AFLEX stands for Associação de Funcionários Locais no EXterior (the Association of Local Staff Abroad). It is the first international association created to represent Brazil’s Locally Employed Staff (known in Portuguese as Contratados Locais – CLs). These professionals are hired by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ministério das Relações Exteriores – MRE) to work in Brazil’s embassies, consulates, and diplomatic missions around the world.
Our goal is to promote fair, consistent, and respectful working conditions for all Local Employed Staff – LES, recognizing the essential contributions we make to Brazil’s international presence. We believe that dignity, legal certainty, and professional recognition are not privileges, but fundamental rights.
With the aim of promoting dialogue and advocating for constructive change, AFLEX seeks to strengthen the Ministry’s institutional integrity and ensure that the values Brazil upholds on the global stage are reflected in the way it treats its own professionals abroad.
Origin & Relevance
Created by employees in 2011, AFLEX emerged as a direct response to decades of systemic neglect and injustice. For too long, Brazil’s LES the skilled professionals who support the country’s diplomatic presence across the globe, have been marginalised. Despite playing a vital role in advancing Brazil’s international diplomatic mission, we have been conveniently trapped in a legal limbo that denies us fair pay, job security, professional development and the fundamental rights guaranteed to civil servants.
This marginalisation is not the result of oversight. It is the outcome of a calculated silence, one that has oppressed a loyal and crucial workforce while absolving the Government of its responsibilities. AFLEX was created to break that silence, to defend our dignity and to remind those in power that justice delayed is justice denied.
Today, AFLEX stands as a formal recognition of a collective commitment aiming to secure lawful treatment, transparency and institutional fairness. It exists to ensure that LES, the professionals who work in direct support of Brazil’s diplomatic operations abroad, are no longer rendered invisible in public discourse or policy.
As public servants entrusted with responsibilities on behalf of the Brazilian State, our professional status must be recognised in a manner that upholds the principles enshrined in the Federal Constitution, aligns with established international labour standards, including those set and promoted by the International Labour Organization (ILO), and reflects the very values of equity, dignity, and human rights that Brazil publicly advocates in its foreign policy and multilateral engagements.
However, invisibility and being undervalued remains our imposed condition. We perform essential public duties that ensure the daily functioning of Brazil’s diplomatic missions abroad, but despite our critical role, successive governments have deliberately chosen to exclude us from the essential employment rights, career progression opportunities and protections afforded to civil servants.
This contradiction cannot be ignored. We are paid with public money to represent Brazil. We uphold its values, protect its interests and support its international presence. AFLEX exists to hold all stakeholders accountable, particularly those entrusted with authority and decision-making power, based on the principle that public service must be accompanied by rights, respect and visibility. Not silence. Not mistreatment. Not invisibility and exploitation as has been our reality for far too long.
AFLEX‘s mission is to change this reality. To give a voice to the voiceless. To unify Brazil’s LES under a shared and urgent purpose: justice, recognition and equality.
In doing so, AFLEX is not merely advocating for fair treatment. By demanding respect and visibility, it is setting a precedent. It is proving what becomes possible when workers organise, speak out and stand together. Our movement has already inspired others to form similar associations across different missions around the world. The message is clear and unwavering: injustice anywhere must be met with solidarity everywhere.
More than just an association, AFLEX embodies a necessary and urgent call to action. It is a living, legal and moral reminder that no country’s foreign policy or diplomatic strategy can be sustainably executed while systematically ignoring or devaluing the professionals who make it operational on the ground.
This is not a plea for special treatment, it is a rightful and long-overdue assertion of the fundamental employment protections and basic human rights that should have been upheld from the beginning, in accordance with Brazil’s own constitutional principles of equality, justice and institutional integrity.
And with AFLEX, we are no longer invisible.
What We Stand For
We stand for what is fair and just: dignity, respect, and proper recognition for all LES, wherever we serve. Our work is not secondary, it is fundamental to the daily functioning, continuity, and credibility of Brazil’s diplomatic presence. Yet despite our essential role, we continue to face systemic inequality and lack the protections routinely granted to others in public service.
At the heart of our mission is a simple conviction: no Brazilian citizen, or any professional serving the Brazilian Government abroad, should be treated as a second-class worker. Everyone representing Brazil deserves working conditions that reflect the value of their service and uphold the principles of equity and human dignity.
The current Proposed Constitutional Amendment (PEC) 32/2020 presents a rare and timely opportunity to confront these long-standing injustices. But meaningful recognition must go beyond symbolism.
The principles we uphold are not abstract ideals; they are grounded in daily realities and systemic challenges we have faced for decades. Whether through PEC 32 or any other definitive and lawful measure, the inclusion of LES in a fair and modern legal framework will mark a pivotal step in Brazil’s democratic and diplomatic evolution, one that affirms the nation’s commitment to dignity, justice, and equal respect for all who serve in its name, both at home and abroad.
We Work Together To:
1) Ensure a Fair and Safe Work Environment
Guaranteeing all LES a workplace built on respect and dignity, free from harassment, intimidation or abuse of power.
