Labour reforms concern the business sector

Employers would disagree with the amendments of the draft Labor Justice Law. (Source: educacioncontracorriente.org).

The new amendments provided in the draft Labor Justice Law, which include the elimination of fixed-term contracts and the establishment of limits on wage scales would be the preeminent issues between employers and the government.

According to Roberto Aspiazu, president of the Ecuadorian Business Committee, the reforms in this bill “came from the unilateral vision of the Ministry of Labour,” and not a tripartite dialogue, composed by the business sector, the workers and the state.

“We reject the insinuation that this type of contract can be used to make precarious labor conditions,” objected Francisco Alarcón, president of the Chamber of Industries of Guayaquil, with regard to the elimination of the fixed term or temporary contracts.

As for the wage gap, the bill stipulates that the employee who is located in the lowest wage scale shall not earn less than one-twentieth of what the senior staff person perceives, but employers disagree on this point, since they consider that this hampers the recruitment of highly prepared staff.

Another issue to consider is the replacement of the employers retirement for a bonus of the government, for what businessmen are proposing one lump sum agreed by the IESS and the Ministry of Labour.