A economia política de reforma trabalhista brasileira

Abstract

The article analyses the context and the political strategies for the approval of the 2017 Brazilian Labor Reform. The general hypothesis is that the strategies for the reform’s approval are strongly conditioned by the context. Specifically, three secondary hypotheses are proposed: i) left-wing governments act as veto players; ii) economic and political crisis favor flexibility bills; iii) the approval has a higher political cost in a context of high public pressure. In the Brazilian context, the rise of conservative and liberal guidelines legitimated the reform, softening the negative impact of public opinion. This element was boosted by the political crisis scenario and the fight against corruption narrative, which was linked mainly to the Workers’ Party and to labor-friendly ideas.