2) Define Clear and Transparent Employment Rights
Is essential to end the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ “à la carte” approach to employment laws, where the government selectively applies whichever local labour laws are most convenient in each country and/or circumstance, often to minimise its responsibilities and offer only the bare minimum to its own LES.
This practice results in inconsistent protections and undermines the dignity of those who serve Brazil abroad. LES must be given the option to be brought under the protection of Brazil’s Consolidation of Labour Laws (CLT), guaranteeing full constitutional rights, legal certainty, and equal treatment in line with the standards afforded to any Brazilian worker, regardless of where they are stationed.
3) Implement an Autonomous Presidential Decree to Resolve the Legal Limbo
Addressing the legal uncertainty surrounding LES is essential to strengthening Brazil’s commitment to fairness and institutional coherence.
At present, we remain in a state of legal limbo, an extended period in which our employment rights lack clarity and consistent application. This often results from the selective use of local labour laws in various host countries, a practice that inadvertently limit protections and create unequal treatment among professionals serving the same national mission.
Establishing a clear and unified legal framework would not only provide greater legal certainty and security for us but also reinforce the values of transparency, dignity and justice that Brazil promotes in its international relations.
A presidential decree formulated through close consultation with Locally Employed Staff (LES) representatives, the President’s International Affairs Advisory Office and the Senators who first recognised the structural injustices embedded in the current system, would establish a constitutionally robust and administratively sound course of action.
If grounded in the principles outlined in the legislative initiatives specifically introduced to address this longstanding uncertainty (like the Senate Law Projects 143/2013, 246/2013, and 117/2020), a Presidential Decree would reaffirm Brazil’s commitment to legal coherence and social justice. It would restore to LES the fundamental right to opt into the protections of Brazilian national labour law, ensuring fairer and more consistent treatment across the country’s global diplomatic network.
This legislative alignment would not only correct longstanding legal ambiguity but also serve as a progressive step toward equity, ending decades of systemic disparity and harmonising Brazil’s diplomatic employment practices with both domestic constitutional mandates and international labour standards.
4) Establish a Fair and Structured Career System
It is crucial to establish and institutionalize a formal and transparent system to govern the remuneration and career development of Locally Employed Staff (LES). Such a system should include mandatory annual salary reviews, with adjustments based on inflation and the local cost of living at each diplomatic post, thereby ensuring fair and consistent compensation practices across Brazil’s global missions.
Equally vital is the integration of a clear and accessible route for professional growth, especially for CLs, where formal career progression structures are entirely absent.
In these overlooked contexts, even modest incentives such as expanded responsibilities, symbolic recognition, or development opportunities tied to the role, can have a profound impact. Such initiatives would not only honour years of dedicated service but would also foster motivation, retention, and a deeper sense of purpose within the workforce.
Institutional inclusion, in this context, requires the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to formally recognise the value and rights of all personnel, particularly LES, by adopting equitable and structured employment practices. These should encompass salary scales that reflect qualifications and experience, regular cost-of-living adjustments, and clearly defined pathways for professional development.
By aligning with best practices already implemented by international organisations such as United Nations agencies, which could in principle exemplify these inclusive standards, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would affirm that fair compensation and career growth are not optional and exclusive benefits of a part of its employees, but fundamental legal, ethical, and institutional responsibilities essential to a modern, just, and representative diplomatic service.
5) Guarantee LES are recognized as pillars of Brazil’s presence abroad.
It is time for Brazil’s public discourse and foreign policy frameworks to reflect our vital contributions as Locally Employed Staff (LES) within its diplomatic missions. In line with modern standards of fair treatment for all individuals who advance a nation’s interests, we must be recognized as integral contributors to Brazil’s global presence.
Regardless of position or rank, our professional service ensures the continuity, credibility and effectiveness of Brazilian diplomacy abroad. Acknowledging this reality not only upholds principles of fairness but also strengthens Brazil’s image as a responsible and equitable actor on the international stage.
Justice begins with recognition. The time has come to end selective treatment and to honour the vital role of every Locally Employed Staff member, who form the very foundation and the majority of Brazil’s workforce abroad (as per the 2024 Management Report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, page 232, table 6). It is these professionals who sustain the daily functioning of embassies and consulates, representing the country in practice as much as its diplomats and administrative officials do in principle.
Brazil cannot project dignity and credibility on the world stage while disregarding the employment rights of those who make its global presence possible.
Challenges We Face
Locally Employed Staff (LES) serving in Brazil’s diplomatic missions around the world continue to be undervalued, underpaid and structurally unprotected despite being vital to the functioning and credibility of Brazil’s global presence.
Brazilian civil servants posted abroad temporarily (diplomats and other administrative officials employed in Brazil) benefit from a range of entitlements designed to support their service, including rent-free accommodation in secure and exclusive residential areas, salaries adjusted to local cost of living, comprehensive private healthcare, relocation packages and opportunities for professional development during working hours.
