Colombia's president signs a labor overhaul into law after 2 failed attempts

BOGOTA, Colombia -- Colombian President Gustavo Petro signed into instrumentality connected Wednesday a arguable labour overhaul with the imaginable to profoundly displacement the equilibrium of powerfulness from employers to workers, a cardinal triumph for the left-wing person adjacent arsenic Congress compelled him to standard backmost his much extremist ambitions.

The enactment of the instrumentality marks a milestone for a president who has struggled to present connected his promises to trim inequality successful 1 of the region's astir unequal nations. But it's faced absorption from concern leaders and Colombian authorities bonds person suffered arsenic markets interest astir the fiscal and economical effects.

The instrumentality increases overtime wage for salaried workers and limits the usage of short-term declaration workers, portion requiring companies to supply aesculapian sum and societal information for gig workers similar nutrient transportation drivers. It besides promises pupil interns due contracts and benefits similar abrogation clip and severance pay.

Many of Petro’s efforts to vastly grow societal programs person stalled successful Congress, with lawmakers shooting down this labour instrumentality twice. Lawmakers fto the legislation squeak by past week aft Petro’s moved to telephone a nationalist referendum.

Petro signed the authorities astatine the historical location of 19th-century warfare leader Simón Bolívar, who led South America's combat against imperial Spain.

He posted connected societal media level X: “I motion the labour betterment into instrumentality earlier Bolívar and the moving people.”

“We indispensable elite a authorities that volition uphold this instrumentality and enforce it,” Petro said, alluding to the 2026 statesmanlike elections.

The betterment was cheered by commercialized unions and Petro’s governmental allies Wednesday.

But his propulsion to fortify idiosyncratic protections has proved controversial, arsenic the costly benefits are expected to hike up costs for concern owners. Petro’s authorities has promised to propulsion done a caller measure to assistance tiny businesses, though the details stay unclear.

Opposition lawmakers person painted a nightmare script of wide layoffs that volition propulsion much workers into Colombia’s already immense informal economy.

Many accidental that the mandated reductions successful moving hours, increases successful overtime wage for Sunday and vacation shifts volition particularly compression tiny and medium-sized businesses.

Already, his government’s accrued spending and reduced taxation income person challenged fiscal stability.

Critics besides accidental that the changes won’t assistance informal workers without contracts, who correspond implicit fractional of Colombia’s full labour force, according to the latest figures. The authorities guarantees wellness and pension benefits for lone immoderate gig workers, specified arsenic app-based transportation workers.

Then there’s the question of compliance. “I privation to archer those employers who accidental they won’t instrumentality the labour betterment that they’re not intelligent,” Petro said connected Wednesday.

Even arsenic helium hailed the law, it fell abbreviated of Petro's ambitions. He was forced to compromise connected immoderate cardinal provisions to propulsion it done a hostile Congress.

Provisions stripped from the last mentation included extended paternity leave, paid permission for women with debilitating menstrual symptom and immoderate corporate bargaining rights for unions.

The signing of the instrumentality comes astatine a tumultuous clip for the 3rd largest federation successful Latin America, with a question of bombing attacks shaking the northeast and an assassination attempt connected blimpish statesmanlike hopeful and senator Miguel Uribe stunning the country. Uribe remains successful intensive care.