The opening whistle of the football world cup, which began this Thursday (11), has already changed the dynamics within offices across the country. As several disputes occur during business hours, most workers look for alternatives to cheer for their favorite teams without leaving aside the daily responsibilities of the profession.
The tournament hosted jointly by the United States, Mexico and Canada features a calendar full of clashes from Monday to Friday. This scenario raises old questions among employees about the possibility of release, adjustments to the daily journey and what should be the correct posture in front of screens while the workday is still running.
What Brazilian legislation says about breaks during the tournament
From a legal point of view, the worker does not have the right to leave his job to watch football, as the championship dates do not constitute official holidays. The Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT) determines that the decision to stop activities belongs exclusively to the employer. In practice, the solution most adopted by the Brazilian market is the use of the time bank, allowing the employee to watch the match and compensate this period on other days of the week, avoiding deductions from the paycheck.
Although many corporations adopt a flexible stance during sports month, everything is subject to internal guidelines or agreements signed with unions. To avoid receiving warnings, the ideal is for the employee to contact the personnel department in advance and understand exactly what is permitted in the corporate environment.
The importance of aligning expectations with team managers
Career management specialist and executive director of Mendes Talent, Renato Mendes Baptista, suggests that transparent communication with management should happen before the ball rolls. He points out that the festive atmosphere has the potential to unite departments, as long as the fun does not delay ongoing projects, does not harm customer support and maintains cordiality in the office.
Having commanded people management areas for more than two decades, the executive warns that extreme attitudes tend to ruin a professional’s image. Celebrating with exaggerated volume, using offensive vocabulary against rivals and disappearing from the work table are serious failures. Furthermore, it is essential to have empathy with those colleagues who simply are not interested in sport and want to focus on their tasks.
In the view of Eliane Aere, who presides over the Brazilian Association of Human Resources in São Paulo (ABRH-SP), the world championship works as an excellent engagement tool, but requires maturity. The expert reinforces that the relaxed atmosphere does not nullify the company’s rules of conduct, and the warning signal goes off the moment an individual’s excitement begins to disrupt the concentration of the rest of the group.
Corporate strategies to keep the operation running
For the general director of Assigna, an arm of the Talenses Group, Fernando Pedro, prior organization is the key to success during this period. He notes that several firms manage to balance national passion with productivity by installing screens in common areas, stipulating specific breaks or allowing flexible schedules, ensuring that the business continues to operate without bottlenecks.
It is up to the human resources sector to publish a temporary coexistence manual, detailing what is permitted in relation to the use of team shirts, consumption of drinks and occupancy of meeting rooms. Another crucial point is to ensure that any and all gatherings are strictly voluntary, preserving the space of those who choose to follow their work routine unchanged.
A practical example of this adaptation comes from GetNinjas, a technology company located in the capital of São Paulo. The company invested in themed decoration and gave its contractors the freedom to choose between monitoring bids in person at headquarters or in a home office format, showing that flexibility generates positive results.
Essential recommendations for reconciling football with work
- Consult your organization’s conduct manual and ask your direct supervisor any questions before broadcasts begin.
- Control your emotions during dangerous moves, avoiding punching the table, shouting or parallel conversations in a high tone.
- Access messaging apps and sports portals only sporadically to check the results, without abandoning your obligations.
- Be considerate of professionals who share the same space and prefer to ignore the progress of the competition.
- Ensure that all urgent reports and demands are completed within the stipulated deadline.
- Completely ban the use of profanity, fights due to sporting rivalry and the consumption of alcoholic beverages in the corporate environment.
- As soon as the judge whistles the end of the confrontation, immediately resume concentrating on your work activities.
If managed intelligently, the international tournament period acts as a catalyst for good relations between employees. The secret to enjoying the sporting festival without tarnishing your CV lies in common sense and education, ensuring that your passion for football does not turn into a formal warning in the personnel department.