By contrast, LES are systematically excluded from these same benefits and protections, despite working alongside their colleagues in support of Brazil’s diplomatic missions. We receive no housing assistance, no salary alignment with local economic conditions, and no institutional support for private healthcare, relocation or career development. This stark disparity highlights not only unequal treatment, but also a deeply rooted institutional divide that undermines the principles of fairness and mutual respect within Brazil’s foreign service structure.
Despite these disadvantages, we continue to perform our essential public duties with professionalism and dedication. As the daily face of Brazil abroad, we are responsible for sustaining local engagement, ensuring operational continuity and upholding the diplomatic day to day functionality that allows Brazil’s global presence to remain consistent, coordinated and aligned with national interests.
Yet, despite the critical nature of our roles, our wages have remained largely stagnant for decades, occasionally adjusted only to soften inflationary erosion, but never seriously reviewed considering real local costs of living or principles of economic justice. This lack of meaningful financial recognition denies us not only fair compensation, but also the basic ability to plan, grow and build a life beyond mere survival. It is not a model of sustainability; it is a pattern of systemic neglect.
Further compounding this inequality is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ increasing reliance on unstable employment contracts.
A growing number of Locally Employed Staff are hired under open-ended or alternatively annually renewable contracts, often subject to termination without valid cause or due process. This model cultivates a deliberate atmosphere of insecurity, stripping employees of the power to assert their rights or access legal remedies without fear of retaliation. It is a system that uses uncertainty as a means of control.
In practice, this imbalance is routinely exploited. Insecure contracts are frequently used to apply undue pressure or to remove staff under vague and generic pretexts, such as the often cited but rarely scrutinised claim of “budget constraints.” Even long-serving, high-performing LES have been dismissed without explanation, with no transparency, no procedural fairness and in many countries without even the right to appeal in order to overturn arbitrary decisions. The lack of accountability is not incidental, it is structural.
This entrenched asymmetric caste system reflects a much older and more insidious logic: the logic of divide and rule. By fragmenting the workforce and reinforcing dependency, it isolates Locally Employed Staff, making us easier to manage, control, or discard. This unspoken strategy is actively upheld and protected by those who benefit from it daily, those whose privileges are maintained at the expense of the very individuals who, from the ground up, sustain Brazil’s image and operations abroad.
This system is not new. Since at least 1961, Brazil’s foreign service has operated within an institutional framework that, whether by omission or design, has systematically excluded Locally Employed Staff (LES) from the protections and recognitions afforded to other categories of personnel within the same Ministry.
This enduring structure, though essential to the operational continuity and effectiveness of Brazil’s diplomatic missions, has failed to evolve in line with constitutional principles of fairness and international labour standards. Those who ensure the daily functioning and local engagement of Brazil’s global presence remain among the least protected.
It is neither legally justifiable nor ethically acceptable that professionals so central to the country’s international representation continue to serve in conditions marked by persistent legal ambiguity, unequal treatment and institutional vulnerability. Addressing this imbalance is not only a matter of compliance, but also a matter of dignity, justice and institutional credibility.
In this context, the paradox becomes undeniable. We, the Locally Employed Staff, are the backbone of Brazil’s international representation, yet we are the ones with the least job security, the fewest rights and the greatest vulnerability. This is not an administrative oversight. It is a sustained and deliberate denial of fairness, a structural and institutional choice to keep us marginalized, disposable and excluded from the basic rights enshrined in Brazil’s own Constitution.
Such a reality cannot be reconciled with Brazil’s commitment to democratic values, human dignity and the rule of law. It is time for reform. It is time for justice.
Standing Together for Change
We believe Brazil must honour our own Constitution and treat us, its own employees abroad, with the same respect, rights and legal protections afforded to those at home. Uniformity in treatment, consistency in policy and the necessary transparency in how Locally Employed Staff (LES) are governed are not optional, they are constitutional obligations.
We are not invisible, nor are we disposable. As qualified professionals, we stand on the frontlines of Brazil’s global presence every day. We deserve more than silence, we deserve recognition, protection and “a seat at the table” in shaping the future of Brazil’s diplomacy and international relations strategy. That future must be built with us, not without us.
AFLEX is fostering a global alliance, from Europe to Africa, from Asia to the Americas, to ensure that no Locally Employed Staff (LES), regardless of the Brazilian Government Ministry they serve, remains invisible, unheard, or without recourse that can enable them to advance toward improved working conditions. The time has come to acknowledge this human capital and treat it with the recognition it rightfully deserves.
Through the respectful exchange of information and dialogue with colleagues who have navigated similar challenges, LES professionals can gain valuable perspective and feel supported in identifying constructive pathways forward. United in purpose, we affirm that every voice deserves to be acknowledged, every contribution respected, and no member of our global workforce left behind.
We are proud of the work we have done so far, but pride alone is not enough. We now call for action, fairness and respect. It’s time to dismantle the status quo and build a system that treats us, all Locally Employed Staff (LES), with the consistency, transparency and dignity we have always deserved.
Join our collective effort. Advocate for fairness. Uphold dignity.
Together, we represent a powerful and growing movement committed to justice, equity and recognition for all. Your voice strengthens our cause and brings us one step closer to lasting change.