Workforce Conference: Flexible Hours – Risk or Opportunity?

On June 22, Jornal de Negócios in partnership with SISQUAL and PLMJ launches the Workforce Conference to discuss the existing mechanisms to respond to the challenges of the current times and the perspectives of change that are anticipated for the near future.

During the sessions, which will be presented in Portuguese, experts will discuss topics ranging from legislation and support to the use of platforms to face the impact of the new normal on organizations.

Theme – Flexible Hours: Risks or Opportunities?

In Portugal, there is a consensus that the dynamics of the business are undergoing a major change and that the pandemic has accelerated this entire process. Times of change are also times of uncertainty. One of the aspects with the greatest impact concerns the management of working hours, the need to adapt to new dynamics of workflows, consumption and customer service. There is also a consensus that the home office is here to stay, which also introduces challenges in terms of organizing working hours. On the worker’s side, it is essential to ensure predictability and the possibility of reconciling work with the needs arising from family life.

In this scenario, the question arises whether the instruments available in current Portuguese legislation are sufficient and adequate to respond to these problems. It is equally important to reflect on the adequacy of the social dialogue model that precedes the legislative process to respond to the challenges in question.

The Government of Portugal has recently published the Green Book on the Future of Work, which serves as the basis for the preparation of a set of legislative amendments on some of these themes, and there are already legislative proposals on some of these themes.

On June 22nd, we will discuss the existing mechanisms to respond to the challenges of current times and the perspectives for a change shortly.