Flávio Bolsonaro says he will vote to end Brazil's 6x1 work schedule ahead of Senate vote

A reversal before the Senate vote

Flávio Bolsonaro, senator for the Partido Liberal and presidential candidate, said on Tuesday, 13 October, that he will vote in favour of the constitutional amendment to end the 6x1 work schedule. He had earlier called the proposal opportunistic because it was put forward on the eve of the election. The announcement came after he visited his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving a sentence of more than 27 years under house arrest for health reasons. It was the first visit since Flávio completed a 90-day suspension imposed by Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes for breaching precautionary measures linked to a letter from the former president backing his candidacy. Speaking to reporters in Brasília, Flávio said most Brazilian workers want the change.

The majority of Brazilian workers want an end to the 6x1, so I am going to vote in favour of ending the 6x1.

What the Senate is voting on

The proposal would cut the normal weekly limit from 44 to 40 hours and provide two paid rest days without a cut in salary. The Chamber of Deputies approved it in May, and the Senate's Constitution and Justice Committee cleared it in September. It still needs a plenary vote in the upper house, which Senate president Davi Alcolumbre, an ally of Lula, has put on the agenda for Wednesday, 14 October. The text needs 49 votes from the 81 senators. Flávio proposed an alternative based on direct negotiation between employer and employee, arguing workers should have the freedom to organise their hours. He questioned how the amendment would treat people who work from home and mothers who can work only part of the day, saying their schedules would remain rigid. Even while backing the change, he said the government would "pay the bill" for its economic costs.

1. 2026-05Chamber of Deputies approves the proposal
2. 2026-09Senate Constitution and Justice Committee clears the proposal
3. Oct 13, 2026Flávio Bolsonaro says he will vote in favour
4. Oct 14, 2026Senate plenary vote scheduled
5. Oct 25, 2026Runoff election

Lula's challenge and the campaign

Lula had pressed Flávio to take a position, and last week said that once the Senate began voting "the mask will start to fall". Flávio responded that Lula was making an opportunistic move between the two rounds that he had not made during four years in government, and he did not say whether he would vote for or against. On the same day, Lula announced new measures to support individual micro-entrepreneurs at the Planalto Palace. Cleitinho Azevedo, a Republicanos politician described as governor-elect of Minas Gerais, had made his support for Flávio in the runoff conditional on the senator backing the proposal. Lula, who is seeking re-election, challenged his rival directly.

I want to see how Flávio Bolsonaro will vote, and I challenge him to vote in favour.

Stakes ahead of the runoff

The runoff takes place on 25 October. Europa Press reported that Flávio won the first round, while Diário de Notícias put Lula about 2.2 million votes behind him. A Datafolha poll published on 8 October gave Lula 48% and Flávio 52% of voting intentions. A Quaest survey found 71% of Brazilians support reducing the working week from 44 to 40 hours. Political scientist Rafael Cortez of Tendências Consultoria said the electoral risk pushed Flávio to change course.

The greater Flávio's perception of risk, the greater the chance he exposes himself.