The complexity of Brazilian Employment Laws

It’s not a secret that hiring or firing in Brazil is not cheap!

In fact, it is common in Brazil to say that an employee costs twice his salary.

If you are doing business in Brazil, it is crucial to understand the complexities of Brazilian employment laws and their relationship with their employees. In fact, those laws are mainly protecting the employee’s interests above the ones of the employer, leading companies to seek innovative agreements for contracting workers.  

Regarding the working hours in Brazil, they should not exceed 44 hours a week and 8 hours a day. In this case, the employee would have to work 4 hours on Saturday. However, even if Brazil passed a law that allows employees to claim this extra work outside of regular office hours as overtime, lot of employees are not working extra 48 min every day in order to take Saturday off because they are afraid of being judge too negatively by their superiors.

Regarding the vacation, employees also get a vacation bonus, which is 33 percent of their monthly salary, and enjoy 41 vacation days per year (which includes public holidays).

If you are a pregnant woman in Brazil, you will see that the judicial system  has also been established in your favor. Indeed, after giving birth to your child you will receive a generous maternity leave policy including six months' paid leave. Also, with the exception of those working on trial period, don't worry because you can't be fired once the pregnancy has been found out and five months after the baby was born.

Besides, if you are working far away for your office or if you are friendly with the food (I am sure you are!) you have found in Brazil your country of predilection! Indeed, Brazilian employers are obliged to cover its employees’ transportation costs and provide a meal for those working 8 hours a day. 

You also have to remember that terminating someone’s employment in Brazil is really difficult. The employer who want to dismiss his/ her employee will have to give the proof for terminating employment, by filing an explanation’s contract with the relevant labor authority.When dismissing your employee, you must notify him one month in advance or pay him the amount equivalent to a month salary. Earlier this month a new legislation was implemented and besides the previous 30 days, now there is the addition of three days per year of work, so an employee who has worked for 20 years will receive an ‘aviso prévio’ of 90 days, which corresponds to three months of salary (which is a lot).

Finally, there is a common behavior that you need to be aware of: Brazilians love to sue their employers. It is a cultural behavior, a way to make 'easy money'. Aware of that, many companies decide to operate illegally and wait to see if the employee is going to sue them or not. In many cases, this practice is a lot cheaper than working under proper regulation. 


So,through this article, I would just advice you to be familiar with the Brazilian employment laws if you intend to do business in this country.

And remember: "Always treat your employees exactly as you want them to treat your best customers". Stephen R. Covey  

Understand the non-verbal communication of Brazilians!

In terms of body language, nobody beats the Italians in sheer number of gestures. But after visiting Brazil, I could easily claim that Brazilians are not very far behind Italians. 

Indeed, the first thing that I have notice when speaking to Brazilians was their constant hand gestures and faces expressions. I believe that, if you are a foreigner, it is necessary to understand Brazilians’ non-verbal communication because it defines their unique identity. Through this blog post, I will try to give you some tips in order to help you to get a better understanding of Brazilians’ body language.

First, let me explain you a little story about my personal experience when I went to Brazil. The first time my friend introduced me to Brazilians, I directly shacked their hands, but only a few seconds after, I have been able to see stupefaction through their faces expressions and I felt really bad. In fact, I should have touched the forearm or elbow of the person and give him a pat on the back. 

Hence, this is the reason why I think that whatever the country you are, you always have to know some tips about their body language and common gestures. Because if I was knowledgeable about Brazilians’ non-verbal communication, I would have known that Brazilians place a good deal of emphasis on touch. 

Common Brazilian workplace interactions would likely include warm handshakes of considerably longer duration than in North America and, in more informal situations, men and women will tend to greet each other with one or two kisses on the cheek or briefly embrace each other. 

Outside of the business, it is common to show more affection easily by getting really close to the person in order to show him/her all the respect that you have. 

Brazilian concepts of personal distance are considerably closer than in North America as it is approximately three to four inches closer than in the United States or Canada. Generally speaking, many Brazilians may be more expressive with their hands than most of their U.S. Also, most U.S. movement is limited to the arms and head; by contrast, movement from the torso is not uncommon in Brazil.

Also, Brazilians use many gestures not commonly known in North America. For example, one of these, the ‘figa’ (placing the thumb between the first and second fingers) is a sign of good luck in Brazil which protects against the “evil-eye”, while its use in the rest of South America is considered obscene. Furthermore, when two Brazilians are close to each other, they will show it by rubbing two index fingers together.

If you are conducting business in Brazil is has to ‘be certain to bring a plentiful supply of business cards because these are always exchanged. Also, during business meetings, a person should not be surprised to be served (often) small cups of very strong coffee.

In Brazil, there are some obscene gestures which are very different than what is expected in other countries. One example is the “O.K.” symbol one can make with their hands. It is regarded as just meaning “O.K.” in the American culture. In Brazil however, this is seen as a very obscene gesture. It is equivalent to giving the middle finger in America. This is seen as one of the rudest gestures you can make in Brazil and should always be avoided.

Besides, in term of clothing, Brazilians tend to dress more conservatively in the Southeast than elsewhere in the country. Still, as a whole, business as well as social dress is usually more formal and considerably more fashion-conscious throughout Brazil than it is in the United States. Shoes in particular receive considerable attention in Brazil, as well as accessories as a whole.  

Hopefully, you are now more informed about the non-verbal communication in Brazil! Don't hesitate to take a look at YouTube video of the Ted Talk made by Amy Cuddy, an American social psychologist, who give depth insights about the importance of body languages and "how your body language shapes who you are": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks-_Mh1QhMc.  

