Labor reform: follow the minute by minute discussion here

The labor reform is close to being approved in its first debate. This week the Seventh Committee of the House of Representatives managed to unblock the initiative, and it has made significant progress.

So much so that of the 98 articles contained in the original presentation, only 7 remain, since 69 have been approved and 22 were eliminated (the latter were part of the chapter on association rights, which provided benefits to unionism in Colombia). .

This is how the discussion progressed this Friday

With only seven articles still to be approved, the presidency of the Commission adjourned the session and announced that the new discussion would be scheduled from the secretariat.

If the strategy that has been repeated this week is continued, what is expected for this afternoon (or failing that for the next few days), is that the speaker coordinators will meet with the representatives in search of agreements.

As they have stated, there is a will to move forward in this matter and a large part of the initiatives contained in the original document have already shown significant cuts.

Thus, it is expected that in the next discussion the first debate will be concluded and the reform will thus be ready to continue its passage through Congress.

The commission approved article 50, which places limits on the use of contracting for the provision of services. As explained by the speakers, this seeks to avoid the abuse that many employers are giving to this figure to deny job stability to workers.

“Contracts for the provision of services or any type of civil or commercial contract may not be entered into with natural persons, to carry out subordinate activities in private companies. Any relationship that ignores this prohibition will be ineffective, understanding for all legal purposes that from the beginning there has been an employment relationship with the right to payment of salaries, benefits and other legal or extralegal benefits, as well as contributions to the social security system in the terms established by law for any subordinate worker,” the document reads.

Regarding this type of hiring, that is, those that do not use indefinite-term employment contracts for tasks that are missionary of the companies or entities, the opposition had protested, demanding that the same requirement be applied to both the private sector and the private sector. public, since it has been shown that it also excessively uses this type of contracting models that later result in lawsuits before a labor judge and paying millionaire compensation to those who allege an employment relationship where there is subordination.

A block of 18 articles is approved

After the agreements reached between the defenders of the bill and its critics, the coordinating speakers achieved the approval of a block of 18 articles.

These are articles 4, 8, 12, 18, 40, 41, 48, 49, 52, 53, 63, 64, 65, 91, 93, 94, 95 and 96. The bulk of these passed with modification proposals.

The adjustments were significant, since paternity leave went from a proposed 12 weeks to six. Cuts were also made in the days of compensation for issues of dismissal without just cause, as well as exclusion from reinforced job stability for those who have union immunity or health immunity.

The adjustments were also felt in the automation processes in companies, as a new roadmap was established for job reconversion or eventual dismissal of workers whose jobs can be replaced by new technologies. It was established, for example, that employers must give no less than six months’ notice to those affected by these changes.

Convenient or inconvenient changes?

Before putting this block of articles to a vote, the representatives comment on the changes that were made to the reform to achieve that consensus between defenders and opponents of the bill, precisely so that it can advance.

The speaker coordinator of the project, María Fernanda Carrascal, for example, regretted the considerable cut that was made to the weeks of paternity leave, since it went from a recognition of twelve weeks to only six.

Critics of the reform celebrated the modifications, since they consider that they are more in line with the response capacity of the Colombian business community. They recalled that at this time the country’s macroeconomy is not in a position for the costs of formal contracting to rise significantly, so moderation in what the reform calls for is a step that guarantees greater balance.

They propose approving a block with 19 articles

The speaker coordinators began the session with the proposal to vote on a block of 19 articles (4, 8, 12, 18, 40, 41, 48, 49, 52, 53, 63, 64, 65, 80, 91, 93, 94, 95, 96).

The bulk of these have modification proposals, among which the one made to article 41 stands out, which opens the possibility that an independent worker, or a one-person microbusiness, can make contributions to the general social security system even if the base of contribution (their income) was less than a minimum wage.

There are also the modifications to article 8, where the days of compensation are reduced in case of dismissal without just cause; as well as the adjustment that was made to paternity leave, since it would no longer be granted 12 weeks, but six.

Just as in the elimination of a block of 20 articles in yesterday’s discussion, this block of articles (with their respective changes) also shows the sacrifices that the defenders of the project have made, since in many there is a deterioration in the benefits that were intended to be provided to workers. That is, all this was agreed with the opposition.

Regarding this, it must be taken into account that one of the main arguments of the opposition against the reform is the high costs that it implies for employers, so here we would be seeing a point of balance between what workers can receive and what they can employers contribute.

In the end, the removal of article 8 from this block of articles was requested.