Summary.
Law 13 extends collective labor agreements and changes Labor Code rules on the suspension of employment contracts and labor arbitration.
What it covers.
- Extensions of collective labor agreements and the application of agreed wage increases.
- The conclusion of collective labor agreements by certain companies.
- Suspension of employment contracts and arbitration of collective labor disputes.
Who it applies to.
- Workers and employers covered by collective labor agreements.
- Companies covered by the three (3) year period in Article 2.
- Parties to collective labor disputes.
Key points.
- Collective labor agreements expiring in 1991 and 1992 are extended for two (2) years; those expiring in 1993 are extended for one (1) year.Art. 1
- During the extension, agreed wage increases apply according to their annual average. Temporary agreements are recognized, and the parties can directly agree on a new collective agreement.Art. 1
- Companies covered by Article 2 are not required to conclude a collective labor agreement during their first three (3) years of operation or during the three (3) year period specified there.Art. 2
- If the stated grounds are justified, the General Directorate of Labor (Dirección General de Trabajo) sets the suspension of employment contracts for one (1) week to one (1) month. The Regional or General Directorate of Labor (Dirección Regional o General de Trabajo) can extend it in thirty (30) day periods, up to four (4) months, after hearing the workers.Art. 203
- After conciliation, a collective dispute proceeds wholly or partly to arbitration by agreement of the parties, at the workers’ request, when it arises in a public service company, or when a prolonged strike could cause serious economic disruption to the company.Art. 452
- The arbitration ground based on a prolonged strike applies for three (3) years from the Law’s entry into force. The parties can appeal to the Minister of Labor and Social Welfare (Ministro de Trabajo y Bienestar Social); the resolution referring the dispute to arbitration orders the strike’s immediate suspension.Art. 452
Validity and changes.
- Labor Code (Código de Trabajo)Art. 3: replaces Article 203; Art. 4: replaces Article 452; Art. 5: states that it adds Articles 203 and 452.