Salary reductions cannot be applied to scholarship recipients

On May 26, FCT obtained an opinion from the Directorate-General for Administration and Public Employment (DGAEP) stating that the reduction in remuneration provided for in the 2014 State Budget Law (Article 33) does not apply to Studentship contracts. This opinion, recorded by the Secretary of State for Public Administration, is based on the fact that Studentship contracts Studentship include a financial component intended to remunerate the provision of work or the performance of duties in any other capacity, and therefore the article of LOE2014 in question does not apply to them.

Following this decision, the Governing Board communicated the FCT's understanding to research institutions, thereby reinforcing the FCT's legal opinion and the position adopted since the matter arose. In effect, the FCT did not take any position that would legitimize the application of salary reductions to research fellows. The clarifications issued by the FCT on this matter refer to employment contracts or other service or retainer agreements and cannot be extrapolated to any other types of contracts, namely Studentship contracts.