#CostaRica 🇨🇷 #BDS_LaborAlert: Bill Passed Requiring Employers to Grant Paid Leave to Workers Accompanying Family Members to Medical Appointments

Yesterday, Monday, April 22^nd, 2024, the proposed text of File No. 23,389, a new bill aiming to allow workers to reconcile their family duties with their work duties as well as to prevent employers from denying permission to leave their workplace to accompany a family member or partner to a medical appointment, was published in the Official Gazette No. 70.

The current text of the bill would add subsection l) to Articles 69 and 70 of the Labor Code (which establish a series of obligations and prohibitions to employers, respectively), so that, in the future, the following is included:

Article 69: Apart from those contained in other provisions of this Code, in its Regulations and in its supplementary or related laws, the employers shall have the following obligations:

(...)

1. l) To grant workers the necessary time, without salary reduction, to fulfill their family responsibilities, when they need to accompany their spouses or domestic partners, minor children, first-degree relatives, whether by blood or affinity, and handicapped or depending adults directly under the worker's care, to attend medical appointments, surgical interventions, diagnostic tests, or hospital visits where being accompanied is recommended, or when special circumstances arise that make it necessary due to their age or health status.

The concerned worker must provide the respective proof of attendance to the relevant health services. This leave will be granted as many times as necessary, with a maximum of four times per month.

Article 70: Employers are absolutely prohibited from:

(…)

1. l) Denying workers permission to leave the workplace with pay, in those cases included in subsection l) of Article 69 of this Code.

The foregoing implies that workers would have the possibility of enjoying a leave with pay to accompany a family member or partner, as warranted, to a medical center, provided that the due proof of attendance is submitted, up to 4 different occasions within the same month, and that employers cannot deny such leave.

If approved in its current wording, the bill would result in two important changes to how these types of leave have been handled in practice. First, the obligation to grant leave for medical appointments would be extended not only to workers themselves but also to immediate family members or dependents. Second, the leave must be mandatorily paid, which currently applies only to mothers or individuals responsible for newborns.

It is important to remind employers of the relevance of having clear policies in place regarding the request and approval of leaves of absence, the procedure for the delivery of certificates, etc. If this bill were to become law, it would be even more necessary to have clear rules to define which cases require giving prior notice of the appointment, what documents must be submitted and the timeframe for such submission, among other important provisions.

[Note: The proposed text implies the review of a bill submitted for consideration by one or several legislative committees. It does not entail the approval of the bill nor its entry into force as law of the Republic].