Portugal: Exceptional regime of reorganization of the workplace and reactivation of the exceptional aid for family

1. Exceptional regime of adaptation of the working conditions

Until the end of March 2022,  in workplaces with 50 or more employees, companes in mainland Portugal shall determine the entry and exit hours from such workplace in a lagged manner. Employers must guarantee a breakof at least 30 minutes and  up to 1 hour between groups of employees regrading entry and exit hours.

In addition to this, employers must adopt measures to guarantee the physical distance and protection of employees.

The remaining rules and procedures for the implementation of the delayed entry and exit from the workplaces remain unchanged (for further info on this click here). 

2. Absences during the suspension of in-person curricular and non-curricular activities

During the period of suspension of the in-person curricular and non-curricular activities between 2^nd and 9^th of January 2022, the employee’s absences will be subject to the following regime:

• Absences between 2^nd and 9^th January, 2022, due to immediate and necessary assistance to a child under the age of 12, or with a disability or chronical illness regardless of their age, are considered justified;
• Absent employees shall not be affected on any of their rights, with the exception of  the loss of remuneration;
• Employees must communicate their absences with a minimum notice of 5 days.

3. Reactivation of the exceptional aid for families

Employees who have to be absent from work during the period of suspension of in-person curricular and non-curricular activities between 2^nd and 9^th of January, 2022, will once again be eligible to receive an exceptional aid for families, proportional to the time of absence.

• If one of the parents is in telework, the other parent is still eligible for the exceptional aid;
• Employees who are eligible for telework can choose between teleworking or the exceptional aid, even if the other parent is teleworking;
• For the majority of employees, the aid will correspond to 2/3 (66%) of the base remuneration declared in October 2021 and proportional to the time of absence, which shall be paid equally between the employer and Social Security, with a minimum limit of € 705.00 and a maximum limit of € 2,115.00;
• If the employee is part of a single parent household or both parents receive the aid in a weekly and alternative manner, Social Security shall increase its part of the amount to ensure 100% of the employee’s proportional remuneration, with the minimum limit of €705,00 and the maximum limit of € 2,115.00;
• Employers are exempt from paying their share of the social security contribution regarding the part of the aid covered by Social Security;
• The aid cannot be received simultaneously by both parents and is not cumulative with other exceptional or extraordinary aids.

Employees who chose between teleworking and receiving the exceptional aid must send a written communication to the employer, under word of honour, with a minimum notice of 3 days.

For the aid to be increased to 100%, employees must declare, under word of honour, that they are a part of a single parent household or that both parents shall receive the aid in an alternative manner.

The remaining rules regarding the procedure to be followed by and employees as well as the legal framework in terms of Social Security contributions remain unchanged (for further info on this click here).

4. Exceptional and mandatory reinstatement of the teleworking regime

The Council of Ministers’ Resolution no 157/2021 also reinstated, in mainland Portugal, the mandatory teleworking regime in the two forms that had been previously in place.

As such, between 2^nd and 9^th January 2022, teleworking shall be mandatory for the majority of employees, provided that their position is compatible with such regime. On the other hand, the mandatory teleworking shall continue to be mandatory for specific groups of employees until the end of March 2022, non-withstanding any possible amendments to the law.

The rules and procedure of implementation of these forms remain unchanged and can be found here.