Understanding Employment Law: Key Provisions and Contracts
Part I: General Provisions
Article 1: This law generally determines the rights and obligations arising from employment, except agriculture, which will be subject to special provisions. It also applies to holdings in the State and any public or private association, but not for profit, with exceptions to be determined. Article 2: The patron is the natural or legal person who provides work, including self-employed persons, for the implementation or exploitation of a work or business. A worker is employed and works as an employee. The patron is distinguished for serving in that capacity, or for working in office hours and special conditions, developing a predominantly intellectual effort. All workers favored by special laws fall within this category of employees. The worker is characterized by providing such services or manual material included in this category, too, that prepares or supervises the work of other workers, such as foremen and guards. Article 3: In any company or establishment, the number of foreign workers may not exceed 15 percent of the total and must include only technical staff. Female staff may not exceed 45 percent in companies or establishments that, by their nature, do not require the use of this work in greater proportion. It is necessary for Bolivian nationals to perform the duties of Director, Administrator, Director, and Representative in State institutions, particularly in activities directly related to state interests, especially in the economic and financial order. Article 4: The rights granted to workers by this Act are inalienable, and any agreement to the contrary shall be null and void.
Part II: The Employment Contract – Chapter I: General Provisions
Article 5:
The employment contract is individual or collective, as it is agreed between an employer or group of employers and an employee or worker, or between an employer or association of employers and a union, federation, or confederation of trade unions. Article 6: The employment contract may be concluded orally or in writing, and its existence is attested by all legal means of proof. It is the law of the parties, provided it has been legally constituted, and in the absence of express terms, will be performed by the customs of the locality. Article 7: If the contract does not determine the service provided, the worker will be required to perform the one corresponding to their condition and status within the genre of work which is the object of the company.
Article 8: Individuals aged 18 and under 21 may agree to labor contracts, unless expressly objected to by their parents or guardians; those over 14 years and under 18 require the authorization of their parents or guardians, and, failing that, the Labour Inspector.
Article 9: If a worker is hired for services rather than their residence, the employer shall pay the reasonable travel expenses for both travel and return. If the worker prefers to change residence, the employer fulfills its obligation to the same extent. In case of dissent on the amount of expenditure, the Labour Inspector will set the obligation prescribed before, if the contract comes to an end by the will of the worker or their fault or by agreement, unless otherwise specified.
Article 10: When the work is performed at a location more than two miles from the worker’s residence, the State may, by resolutions, impose on employers the obligation of transfer.
Article 11: The replacement of employers does not affect the validity of existing contracts; its effects shall be individually the responsibility of the successor for up to six months after the transfer.
Article 12: The contract may be agreed for an indefinite period, for a specific time, or to perform work or service. In the first case, either party may terminate with prior notice to the other, according to the following rules:
- 1) For contracts with workers, one week in advance for one month of continuous work, with 15 days after six months, and after one year;
- 2) For contracts with employees, with 30 days’ notice by the employee, and 90 by the employer after three months of uninterrupted work. The party omitting the notice shall have an amount equivalent to the salary or wages of the identified periods.
Article 13: When the employee or worker withdraws for reasons beyond their control, the employer shall, irrespective of eviction, compensate for length of service, with the equivalent of one month’s salary or wages for each year of continuous work, and if the services do not reach one year, in proportion to the months worked, excluding the first three, which are deemed evidence. If the worker has more than eight years of service, they shall receive the specified compensation, even if they withdraw voluntarily.
Article 14: In the event of termination of employment due to bankruptcy or proven loss, compensation is halved, and the worker’s credit has priority under civil law.
Article 15: Compensation must also be paid for closure or death of the owner. In the latter case, the obligation applies to the heirs.
Article 16: There will be no place for eviction or compensation when one of the following reasons occurs:
- a) Material damage caused intentionally to the instruments of labor;
- b) Disclosure of trade secrets;
- c) Omissions or negligence affecting safety or industrial hygiene;
- d) Unexcused absences of more than three days;
- e) Total or partial breach of the agreement;
- f) Voluntary withdrawal of the worker;
- g) Theft by the employee.
