Eletrobrás strike: 420 employees join the shutdown in Pará

Raisa Araújo – From Cenarium Magazine

BELÉM (PA) – At least 420 workers from energy company Eletronorte, part of the Eletrobrás Group, in Pará, from cities such as Belém, Santarém, Altamira, among others, joined the national strike on Monday, 11, in response to the Eletrobras System’s proposal of zero readjustment, wage cuts and withdrawal of rights. Ten other states out of the 11 that make up the electricity company joined the strike.

The base date, the period of the year set aside for salary adjustments for employees of the Eletrobras Group, was scheduled for May 1st of this year. Negotiations to renew the collective agreement have been taking place since April. The Furnas subsidiary also went on strike in all 15 states where it operates and in the Federal District. At Chesf, the head office in Recife will be on strike from Friday 14th.

The National Collective of Electricity Workers, which is in negotiations with Eletrobras, has requested mediation from the Superior Labor Court (TST) and is expected to file a strike settlement, which is a lawsuit filed with the Court to resolve labor disputes.

Essential services continue to be maintained, but operators have changed their shifts from 12 to 24 hours as a form of protest, which worries management due to the possible risks to the electricity system. The Pará Urban Utilities Union and other unions guarantee that essential services will be maintained during the strike.

What motivated the strike?

Eletrobras was privatized in June 2022, during the Bolsonaro government, which put the company’s shares up for sale and reduced the government’s stake from 65% to 42%. As a result, management ceased to be the majority shareholder, losing control of the company.

Eletrobras is currently seeking to reduce costs and bring salaries and benefits into line with private sector standards, since it inherited a bloated payroll that was incompatible with the market after privatization.

The proposed measures include salary adjustments, freezing high salaries and paying bonuses, with the aim of guaranteeing the company’s financial sustainability, operational efficiency and competitiveness. Below is a summary of the information provided by the website Poder 360, explaining Eletrobras’ proposal after privatization.

ELECTROBRÁS PROPOSALS

• Salary reduction
• Initially, a 12.5% reduction was proposed for salaries below R$16,000.
• Cut reduced to 10%.
• Topic removed from the proposal; now the possibility of individual negotiation for salary cuts above R$16,000.
  Compensation for Salary Reduction
• Compensation of 12 months of the adjusted salary difference.
• Job or salary guarantee for 24 months (until April 30, 2026).
• For managers who have already renegotiated, a guarantee of 24 months from the review.
  Freezes and bonuses
• Proposal to freeze salaries above R$6,000 until 2026.
• Wages below R$6,000 would be adjusted for inflation (100% of the IPCA).
• Payment of salary bonuses in 2024 and 2025.
  Bonus amounts
• Salaries up to R$ 6,000:
  Hired before privatization: bonus of R$ 7,000.
  Employed after privatization: R$1,000 bonus.
• Salaries from R$ 6,000 to R$ 20,000:
  Hired before privatization: bonus of R$ 9,000.
  Those hired after privatization: R$ 3,000 bonus.
  Other compensation
• In the event of termination without just cause up to April 2025, an additional severance payment equivalent to the time worked up to April 30, 2025.

Read more: Eletrobras voluntary redundancy plan has 2,500 employees signed up, says agency

Edited by Adrisa De Góes
Translated by Bruno Sena