#CostaRica 🇨🇷 #BDS_Informs: Voting Leave: Employer Obligations for Election Day
In Costa Rica, the right to vote constitutes one of the fundamental pillars of the democratic...
With each passing day, the word corruption becomes more common in the Costa Rican reality. This is reflected in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), in which Costa Rica ranked 42nd out of 180 countries evaluated for 2024, with a score of 58 out of 100, indicating that stronger actions against corruption are required.
As part of this anti-corruption effort, Law No. 10437, known as the “Law for the Protection of Whistleblowers and Witnesses of Acts of Corruption Against Labor Retaliation,” was enacted in 2024. This law grants a special protection status to employees who report or act as witnesses to acts of corruption involving their employer, with the aim of encouraging civic participation in the fight against corruption and ensuring that individuals do not risk losing their jobs as a result.
Although corruption is often associated with the public sector, the law is not intended exclusively for that sector. On the contrary, it clearly establishes that it also applies to the private sector throughout the country. It is increasingly common for dismissed employees to believe that they are protected under this legislation, asserting special protection in the private sector as well; therefore, it is essential to clearly understand the implications of this legal framework.
Based on the above, and in response to the introductory question posed in the title of this article, it can be stated that any employee who reports alleged acts of corruption in either the public or private sector enjoys—starting from the moment of the report—a special protection status against dismissal. This means that the employee may not be dismissed at will by the employer during the legal protection period. The employment relationship may only be terminated for just cause without employer liability, or exceptionally with employer liability based on any of the objective grounds established under Law No. 10437, and always with prior authorization from the Labor Inspection Office of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (MTSS).
Consequently, if an employee reports acts of corruption and is dismissed without authorization from the Labor Inspection Office, this constitutes a violation of the protection status due to a breach of due process. In such cases, the dismissal is null and void, and the employee must be reinstated to their position, with payment of back wages and the corresponding damages and losses. The employee may even request provisional reinstatement as a precautionary measure while the merits of the case are being resolved.
The protection described above not only applies to the person who files the complaint, but also to employees participating as witnesses in an administrative or judicial investigation involving their employer in relation to acts of corruption. This means that in such cases, once the employer is aware of the situation, termination cannot occur without serious misconduct or an objective cause, and it must be authorized or approved by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security.
Violation of this protection may not only result in severe consequences such as the nullity of the dismissal but may also lead to substantial fines for the employer, ranging from one to one thousand base salaries for violations of labor law, depending on the context and seriousness of the facts, as determined by the applicable legislation.
Juan Diego Zeledón
Attorney-at-law, BDS Asesores
