The Labour Minister said in Parliament on Wednesday that the changes she was defending concerned unemployment benefits, but acknowledged that changes to unemployment benefits could also occur following discussions in social consultations.
At a hearing of the parliamentary labour committee, the minister said that in her past statements, which had been controversial, she had never defended changes to unemployment benefits, but rather defended social unemployment benefits, adding that the aim was to “try to prevent them from becoming more attractive to people who use social benefits, in particular the non-contributory regime, by sitting at home instead of working.”
Despite this, Maria do Rosario Palma Ramalho acknowledged that changes to unemployment benefits could occur after discussions at the consultation, noting that managers in particular have complaints about the lack of workers.