Neoliberalização do direito do trabalho? Homologação do acordo extrajudicial trabalhista como elemento de corrosão do direito de acesso à justiça e indicador de precarização social do trabalho no Tribunal Regional do Trabalho da 5ª Região

Abstract

This research analyzes the impacts of the institute of Homologation of Extrajudicial Settlements, introduced by Law No. 13,467/2017, on access to justice and labor relations within the scope of the Regional Labor Court of the 5th Region (TRT5), covering the period from 2010 to 2024. The examination was supported by a theoretical framework that defines neoliberalism as a normative rationality and a political project for the restoration of class power. The research advances to investigate whether extrajudicial settlements have become an indicator of the social precarization of labor, supporting the thesis that the Labor Reform imposed obstacles to litigation, initially through restrictions on free justice and the collection of succumbency fees, forcing workers to renounce their right to sue and accept disadvantageous agreements to guarantee funds of a subsistence nature. Drawing on duly examined sociological concepts, the research situated the homologation of extrajudicial settlements as a seventh type of social precarization of labor, characterized by submission to “coercive harmony” and the institutionalization of sham litigation, in which the payment of undisputed amounts is used by capital as a bargaining chip to obtain the general and unrestricted discharge of the employment contract. The research conducts a historical investigation of the institute of conciliation, aiming to demonstrate that its purpose is not to promote social peace, but to guarantee celerity to the judiciary and, within the labor process, to reinforce labor precarization. The data presented reveal significant growth in voluntary jurisdiction procedures, predominantly in sectors with high labor turnover, distorting the essence of the legal transaction. A massive adherence to the homologation of agreements is observed, noting an omission by the judiciary in setting aside the general discharge clause in sentences rendered in HTE proceedings, corroborating the legal certainty desired by the employer class.