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Debate on the End of the 6×1 Scale Exposes Structural Barriers of the Brazilian Economy, Such as Low Productivity, Shortage of Formal Labor, and Gaps in Digital Labor Regulation, as Well as Reviving Discussions on the Transition from Bolsa Família to Registered Employment.
The Minister of the Superior Labor Court (TST) Alexandre Luiz Ramos stated in Salamanca that the end of the 6×1 scale is a welcome measure from a humanitarian perspective, but conditioned the advancement of the debate to structural barriers in Brazil, such as the shortage of formal labor and low productivity.
The statement was made during the II Ibero-Brazilian Congress on Global Governance, held at the University of Salamanca from February 23 to 25, 2026, in a schedule that discussed jurisdiction and legal security amid economic and technological changes.
In the minister’s assessment, reducing work hours opens up space for leisure, family interaction, re-qualification, and personal development, points that, according to him, resonate with a healthier working environment and greater routine predictability.
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At the same time, Ramos noted a scenario of labor shortages in the formal market and reported that this issue is noticeable in different regions and sectors, summarizing the diagnosis with the expression “labor shortage”.
In one of his more direct statements, the minister declared: “Wherever one goes in Brazil, a labor shortage is identified,” defending that the discussion around working hours needs to consider practical impacts on companies’ hiring capacities.
Reduced Working Hours and Productivity at the Center of the Impasse
For Ramos, Brazil’s low productivity appears as an additional obstacle when discussing reducing working days without compromising economic activity, especially in segments that already operate with a lean workforce and high employee turnover.
The minister maintained that lower productivity should not be attributed to the worker as an individual failure, but rather to structural limitations of qualification and training, which would impact comparison with international standards cited by him in the debate.
In this context, Ramos stated: “Reducing the weekly working hours is good from a humanitarian perspective, but we also need to think about how to compensate for this labor shortage and the low productivity of Brazilian workers compared to international standards.”
The position presented at the congress comes as the 6×1 scale remains on the radar of public and legislative discussions in Brazil, driven by mobilizations and various proposals in progress, still without consensus on format and implementation.
Bolsa Família and Transition to Formal Employment
Addressing social policies, Ramos said that income transfer programs, such as Bolsa Família, are relevant and indispensable, but can produce side effects when there are no instruments that facilitate the transition from benefits to formal employment.
In the minister’s view, part of the debate should focus on transition mechanisms that avoid abrupt breaks in family income, reducing the risk that returning to registered employment represents an immediate loss of protection.
As an alternative, he advocated for temporarily reconciling the receipt of Bolsa Família with formalization, during an adjustment period that would function as a “gradual weaning” until full reintegration into the formal market.
The proposal was cited by Ramos as a way to provide predictability to the worker and to increase the adoption of formal ties, while preserving, for a defined interval, the existing social safety net.
Digital Work and Gaps in Brazilian Legislation
Another focus of the minister’s speech was the need for the Labor Justice to expand its view beyond classic subordinate employment governed by the CLT, covering professional relationships that have consolidated in the digital environment and in platform-mediated models.
Ramos indicated that platform work is not restricted to activities based on geolocation, such as app-based transportation and deliveries, but also includes services provided via the internet in areas such as design, translation, consulting, and architecture.
According to him, the problem is the lack of a specific legal framework in Brazil to regulate these relationships, a situation that fuels legal insecurity and pressures the judiciary to decide case by case, without a modern normative reference.
While advocating for institutional openness to these modalities, the minister emphasized that this would not mean automatically applying the CLT, which was drawn up in a different socioeconomic reality, but rather discussing a regulatory model that coexists with the current regime.
Ramos also stated that the issue of labor reform remains sensitive in the National Congress, a factor that, in his view, hampers the construction of an updated framework for digital contracts and for new forms of service provision in 2026.
Congress in Salamanca Discussed Global Governance and Legal Security
The II Ibero-Brazilian Congress on Global Governance was presented by the organizers as a space for debate on jurisdiction and legal security, bringing together authorities and specialists to discuss the institutional impacts of contemporary transformations.
At the event, the discussion about the 6×1 scale and the digital labor agenda appeared connected to a larger backdrop, where technological changes and economic challenges amplify pressures for normative predictability and stable judicial decisions.
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