Additional measures for the protection of employment during the health emergency

1. Compensable paid leave:

Employer and worker may agree to grant paid leave, by virtue of which the employer must continue to make the payment of the agreed salary, even if the worker is not rendering his services. However, both parties may agree on a "compensation system" whereby the employee undertakes to make up for the hours not worked once the current situation has been overcome.

2. Modification of working hours and salary:

In application of Article 50 of the Substantive Labor Code, which allows the revision of the employment contract when unforeseeable and serious alterations of the economic normality occur, the employers may agree by mutual agreement to modify the contractual conditions, being possible:

• Reduce the working day and, consequently, the salary in a proportional manner. Likewise, it is recommended to inform the employee in writing of the new working hours.
• Reduce the salary while maintaining the same working day.
• Modify the employee's position or functions.

3. Modification or suspension of extra-legal benefits:

Similarly, employers may modify or temporarily suspend the payment of allowances, extra-legal bonuses or other non-wage amounts recognized to workers. At this point it is necessary to indicate that, although the Ministry cites article 15 of the C.S.T. for such purpose, referring to the transaction, such modification may be made by mutual agreement by means of an additional agreement to the employment contract.

4. Agreement of conventional benefits:

Those companies that have entered into collective agreements or pacts with their workers may, in application of article 480 of the C.S.T., review such agreements and modify by mutual agreement the conditions agreed therein referring to salaries, non-wage payments, working hours, among others.

Such modifications may be formalized through "extra-conventional" or "extra-pact" agreements and must be signed by the representatives designated by their workers for the signing of the agreement (in the case of unionized workers) or pact (for those who do not belong to a union).

5. Conclusions

As with the alternatives presented by the Ministry of Labor in its Circular No. 021, the measures presented here should be analyzed taking into account the current situation of each company in the current situation, especially if they can or cannot exercise their corporate purpose due to the preventive isolation measures, in order to identify the most appropriate measures to manage their personnel, in order to preserve the employment of their workers without seriously affecting the continuity of their business.