Brazilians are paid monthly in arrears and are required by law to receive their salary by the 5th working day of the following month. That's not unusual, but the fact that they receive 13 monthly salaries per year is! The 13th salary was established in Brazil by then President João Goulart on 13th July, 1962. João Goulart was the last elected President prior to Brazil's Military Dictatorship, which started in 1964 and ceded power in 1985.
Goulart determined that every year, in December, all employees should receive a Christmas reward from their employers. This reward was aimed at promoting a more joyous Christmas for the employees and stimulating industry and business, increasing sales and consequently, tax revenue.
The calculation is quite simple, employers total their employees salary over the previous 12 months, divide it by 12 & then pay that amount as an extra salary at the end of the year. This calculation results in employees who have worked for less than a year receiving a proportional amount.
The 13th salary is divided in two installments, each one containing half of the value of the full amount to be paid. Legally, the first instalment must be paid between February, 1st and November, 30th and the second instalment by December, 20th. The reality is that most employers pay the 13th salary in two instalments on 30th November and 20th December(or the working day before if either or both of those dates are weekends).
Employees are permitted to ask for the first of their 13th salary instalments to be paid with their holidays however this is very unusual and I'm yet to find an employer that does this. Employees who were dismissed with “just cause”, forfeit any right to receive the 13th salary, whether they are dismissed in January, November or any other time. Any employee dismissed without cause is entitled to receive(among many other things) whatever proportion of the 13th salary they have earned that year.
Overtime worked, night shift allowances, danger money and regular bonuses are considered additionals and are included in the calculations for the 13th salary.
30th May, 2019
Brazilian growers have some bad news for coffee connoisseurs. In the country’s largest coffee-growing state, a sample of farms had an uneven bloom last year and suffered from searing temperatures, signalling a reduction in premium beans.
3rd March, 2019
Canadian asset manager Brookfield Asset Management Inc is looking for additional targets in Brazil after a recent wave of acquisitions, including São Paulo state water and waste management company Sabesp, a source familiar with the plans said. Having been founded in 1899 as the São Paulo Tramway, Light and Power Company, Brookfield has a long history in Brazil.
11th February, 2019
Commodities trading firm Louis Dreyfus expects faster switching between sugar and ethanol production in Brazil, with more flexible mills leading to “dramatic” price-driven shifts.
21st November, 2018
Chile and Brazil signed a free trade agreement on Wednesday that scraps red tape and tariffs between the two South American economies, in a move both governments said would give a boost to regional integration.
30th October, 2018
The main economic adviser to Brazilian President-elect Jair Bolsonaro has proposed reducing the nation’s foreign reserves to pay down public debt, the newspaper Valor Econômico reported today.
19th September, 2018
The executive from one of China’s biggest soybean crushers sat on a panel at a Kansas City agricultural exports conference, listening to an expert beside him explain why China would remain dependent on U.S. soybeans to feed its massive hog herds.
10th September, 2018
Brazilian farmers said they are seeking support to develop a soybean futures contract that would ease deals between Brazil, the world’s largest soy exporter, and top importer China at a time of heightened U.S.-China trade tensions.
16th August, 2018
A supply crunch and growing demand will keep copper on track for longer-term gains despite a trade war and emerging market tensions that are roiling prices, according to Australian producer OZ Minerals Ltd.
14th August, 2018
Last year, Brazilian farmer Gustavo Lopes sized up his sugarcane plantation against his soybean fields.
18th June, 2018
Miner Anglo American clinched hundreds of permits this month to explore for copper in a remote part of northern Brazil, Brazilian authorities said, as the growing electric vehicle market and a scarcity of shovel-ready mining projects fuels demand for the metal.