MP prohibits the collection of union contributions unauthorized by the employee

The Provisional Measure (MP) 873 was published in the Extra Edition of the Federal Official Gazette, of Mar-01-2019, amending the articles 545, 578, 579 and 582 and includes article 579-A, all from the Labor Laws (CLT), approved by Decree-Law 5452/1943, to provide for the collection of union contribution, reaffirming its optional collection and emphasizing the requirement for authorization of the employee.

Enlargement of the union contribution concept, including any contribution regardless of its nomenclature - trade union, welfare, confederation, negotiation, union dues or any other that the union manages.

Requirement of a prior, written, voluntary and individual authorization of the employee overruling the clause present in a collective agreement or agreement that establishes its obligation, even if approved at the meeting by the union of the category, so that payment of the union contribution occurs.

Prohibition for tacit authorization or replacement of legal requirements (prior and express individual authorization) by rules of opposition application. This was usually due to the employee's omission, or the need for a letter of opposition, so now only employees who voluntarily, expressly, and individually authorize will contribute, regardless of any provision in a normative clause.

Permission to collect confederation contributions, union dues and those established by union statute and collective bargaining, only for union members. As already consolidated case law on the subject, both in the STF binding summons 40 and in Normative Precedent 119 of TST, the text of the MP served to bring greater legal certainty by positivizing this issue in the CLT.

Collection of the union contribution through a bank slip, or its equivalent electronic, directly sent to the residence of the employee that authorizes the discount, or, in the event of impossibility of receipt, to the company’s headquarters, discontinuing the discount at the employer’s payroll.

Determination of the parameters to calculate the union contribution, clarifying what would be considered as "a working day", removing doubts about the amount to be collected.

We emphasize, therefore, that employers should not provide any discounts for union contribution in payroll as of March 2019, as provided for in Provisional Measure 873, aforementioned in item "e".