Abstract
This paper seeks to answer why Brazilian trade union movement had difficulties to dispute the parameters of the labour law reform approved in 2017. In order to do so, the research analyses the strategy of the two largest trade union confederations (CUT and FS). The first part discusses the changes in trade union confederations practices stemming from the social partnership strategy. The second part shows how these organizations have followed different strategies in the post-impeachment scenario. Considering the interaction between context and trade union strategy, it is argued that the effects of the distancing of the trade union movement from the reality of work in Brazil combined with a national context marked by political and economic instability have created great difficulties of dialogue with society on the perverse effects of the labour law reform.
Labour law reform; Trade union confederations; Social partnership; CUT; FS