Centre for Labour Relations

The Centre for Labour Relations (CRL) is a tripartite body with technical functions and was established by a Social Concertation Agreement entered into by the government and the social partners in 2012, with administrative autonomy and legal personality, which operates under the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security.

The CRL is a deeply innovative body of Public Administration, first and foremost by means of its operating model: it is a tripartite body made up of representatives of the Government and Social Partners in a strictly balanced manner, four representatives of the Government, four representatives of the Confederations of Employers and four representatives of the Trade Union Confederations.

The CRL Chairperson is appointed annually from among the representatives of the three sectors, under a rotation principle.

The CRL was established to support collective bargaining and monitor employment and professional training developments, in order to achieve a comprehensive perspective of the labour market. Our purpose is to improve the quality of the data and information available, making it more transparent, and to deepen the study on issues that are of interest to all stakeholders involved in labour market and social dialogue affairs: social partners, companies, workers, scientific community and public administration.

The CRL does not have social concertation functions, but rather intends to provide information, promote discussions and create conditions to improve and expand collective bargaining in Portugal.