Labor measures related to COVID-19.- The main measures ordered by the Government are the following:
(i) Compulsory social isolation: The State of National Emergency (EEN) is extended until May 10, during which the compulsory social isolation and restriction of movement of people and vehicles continues, with certain exceptions (mainly assistance and access to essential services and goods).
(ii) Withdrawal of funds from AFP: Affiliates of the Private Pension System (SPP) can make, for one time, the extraordinary withdrawal of S/.2,000.00 from their Individual Capitalization Account (CIC), provided that they have not made compulsory pension contributions to said account for at least six consecutive months until March 31 2020.
(iii) New essential activities: Included as new essential activities are those included in the textile sector related to the production and manufacture of textile face masks, hospital clothing and other textile materials for medical protection, including suppliers of raw materials, as well as activities related to the production of inputs necessary for the activities of the mining sub-sector and other related activities, in order to guarantee the maintenance of critical operations with the minimum necessary personnel, in safety, health and environment conditions during the EEN.
(iv) Application of fines: Administrative infringements (between 2% and 10% of the ITU) are regulated, without prejudice to the criminal consequences that may apply, for developing economic activities not considered as essential provision and access, circulating without personal work pass, among other breaches.
(v) Measures other than compensatory leave, including the perfect suspension of work: Employers who are unable to implement remote work or apply the paid with compensatory leave are authorized to adopt alternative measures, by the nature of their activities or by the level of economic impact, to maintain the validity of the workers’ employment relationship and the receipt of their remuneration (granting of vacations, arrangement for reduction of working hours or remuneration, among others). Exceptionally, and provided that the employer has tried to adopt alternative prior measures, employers in these scenarios may opt for the perfect suspension of work until July 9, 2020, following the procedure provided for in the regulation. Workers included within a perfect suspension of work: (i) will be attended by EsSalud for the duration of said suspension (ii) will be able to freely dispose of the funds of the intangible amount for CTS deposits, up to a gross monthly remuneration for each expired calendar month of the duration of the work suspension (iii) if they do not have a balance in their CTS account, they may request an advance payment of the CTS for the month of May 2020 and the statutory bonus of July 2020, calculated as of the disbursement date, (iv) if they had continued to work during the suspension period, the necessary contributions to qualify for a pension in the National Pension System (SNP), they are not required to make contributions for the period of suspension, and they may request its granting to the ONP, which may exceptionally recognize up to 3 months of contributions, and (v) they may withdraw extraordinarily up to S/.2,000.0 0 from the CIC of their AFP, if they are affiliated to the SPP, among other retirement facilities for workers who will depend on their contributions in the previous months. i. (vi) Deferral of payment of the CTS: The employer may postpone the deposit corresponding to the CTS from May 2020, until November, with the respective payment of interest, except for workers: (i) whose gross remuneration is up to S/.2,400.00 and (ii) included in a perfect suspension of work. The employer must communicate the decision to the workers to avail of this facility until today (April 30).
(vii) Measures applicable to people with disabilities and their dependents: In order to guarantee the safety and protection of people with disabilities in employment, the following measures are provided: (i) application of remote work if this is compatible with the nature of the duties and it is agreed with the worker; (ii) compensatory leave in case the nature of their work is not compatible with remote work or no agreement is reached with the worker; (iii) when other legal measures are applied, the particular conditions of people with disabilities must be taken into account. i. (viii) Vehicle pass: It is provided that from today (April 30), a vehicle pass must be issued (additional to the personal work pass) for those who have a work pass and require using their vehicles for the provision of certain activities, at the following link: https://www.gob.pe/paselaboral.
The Judiciary implements measures related to remote work.- The Executive Council and various Superior Courts of the Judiciary have issued administrative resolutions to ensure the continuity of judicial proceedings in order to gradually implement the remote work of judges and administrative personnel at the national level. Among the measures announced are: the progressive digitization of physical records, the implementation of electronic court records in all courts (currently only available in the courts of Cajamarca, Lima, Lima Norte, Puente Piedra-Ventanilla and Tacna), the development of hearings through video conferences, electronic notification of all resolutions and the opening of a digital party table.
Likewise, a work reactivation program has been structured and shall be carried out within 30 calendar days after the lifting of the compulsory social isolation measure. Notwithstanding the foregoing, even the procedural deadlines shall continue to be suspended until May 17.
The Constitutional Court conducts hearings through video conferences.- The Constitutional Court has amended its normative regulations, stipulating that public hearings may be held in real time or simultaneously with the participation of judges and parties. Virtual audiences, through the Google Hangouts Meet application, have started from April 29.
SUNAFIL approved Protocol to verify the application of perfect suspension of work. – The Protocol establishes the procedure that must be fulfilled by SUNAFIL to verify the validity of the communications submitted by employers about perfect suspension of work within the framework of COVID-19. The most relevant aspects are the following:
(i) Received the request from the Administrative Labor Authority (AAT), the Inspective Labor Authority (AIT), has 2 days to require the employer so that, within 5 business days (for medium and large companies), send the documentation that supports the perfect suspension of work.
(ii) Once the information has been received or not, the AIT has some of the following actions: (i) preliminary actions with information requirements; or, (ii) generation of an inspection order for the initiation of the inspection proceedings.
(iii) Verification must be carried out within a maximum period of 15 working days from the start, sending the AAT the information collected within 2 working days of the last diligence carried out, together with a report of results in which the finding are reported.
(iv) Among the main aspects to be verified are the following:
(v) The information and documents that may be required by the AIT to carry out its verification are indicated.
New guidelines for the monitoring, prevention and health control of workers at risk of exposure to COVID-19.- This standard includes a series of obligations for all natural and legal persons engaged in economic activities at the national level, who must apply it during the health emergency and for workers to return to work.
The most important measures include:
Finally, the regulation states that in the event of an outbreak of COVID-19 in the workplace, the Health Authority shall notify SUNAFIL to determine the immediate closure or stoppage of work.
