FOREIGN WORKER
| PORTUGAL |
| TRABALHADOR ESTRANGEIRO FOREIGN WORKER |
In Portugal, access to employment for aliens is conditioned both by the rules regulating their entry to and residence within national territory and also, in the case of employees, by the regulation of contracts of employment concluded with aliens (Decree-Law No. 97 of March 17, 1977). This text imposes a number of restrictions on the employment of aliens and stipulates certain formalities for contracts concluded with them. First, employers who carry on their activity within Portuguese territory and have more than five employees may not employ foreign workers in numbers exceeding 10 per cent. of their workforce. However, this percentage may be exceeded if it is justified by reasons of public interest or where specialized technical posts cannot be filled by Portuguese nationals. Also, a written contract must be concluded and lodged with the competent public authorities (unless the work involved is seasonal and is to last for no more than 30 days, in which case notification of the authorities in writing is sufficient). Once an employment relationship has been entered into, the principle of equality before the law established in the Portuguese Constitution must be observed, both in general and in employment relationships, which prohibits any form of discrimination on the grounds of nationality or country of origin. This general principle is reaffirmed in the 1977 Decree-Law, which states that it must be observed in particular with respect to pay and other economic benefits.
According to the official figures available (National Statistical Institute, 1992), there are approximately 32,100 foreign workers in Portugal, with workers from Portuguese-speaking countries representing some 50.7 per cent. and EC nationals around 25.2 per cent. However, these figures do not include foreign workers who are in Portugal in illegal circumstances, whose number (some tens of thousands) is believed to be far greater than the official figures. Most such workers come from Portuguese-speaking African countries and work in the construction industry. Exceptional measures of a temporary nature have been adopted, offering amnesty to aliens who regularize their situation (Decree-Law No. 212 of October 12, 1992). In regard to employment relationships, this text expressly provides that foreign workers and the employers concerned will not be penalized for past infringements of labour legislation provided they regularize their situation in the terms laid down.
Please note: the European industrial relations glossaries were compiled between 1991 and 2003 and are not updated. For current material see the European industrial relations dictionary.