Article 17: The fixed-term contract may be terminated by either party for the causes listed in the previous article, and if different, is generally subject to the provisions of Article 13.
Article 18: In case of collective action, and provided that the provisions contained in the relevant chapter of this law have been fulfilled, notice in the form statute will not be required.
Article 19: The calculation of compensation will take into account the average wages or salaries for the last three months.
Article 20: For the purposes of this chapter, the length of service of workers shall be computed from the enactment of this Act. Employees are subject to the provisions in force.
Article 21: In fixed-term contracts, renewal means exist if the employee continues to serve the term of the agreement expired.
Article 22: The contract required to achieve legal effect must be endorsed by the authority of the Administrative Work or, failing that.
Chapter II: The Collective Agreement
Article 23: The collective contract is binding not only for those who have held it, but also for the workers who subsequently join it in writing, who then enter the union contractor.
Article 24: The collective contract shall indicate: the professions, trades, and specialties, the date on which the contract will enter into force, its duration, and the conditions for renewal, cancellation, and termination.
Article 25: The stipulations of the agreement shall be considered an integral part of individual employment contracts.
Article 26: The union contractor is responsible for the obligations of each of its affiliates and may take action on their behalf without express mandate. The heritage association ensures its obligations. In case of dissolution, that heritage continues to affect emerging responsibilities.
Article 27: An employer who employs workers belonging to employee associations will be obliged to celebrate collective bargaining agreements with them when requested.
Chapter III: The Learning Contract
Article 28: The apprenticeship contract is one under which the employer is obliged to teach the learner a trade or industry, using the work of the learner, with or without pay, for a fixed period not exceeding two years. It includes learning the trade and the use of mechanical tasks.
Article 29: The apprenticeship contract is concluded in writing. It only assumes the mutual provision of services; remuneration and other terms of the contract shall be explicitly stated.
Article 30: The employer shall grant the apprentice the hours needed for school attendance. In case of accident or illness of the trainee, the employer will advise their legal representatives, without prejudice to providing first medical care.
Chapter IV: Of Contract Connection
Article 31: The contract coupling is aimed at recruiting employees by someone other than the employer, for tasks that typically must be met away from their habitual residence. Only the State may act as an intermediary between employers and workers, organizing services free of fouling. The transfer of workers will be as determined by Article 9 of this Law.
Part III: Of Certain Types of Work
Chapter I: The Work at Home
Article 32: Home work means work performed for hire or reward and remuneration determined in the place of residence of the worker in their home workshop or the home of the employer. They are included within this definition:
- 1. Those who work in isolation or as a family workshop at their home by the piece on behalf of an employer. A family workshop is formed by relatives of the head of that workshop who normally live in it;
- 2. The company working on behalf of an employer, and earnings from the home of one of them;
- 3. Those who work for wages, work, or piecework in the home of an employer. It is not considered that home work is done directly for the public.
Article 33: Every employer covered by this chapter shall be recorded in the Labour Inspectorate, communicating the list of workers they occupy. They must keep a special register of the work commissioned and provide evidence that the worker receives.
Article 34: The remuneration will be canceled by supply of work or time not exceeding one week.
Article 35: When the employee works with defective or deteriorating materials entrusted to them, the employer may, with the authorization of the Labour Inspectorate, hold back one-fifth of the weekly payments for the payment of compensation.
Chapter II: The Home Work
Article 36: Domestic work is one that is performed continuously for a single employer, in the necessities of their home service. It can be contracted orally or in writing, the latter being compulsory if the time exceeds one year and requiring also registration at the Security Police.
Article 37: For contracts of indefinite duration, the household may be dismissed with 15 days’ notice or compensation equivalent to the salary of that period, unless the dismissal was due to domestic operating: theft, immorality, contagious disease, etc. The household may not be withdrawn without 15 days’ notice, losing if they do, the salary of that time, except in cases of ill-treatment, serious injuries, attacks on moral integrity, or contagious disease.
