ILO keeps Brazil on list of countries suspected of labor rights violations

The UN’s International Labor Organization (ILO) has kept Brazil on its list of countries suspected of violating labor rights for a second consecutive year.

Along with Brazil, 23 others countries are on the ILO list, including Uruguay, Bolivia, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador, according to state news agency Agência Brasil.

Brazil was included in the list due to the effects of a labor reform introduced at the end of 2017 by then president Michel Temer.

The controversial reform came after Brazil suffered one of the worst recessions in its history in 2015-16. The ILO sees the reform as potentially violating international labor conventions.

Workers’ representatives pressured for the inclusion of Brazil on the so-called dirty list since the new labor rules came into effect.

The main feature of the reform is a significant reduction in the power of labor unions, prioritizing agreements between individual workers and employers.

Brazil’s business leaders have spoken out against the ILO decision.

“The labor reform encourages workers and employers to hold dialogue, valuing collective bargaining. Therefore, the inclusion of Brazil on the list of 24 countries to be analyzed by the ILO Committee on the Application of Standards does not have any legal or technical basis,” various business groups said a joint statement.