The meeting

Prime Minister Luís Montenegro and Chega leader André Ventura will sit down on Tuesday, 16 June, for what both sides describe as a final negotiation round on the government’s labour reform proposal. The meeting comes just two days before the legislation is due for debate in parliament on 18 June. Ventura announced the encounter during a Monday press conference, repeating that his party considers the draft “a bad, negative reform – it is not good for workers, it is not good for the economy”.

Chega’s red lines

Ventura insisted on a written commitment from the government regarding a lower retirement age, specifying 65 years or 40 years of social security contributions, to be phased in by the end of the current legislature. “If the government believes we can continue to have a rising retirement age, it means we don’t share the same vision,” he said, describing the issue as “a central question and a decisive element” for Chega’s vote. Another non-negotiable demand is the restoration of 25 days of annual leave – the pre-troika standard – and an end to the restricted regime that has persisted since the financial adjustment programme. Ventura also signalled Chega would push for equal treatment of public- and private-sector workers, safeguarding of breastfeeding rights, and a bereavement leave in the event of a child’s death.

Government’s balancing act

Infrastructure and Housing Minister Miguel Pinto Luz acknowledged the difficulty of finding common ground. “Negotiating with Chega is everything but easy,” he told Antena 1’s Política com Assinatura podcast, while stressing that the government must build majorities in parliament. He then delivered a pointed comparison:

“Chega sometimes is more socialist than the PS. Chega now has attitudes and public positions on absolutely divisive issues that place it further to the left than the PS.”

Pinto Luz depicted the Socialist Party as “a zigzagging party, profoundly divided,” and claimed the PS, led by José Luís Carneiro, has “systematically placed itself outside any negotiation.” He also praised President António José Seguro as a man “who has shown balance and a willingness to bring together what is often at odds,” adding that he welcomes presidential scrutiny of the executive.

Political backdrop

The labour reform sit-down follows several recent moves that hint at an emerging pattern of government–Chega cooperation. On 12 June, the PSU (single social benefit) bill was sent to committee for ten days without a vote after an accord between PSD and Chega. That same day, two migration-related government diplomas passed with Chega’s abstention. Last September, Chega’s support allowed the passage of a revised Aliens Act, though Montenegro at the time denied any formal pact. The Socialist Party, meanwhile, confirmed to PÚBLICO that it has received no invitation to negotiate the labour package, leaving Chega as the government’s indispensable interlocutor.