Labor law reform in focus: Deconstruction of social protection in times of authoritarian neoliberalism

Abstract

This paper analyzes the labor law reform and its first impacts on the labor market. The aim is to highlight it as an instrument of deconstruction of social rights whose character reiterates the authoritarian bias of the ultraneoliberal policies implemented in the country. It is argued that labor law reform is based on a tripod (flexibilization of labor relations, weakening of institutions of protection and individualization of risks) that condemns workers to greater social vulnerability. The analysis of indicators shows their failure by increasing unemployment and informality. It is argued, in the end, that the purpose of the reform is to disseminate the logic of employability and entrepreneurship to the detriment of social protection linked to wage employment.