And, don’t forget non-verbal signals including eye contact, tone of voice, and rapidity of speech, can have a significant influence on the dynamic between two people; that is the reason why knowing how to leverage non-verbal signals effectively can be a key leadership tool.

What language to adopt in Brazil Businesses?

Brazil is the largest geographic area in South America and has a population of over 196 million people. In this country, 99% of the population is speaking Portuguese; therefore, Brazil is the most populous Portuguese-speaking country in the world by a large margin.

Being able to speak the Portuguese language is a useful tool when doing business in Brazil because it is often interpreted as a sign of sincere interest for Brazilian society. While speaking the local language is always advisable for gaining market insight and building relationships, the use of Portuguese in Brazil, by North American business people, is of particular value. Brazilians have come to expect that the majority of North American business people with whom they come in contact will speak little or no Portuguese. For this reason, it is a real asset for a foreigner to learn to speak Portuguese, as it will likely reflect a presumed commitment to Brazil that the non-Portuguese speaker would have to demonstrate in other ways.

Besides, even in business, Brazilians do not speak English properly. Indeed, in Brazil, neither Public, nor Private Schools are able to educate students in speaking, reading, listening and writing English adequately. Hence, if some Brazilians want to learn the language properly, they have to pay exuberant fees for attending a private English tutoring institute like The English Language Centre. 

And, for the few Brazilian people who are speaking English, they have to face a strong phonetic issue. Indeed, because teachers in Brazil are concentrating more on grammar than on the audible correct pronunciation of English’s words by their students, it is difficult for foreigners to understand them. Thus, when they are entering into companies, Brazilians people are mainly speaking Portuguese, and their inability to speak English is the reason why Brazilians have always been isolated from the world and Brazilian businesses are losing opportunities in other countries.

Because it is of the utmost importance you learn Portuguese as thorough as possible! I am providing you below a concise dictionary of some of the most useful Portuguese expressions to be knowledgeable about for different situations.

Now that you have some basis knowledge about Brazilian Portuguese, keep pursuing the efforts and go to take some paid language lessons or go to watch some free videos on YouTube (such as the one on the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXjkXqhH_Lc) in order to avoid being dependent on a translator if, one day, you are working in Brazil. 

'If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.' – Nelson Mandela

Brazil: A collectivist Culture!

Building strong personal relationships is essential for being successful in doing business in Brazil. 

In fact, during my trip in Brazil, I have noticed one particular characteristic of Brazilians: they give a huge importance on trustworthy and long lasting relationships. Family bonds seem to be vital for them in their daily life as they are always trying to be there for everybody and help others due strong reliance on collectivism. And, as a personal experience, it was something that I have really appreciated in Brazil; the fact that people seem to protect each other and the interests of everybody for the well-being of the entire group. 

Thus, keep in mind that Brazilians do not come straight to business, first they get to know you personally and check you out. For example, when you sit down for a meeting, allow some time for social interactions in order to show to your team that you are respecting their culture by staying relaxed and being flexible. And if you are liked and respected by them, they will feel more motivated to work for you. So, as you can imagine, it helps a lot when you are being introduced by someone respected from your future Brazilian counterparts.

Hence, as you might have understood, this concept of face-to-face is primordial within the workplace, and this is the reason when working with Brazilians you should avoid conduct meetings and negotiations over the phone or through videoconferencing, and reduce the sending of phone messages, IM, and email. Because Brazilian will want to get to know you, it implies spending time with you by talking to you in person.

Hence, I would just conclude this blog post by saying that if you are doing business in Brazil, always keep working on your ability to socialized with others, give people some freedom for enjoying their lives and don’t forget that Brazilians love to chat with colleagues, share a long meal or simply dance with guests and friends.

Sources:
Hofstede, G. The Hofstede Center. Retrieved from: https://geert-hofstede.com/brazil.html

Speed in Brazil is never good!

I wanted to start this blog post by simply telling you one key word to always keep in mind in Brazil: PATIENCE!

Brazil and the United States are extremely different in the way each conceives of time. Brazil is what Edward T. Hall termed a polychronic culture; the United States, a monochronic one. Brazil, like all polychronic cultures, performs many tasks simultaneously, time is viewed casually and the primary importance is to establish long lasting relationships. In contrary to the United States, where most businesses view personal interactions as less important than maintaining the schedule.

Therefore, if you are doing business in Brazil, you have to be conscious that Brazilians approach time in a very relaxed and flexible manner. Punctuality and precise plans are not common as Brazilians tend to live life at a slower pace, and this carries over into business which can result in negotiations taking much longer than you are used to. And it is important to not rush this process of business dealings with your Brazilian colleagues by spending the necessary time to continue building strong relationships for negotiations to be successful.

Besides, if you are doing business with Brazilians, schedule two to three weeks in advance and confirm once you arrive in Brazil. Also try to leave a few hours in between appointments in case they go on longer than anticipated. Nevertheless, you should remember that meetings are often delayed or cancelled without any prior warning; therefore, it is necessary to adjust budgets and planning accordingly.

Besides, avoid putting pressure on your counterpart(s) for final decisions and don’t show feelings of frustration or impatience as this will reflect poorly on you as an individual. Indeed, Brazilians pride themselves on their ability to be in control; therefore, learning to hide your impatience will help you to be keep maintaining a good atmosphere within the workplace.

Even during business lunch in Brazil, you will see that the word 'fast' doesn’t fit into their vocabulary: do expect a meal to take longer as it is always like a celebration.

To conclude, I just need to remind you once again that the operative mindset you need to have when starting a new business, investing in Brazil or simply doing business with Brazilians, is patience!

"Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast - you also miss the sense of where you are going and why."- Eddie Cantor 

Sources:

Hall, Edward T. The Dance of Life: The Other Dimension of Time. Garden City, NY: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1984.