Extension of the State of National Emergency.- The State of National Emergency was extended until January 31, 2021.
Extension of the duration of the complete labor stoppage.- As a consequence of the extension of the Health Emergency until March 6, 2021, it is allowed to extend the measures of the complete labor stoppage work stoppage in force until April 5, 2021. The deadline for the extension on the virtual platform shall be from January 4 to January 8, 2021.
Employers who choose to modify the maximum period of the complete labor stoppage must inform the workers concerned in advance of the change.
Extension of Phase 4 of the Resumption of Economic Activities.- This extension authorizes the operation of shopping centers (with a capacity of 60%), restaurants and related services (with a capacity of 60% in indoor areas and 70% outdoors), gyms, movie theaters, casinos and slot machines (with a capacity of 40%) and performing arts (with a capacity of 40% in indoor areas and 60% in open areas), as part of the gradual and progressive resumption of economic activities of other arts, entertainment and leisure services.
For the resumption of activities, all companies must comply with the protocols of their sector and implement the COVID-19 Surveillance, Control and Prevention Plan.
New special labor regime for the agricultural sector.- Following the repeal of Law No. 27360, Law No. 31110 has been adopted to promote and strengthen the development of the agricultural and irrigation, agro-export and agro-industrial sectors and to guarantee their labor rights. The main labor provisions of this new regime are as follows:
New value of the Tax Unit (UIT).- The value of the UIT for the year 2021 shall be S/.4,400.00.
The failure to extend the economic report does not determine the nullity of the arbitration award.-Through Labor Appeal No. 23474-2018-Lima, the Supreme Court definitively rejected the demand for nullity of the arbitration award filed by a union organization, which invoked among its grounds that the company had not requested the Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion to supplement the economic report supporting the claim sheet. The ruling determined that such demand has no legal basis because the Collective Labor Relations Act does not provide for any party to request an extension of the economic report from the labor activity.
The mere submission of registration records of job vacancies for persons with disabilities (employment quota) does not justify the non-recruitment of persons with disabilities.- SUNAFIL concluded that in order to prove compliance with the employment quota for persons with disabilities, the four requirements set forth in Article 56.4 of the Regulations of the General Act on Persons with Disabilities must be met.
Likewise, on this occasion, the authority established that the inspection of compliance with the employment quota for persons with disabilities includes all workers that the inspected company states in its payroll, including all workplaces of the inspected company.
The sting of an insect qualifies as an accident at work.- This was established by SUNAFIL, through a resolution by which it sanctioned a company for not having identified the dangers and risks related to insect bites in closed environments.
According to the authority, despite the fact that it was not proven that the sting occurred in the workplace, nor the type of insect that produced it, the company must have identified and evaluated such danger and, in addition, should have provided the necessary training to the affected worker (who was a cook), so that this event would not occur.
New Peruvian Guide on Preventive and Control Measures for Protection against the Risk of Exposure to COVID-19 in the Workplace – GP 125:2020.- The Guide has been prepared by the Technical Committee for the Standardization of Peruvian Technical Standards Projects, Related Texts and Others for the attention of Health Emergencies, and although it is not mandatory, it includes provisions for the implementation of preventive measures against COVID-19 in the workplace (inside and outside the work center), aligned with the current ISO (ISO 45001-2018) and the Law on Safety and Health at Work (LSST).
Specifically, the Guide develops in great detail the prevention against COVID-19 in jobs with low and medium exposure, emphasizing the context and organizational levels in terms of decision making to avoid situations of contagion. It also includes a checklist for the use and removal of personal protective equipment and a flow chart for returning to work based on the risk control hierarchy established by the LSST.
