Workers' health and the end of the 6x1 scale

Abstract

This article presents the challenges faced by workers from slavery to the present day. Exploitation, responsible for the oppression of racialized people for work, has continued to be present even after the “liberation” of people from the conditions of slavery, and labor rights and concern for workers' health have been gradual, but have not yet freed workers from imprisonment or been able to restore their health, sparking the debate on reducing working hours to provide workers with the preservation of their health and useful life outside of work. The first chapter looks at the evolution of slavery, moving on to the industrial revolution and more modern forms of service provision, such as the home office and platform work, showing that although relations are modernizing, the worker never ceases to be in a condition of exploitation. The second chapter looks at the history of workers' health care, analyzing policies, regulatory standards and the health system in Brazil, detailing its actions and the benefits it has achieved for workers' health. Finally, the third chapter looks at the possible benefits of ending the 6x1 working week, using comparative law to do so, assessing the results obtained by Belgium, France and the Netherlands, which have already adhered to reduced working hours, and identifying the challenges and alternatives to PEC 08/2025.