On 10 November 1937, Brazils reigning president Getúlio Vargas seized emergency powers and promulgated a new constitution. The 'new state', Estado Novo, professed its dedication to corporatist doctrines.
The articles dealing with labour in the new constitution were copied literally from the fascist Italian Carta del Lavoro of 1927. The constitution termed strikes 'antisocial' and 'incompatible with the higher interests of national production' and therefore prohibited them. The Ministry of Labour imposed elaborate controls over unions. The state also charged unions with providing a wide range of social services for their members: employment agencies, consumer cooperatves, legal and medical assistance, among others.
Read more? Michael M. Hall, 'Labor and the law in Brazil' in: The Rise and Development of Collective Labour Law (Bern 2000)