Time is running out for the processing of labor reform in Congress

Contrary to what was initially projected, the process of labor reform in the House of Representatives is taking longer than desired by the National Government and although it has already entered the final stretch, each time There is less time left to complete what is missing and the risks of the initiative sinking again increase.

Although it was expected that all the articles would be ready for presentation to the Senate this week, the breaking of the quorum during the plenary session last Tuesday – October 8 – and the fact that there is no more agenda of this type in the House for Thursday and Friday, forced it to wait until after October 14.

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So far, a total of 67 articles have been voted on, of which 64 have been approved and 3 have been eliminated, leaving 13 pending for review by the representatives. It should be noted that of the 64 articles approved and ready for debate in the Senate, only 11 remained as proposed by the Ministry of Labor, while the other 53 underwent some type of modification.

Among what was approved as it arrived, article 2 stands outwhich establishes the labor relations regulated by law, covering both workers in traditional relationships and those linked by digital platforms and expands protection to emerging sectors, such as delivery and application services, adjusting the legislation to technological and economic changes current.

There is also article 6, which regulates fixed-term contracts and contracts for specific work or work, maintaining the principles that protect job stability and limit the abuse of these temporary contracts. as well as the group of numerals from 24 to 29, which introduce clear definitions and standards to protect workers on digital platforms and teleworking.

At the end of this week’s sessions, Minister Gloria Inés Ramírez highlighted that thanks to the fight they are fighting in Congress, they are getting closer to the goal of guaranteeing decent working conditions for the country’s workers. recovering benefits that had been withdrawn in previous reforms.

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“Article 10 was also approved, which is that of reinforced labor stability where effectively in cases of union immunity, pregnancy, or health case, there will be reinforced protection as is in the recommendations of the International Labor Organization. and the judicial parameters and standards such as those of the labor room of the Supreme Court of Justice,” said this official.

According to how this part of the reform turned out, companies now have the obligation to record information about workers, guarantee their affiliation to social security and occupational risks, and ensure transparency in automated supervision and decision-making systems.

Although there are three articles that have fallen, among the great defeats for the Government so far is number 8, which significantly increased compensation for dismissal without just cause, improving the conditions of workers, establishing that for fixed-term contracts or for work or labor, the minimum compensation would be 30 days, instead of the current 15 days, a change that was intended to strengthen labor protection and ensure that employees received fairer compensation when they were fired.

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However, María Fernanda Carrascal, speaker coordinator of the initiative, maintains that with the approval of the 10 articles that were endorsed this week, there are important advances such as the health jurisdiction for people with health problems or disabilities, the training program for rural work, which homologates the knowledge of peasants to access a formal job and other tools to confront informality.

“We also have others, protection of female, rural and peasant work, which we also want to exalt, guarantees for the right of union association, where we had a very interesting debate on the limitation to having differential salaries between men and women workers, we have achieved this limit, we have also put something very interesting in place, which is the summary judicial procedure for the protection of union rights,” he said.

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Among the controversial points that will now remain in the hands of the Senador there is article 18, which ends the obligation to present a medical certificate in case of disability, and although for the Government it is only a slight flexibility, the unions described it as a gap that would affect their stability, since it would lead to a high volume of disabilities, which must also be paid by the EPS.

time runs

The vote on the articles that are needed will continue next Wednesday, October 16, the date on which it is expected that everything will now be concluded by the House of Representatives, although the article that changes the apprenticeship contract for Sena students for a labor one and which has been criticized by businessmen, since it would increase their operating costs.

“What has happened so far is that the learning contract It is an employment contract and this agreement will be respected, while we seek a negotiation regarding the percentage of payment over the current legal minimum wage. These programs, like the Sena programs, are theoretical-practical programs, that is, they have two phases, one theoretical and another practical or productive, which is the final one, and that is where agreements are being reached, we are still at the table.” added Mafe Carrascal.

Representative of the chamber, María Fernanda Carrascal

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Assuming that the reform is ready between October 14 and 18, it would only have six weeks for its debate in committees and plenary sessions in the Senate, since assuming that it is filed between October 21 and 25 month, it could only be scheduled for the first week of November and from there the clock would begin to run towards December 16, when the first part of this legislative period ends.

Finally, it should be noted that in the Senate there is not the same levels of support for the National Government, so greater resistance is predicted and this could lead to a much slower process than that which has been seen so far, without counting on that the Legislature is closely monitoring the project, to avoid repeating strange moves like those that occurred during the pension reform.