-for progress.

PSI General Secretary, Daniel Bertossa, thanked the affiliates and the Minister for keeping up the pressure and noted the Brazilian government has also proposed to reduce the standard work week from 6 to 5 days. He highlighted the global role the Lula government's plays in providing a successful alternative to Trump authoritarian imperialism - and said Lula's popularity showed the way for other progressive governments.

The meeting brought together senior figures in Brazilian labour affairs, including José López Feijóo, Secretary of Labour Relations at the Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services - and former secretary-general of CUT trade union confederation-; Maíra Lacerda, Head of the Special Advisory Office for International Affairs at Brazil’s Ministry of Labour and Employment; and Superior Labour Court Ministers Delaíde Miranda Arantes and Augusto César Leite de Carvalho.

PSI stands with Brazil’s affiliates and public sector workers to complete what João Domingos called ‘a 50 year battle’ for the right to organise and collectively bargain as public sector workers in Brazil.

Lula signed and requested that Brazil’s Congress ratify ILO Conventions 151 and 158 in 2008. 18 years later, and we are closer than ever to seeing this realised in the public sector for workers at federal, state and municipal levels.

PSI General Secretary Bertossa conveyed that across the world, public sector workers face some of the harshest restrictions on that right. The International Court of Justice has now recognised the right to strike as integral to freedom of association. Yet we continue to face more limits on our ability to exercise it than any other group of workers. As these reforms go before a National Congress controlled by the right, unity across Brazilian society and international solidarity is more important than ever