Workers at Caixa, Brazil's federal savings bank, rejected the bank's collective offer with 90% of the vote and approved a strike starting Thursday, September 10. The São Paulo bank workers' union released the results of the national assembly, which closed at 7 p.m. on Friday, September 4. For ordinary customers, it may mean reduced service at the bank that pays out FGTS, a mandatory severance fund, PIS wage supplements and federal social benefits.
In Belo Horizonte, rejection reached 93.5%, and the strike motion won 68.2% of votes. The national confederation Contec recorded rejection above 90% in assemblies across the country and formalized an open-ended walkout from the 10th. The core dispute is Saúde Caixa, the health plan covering employees, retirees and dependents.
Under the bank's offer, monthly premiums would cost between 2.7% and 4.5% of base pay depending on age, and each dependent would be charged between R$ 480 and R$ 660 per person. Contec says that in some cases the bill could rise by about 50% over current values. The family spending cap would grow from 7% to 9% of base pay, which by comparison equals R$ 450 a month for someone earning R$ 5,000.
Other numbers also drove the rejection: the annual cap on copayments, the share of consultations and exams paid by beneficiaries, would rise from R$ 3,600 to R$ 4,800, a one-third jump. An emergency room visit would cost R$ 150. Contec says the plan runs a deficit of about R$ 410 million, projected to reach R$ 734 million in 2026, and that Caixa offered a R$ 536 million cash injection bundled with the same package that raises premiums.
The confederation asked to pull the health plan out of the collective deal and negotiate it separately until year-end, but the bank kept its proposal. According to Contec, the changes arrived at the very end of talks, with no time to assess their impact. A few affiliated unions still vote on the offer on Tuesday, September 8.
Explainer: workers at private banks are covered by the CCT, a national convention negotiated with Fenaban, the federation that speaks for the banks. Caixa and Banco do Brasil, both state-controlled, strike their own agreements, the ACTs, voted by workers in assembly. The INPC is the inflation index used as the benchmark in these talks; matching it only keeps salaries' purchasing power flat, with no real gain.
BB and private banks seal agreements
Private bank workers approved the CCT renewal with 66.1% of valid votes after 13 rounds of talks with Fenaban. The deal grants INPC plus a real 0.6% raise in 2026 and 2027 on salaries, profit sharing and all other pay items. Signing is scheduled for September 9.
By comparison, the 0.6% amounts to about R$ 30 a month on a R$ 5,000 salary. New clauses include the right to disconnect after hours, with no obligation to answer messages from clients or managers, and limits on digital monitoring at work.
At Banco do Brasil, staff approved the ACT with 51.65% of valid votes. The package includes a R$ 3,000 payment for about 71,500 employees, tied to a collective target in the bank's 2026 debt-collection campaign and expected after fourth-quarter results, plus a R$ 360 million advance to the Cassi health plan.
The BB vote was close. In Belo Horizonte, 81% of the bank's staff rejected the offer, and the strike option beat a return to talks without a walkout by 47.1% to 43.9%. The national tally, however, sealed the agreement.
What happens before the 10th
Contec formally notified Caixa of the strike under Law 7,783 of 1989, Brazil's strike law, which requires advance notice to the employer. The São Paulo union will formally notify the bank of the assembly's decision on Tuesday, September 8. Without a new offer, the walkout starts Thursday with no end date.
"Contec, under the Strike Law and in view of the rejection of the employer's proposal by the general assemblies, announces a strike of Caixa employees starting September 10, 2026, for an indefinite period," said the confederation's president, Lourenço Prado.
Prado said negotiations remain open. "We remain at Caixa's disposal for new talks and to build a proposal that can stop the walkout," he said in a statement. The agreement in dispute covers the 2026/2028 cycle.