Rural service time as social security credits in hybrid retirement by age in the view of the jurisprudence of the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice (STJ) and of the National Standardization Court (TNU)

Abstract

The old-age hybrid retirement, foreseen in Law 8,213/1991, art. 48, 3rd paragraph, included by Law 11,718/2008, emerged as a form of regulation of the constitutional principle of uniformity and equivalence of benefits and services to urban and rural populations (Constitution, art. 194, sole paragraph, II). The constitutional principles impose a multidisciplinary and global view that considers several factors such as economic, social and historical that have taken the great majority of rural workers to precarious conditions of life. The jurisprudence of the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice (STJ) has recognized the right to the so-called old-age hybrid benefit for the insured that at some period of the life has already carried out rural activities, considering them as social security credits regardless of having been worked at the time when the age was fulfilled or at the time of application. The discussion concerns the existence of rural work at the time when the insured reaches the age requirement or makes the application and the possibility of counting the time of non-contributory rural service, before July 25, 1991, as social security credits. From the deductive method, the arguments favorable and contrary to the use of that labor time, which was affected by STJ to the rite of repetitive decisions (Theme 1007), are analyzed.