Wholesaler Roldão was ordered by the Labor Court to indemnify a service provider who had his motorcycle stolen from the parking lot of one of the brand supermarkets while working on site.

The company will share the costs of the award with cooperative Ação de Trabalho, which hired the professional.
The ruling was made by the TRT-2 (São Paulo Appellate Labor Court) on September 9, and reversed Judge Samuel Batista de Sá’s decision, for which the worker’s claim for compensation should not be judged by the labor court.

For the judge, the theft of an object should be examined by a court of general jurisdiction. Most court of appeals judges in the 17th panel, however, they understood that if the worker was providing services at the time the theft occurred, it is incumbent upon the Labor judge to examine the claim.

Sá, then, deemed the service provider’s claim groundless. In the appellate court, by majority vote, the 17th TRT-2 panel understood that the retailer and the cooperative were responsible for the safety of the worker’s motorcycle.
Now, the parties subject to adverse judgment shall reimburse the worker for the vehicle’s list price.

For Sólon Cunha, professor at FGV Law School, “the matter is so controversial that one of the court of appeals judges voted against such claim. This should not be a Labor Court jurisdiction, although some courts understand that theft is a result of labor relations”.

According to him, the defeated parties can file an appeal to the TST (Tribunal Superior do Trabalho) on the grounds that the Labor Court has no jurisdiction over this case.
“It’s a very viable appeal, however, the total number of appeals for reconsideration to the TST is less than 1%. The vice president of TRT-2 would have to approve the appeal and submit the proceedings to Brasilia”.

The outsourced worker was performing his work and suffered damage, one can understand that the jurisdiction of the case is that of the Labor Court. The court, based on the Civil Code, understood that this is a matter of joint and several liability, that is, shared by the supermarket and the cooperative. They will share the costs, ” said Caio Madureira of Tortoro, Madureira & Ragazzi.

According to him, the case may be a precedent for similar situations.
When contacted, Roldão did not make any statements. Our reporter was unable to contact the cooperative.