Portugal, no country for old workers : article 348.º portuguese labour code and the contribution of the EU law and the european social charter for then of workers reaching the age of 70

This paper argues in favour of a restrictive interpretation of Article 348 of the Portuguese Labour Code, namely in the differentiated treatment, enshrined therein, concerning the conversion, by force of law, of an open-ended into a fixedterm employment contract; the period of notice and the exclusion of a compensation for the termination (expiry) the contract, of workers who reach the age of 70. Particular attention is paid to the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union and the “jurisprudence” of the European Committee of Social Rights, which authoritatively and respectively monitor compliance with the EU Law and the European Charter of Social Rights. The findings challenge domestic courts to (i) restrictively interpret the Article’s personal scope, as being limited to workers who have reached the age of 70 without having retired, but qualify to an retirement pension; (ii) refrain from considering valid a (fixed) notice period for termination of the contract in cases of initiative of the employer setting aside the sixty days limit in cases of contracts to exceed the ten-year period; (iii) and, finally and foremost, rule out the exclusion of the right for compensation, awarded to other workers when their fixedterm employment contract expires on the employer's initiative. ; Este artigo defende a interpretação restritiva do artigo 348.º do Código do Trabalho Português, designadamente no tratamento diferenciado dos trabalhadores que atingem os 70 anos de idade, no que respeita à conversão, por força da lei, do contrato de trabalho a tempo indeterminado em contrato a termo; ao período de pré-aviso e à dispensa de pagamento de compensação pela caducidade do contrato. É realçado o papel da jurisprudência do TJUE e da "jurisprudência" do Comité Europeu dos Direitos Sociais, que monitorizam, respetivamente, o cumprimento do Direito da União e da Carta Europeia dos Direitos Sociais. Os tribunais nacionais são convocados a (i) interpretar restritamente o n.º 3 do artigo 348.º, quanto ao seu âmbito ...