Article 38: The domestic worker who has served continuously for more than a year in the same house enjoys a ten-day annual leave with full pay.
Article 39: The household shall not be subject to a schedule, settling their work to the nature of the work, but should normally have a rest period of at least 8 hours and 6 hours one day each week.
Article 40: In case of home sickness, the employer must provide medical first aid and transport the worker to a hospital.
Part IV: Of the General Conditions of Work
Chapter I: Of Working Days
Article 41: The days for work every year, excluding holidays, are considered all Sundays, holidays, and civil holidays declared occasionally by laws and decrees.
Article 42: During holidays, no work of any kind may be performed, even if they are vocational or charity. In the case of centers far from the capitals, occasional holidays may be compensated by another day of rest.
Excepted from the foregoing provision are cases of companies in which work cannot be interrupted for reasons of public interest or the nature of the work. In this case, workers will have a two-hour break for the holiday.
Article 43: The days and hours of rest are indicated in the companies through special cases.
Chapter II: The Annual Breaks
Article 44: Employees and workers who have more than a year of continuous service and less than five in a company will have a week off each year; those with more than five years and less than ten will have two weeks; those with more than ten years and less than twenty will have three weeks; and after twenty years, one month.
Article 45: Workers of companies that, by their nature, suspend work at certain times of the year, enjoy holidays, provided that the interruption is not less than 15 days and that they are normally compensated for their salaries.
Chapter III: The Day of Work
Article 46: The effective working time shall not exceed eight hours per day and 48 per week. Night work should not exceed seven hours, meaning that night work hours are performed between 20:00 and 6:00. This provision is excepted for news organizations, which are subject to special regulation. The day for women and children under 18 years will not exceed 40 hours per week.
Exceptions apply to employees or workers who occupy positions of leadership or confidence monitoring or work discontinuously, or performing work which by their nature cannot be subjected to hours of work; in these cases, they will have one hour of rest in the day and cannot work more than 12 hours.
Article 47: Effective working time is the time during which the worker is available to the employer. The working day may be increased in case of force majeure and to the extent necessary.
Article 48: When the work is done by teams, its duration may be extended beyond eight hours and 48 per week, provided that the average hours of work in three weeks do not exceed the maximum working time.
Article 49: The ordinary working hours shall be interrupted by one or more breaks, a period of not less than two hours in total, but may not work more than five hours continuously in each period.
Article 50: At the request of the employer, the Labour Inspectorate may grant permits for overtime to a maximum of two hours per day. No overtime will be considered that a worker has in correcting their mistakes.
Article 51: The employer and its employees may agree on a half day off per week, exceeding one hour time limit on other days, to a total of 48 hours.
Chapter IV: Of Wages
Article 52: Remuneration or salary is received by the employee or worker in return for their work. There may be agreements under the minimum wage, which determination according to the classes of work and areas of the country, shall be made by the Ministry of Labour. Salary is commensurate with the work and may not differ by sex or nationality.
Article 53: The time periods for payment of salary may not exceed 15 days for workers, and one month for employees and domestic workers. Payments must be verified precisely in legal tender, on working days and at the place of payment; it is forbidden to pay in places of recreation, sale of goods, or sale of alcoholic beverages, except in the case of workers of the establishment where payment is made.
Article 54: Workers of both sexes under 18 years and married women validly receive their salaries and have their free administration.
Article 55: Overtime and holidays will be paid with a 100 percent surcharge, and night work performed under the same conditions as the day will have a surcharge of 25 to 50 percent, as appropriate.
Article 56: In the case of piece-rate workers, wages for days of rest shall be established on the basis of the average salary for the month immediately preceding the holiday.
Chapter V: Annual Premium
Article 57: The bosses of companies who have obtained profits at the end of the year shall grant their employees and workers an annual bonus not less than one month and fifteen days’ wages respectively, according to the system established by the General Labour Regulation.