Since the corporate world adopted the epithet of collaborator to replace the noun Worker, there has been an acceleration in the degradation of labor rights in a widespread manner. This idea of modernity in the use of a more empathetic language brought with it practices and uses from the last century that aim only to maximize profit, now in euros instead of the escudos of the past. The signs are everywhere, more or less visible, more or less incisive, and have their unfortunate corollary in the labor package proposal presented by the current Government.
But that’s not what we want to talk about at the moment. We are interested in highlighting one of the less visible signs that has made its way in recent years and that indicates an attempt to discredit collective bargaining. We are talking about the recent trend of companies advancing a percentage of salary increase even before the end of the negotiation process with the Workers’ Collective Representation Structures (ERCT).
In the banking sector, this has become a common practice, which is intended to be the “new normal” among companies and workers. In 2024, CGD decided to proceed with the percentage increase to the current salary table, removed from the pecuniary expression clause (where seniority payments have not been increased since 2020), in the middle of the negotiation process taking place with the unions representing the company. Remember that at that time, and given the impasse created, the negotiation process passed to the sphere of the Ministry of Labor (DGERT), going through the stages foreseen in the Labor Codeo, the most representative union, the CGD Group Companies Workers Union – STEC, resorted to Mediation in an attempt to reach an understanding regarding the salary increase. This process ended up culminating in an agreement between the company and unions for increases in the years 2024 and 2025, naturally conditioned by CGD’s initial attitude of salary advances, which, obviously, harmed all workers.
In the current year of 2026, CGD, like other entities in the banking sector, is preparing to use the same procedure and will proceed with a 2% increase in the salary scale in February. This constitutes a disdain for the way work relations are organized, a disregard for social agreement and a total disregard for collective bargaining and the parties involved in the process.
In fact, this stance, although not apparently illegal, is, at the very least, ethically reprehensible and violates the principle of good faith in negotiations provided for in Article 489 of the Labor Code. This is the company’s way of showing that, in essence, there is no need for an ERCT to exist, as they themselves, on their own initiative, update the salary table. There is no need here for us to go back and forth with negotiating rounds that lead nowhere and workers without seeing their salary updated. It is more practical and useful to have a corporate hiring instead of collective negotiation… This attitude is not innocent and contains a dangerous symbolism that should be denounced.
We know well that this is a game of shadows and that it results in little or nothing for the workers. Let’s see: CGD presented a counter-proposal to the unions for a 1.8% increase for the current year, excluding seniority payments. It ended up finding itself under pressure to move forward with a unilateral increase of 2%, to follow the line of action of the rest of the banking sector. But this percentage does not even cover last year’s 2.3% inflation. This is the only way to measure whether or not salary increases are minimally fair.
In fact, since 2022 we have been plagued by inflation rates that were no longer usual and that have crushed workers’ purchasing power. It is worth remembering that that year inflation was 7.8% and that CGD negotiated a salary increase of €76.00, which, for level 5 of the salary table (normal entry level for an assistant), corresponds to a 6.79% salary increase. Then we have the subsequent years: inflations of 4.3% in 2023 and 2.4% in 2024, which compare with salary increases of 3.2% in 2024 and 2.5% in 2025. This last year was the only one in which the increase was marginally above (0.1%) the previous year’s inflation, but which was in no way able to recover the constant loss of purchasing power.
However, we see that the company’s profits are quite robust, presenting a series of positive results with values unparalleled in CGD’s recent history. Let’s not get into the war of who has the greatest merit and the greatest contributor to the numbers that were achieved, nor is that what matters. But one thing is undeniable: CGD workers are a fundamental part of the company’s consolidated results in recent years.
And if we understand that the sole shareholder, in this case the State itself, is compensated for the profits achieved and, in its capacity, these revert to Portuguese taxpayers, it is also more than fair that CGD workers see their efforts recognized and rewarded, for the years of deprivation to which they were subjected, during the 4 years of freezing of careers and salaries (2013 to 2016), and for the dedication and commitment demonstrated during the period of recapitalization of the company. CGD (2017 to 2022).
It is therefore clear that, on the one hand, CGD’s attitude in wanting to move forward with a 2% increase is harmful, disrespecting the principle of negotiating good faith and conditioning this same process. On the other hand, the value falls well short of the possibility of increasing the salary scale, which would clearly and unequivocally signal the importance of the role of CGD workers… at CGD.
The Administration misses a good opportunity here to show CGD’s differentiating character and to fulfill the implicit duty of being an example and reference as a public bank for the valorization and dignification of workers in the banking sector.
What can never happen is that ERCTs watch the corporate takeover of labor relations. The defense of collective bargaining is the defense of workers’ rights. And the principle of prevention tells us that it is better to start protecting workers’ rights now, before having to fight for them.
The authors write without applying the new Orthographic Agreement
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