Costa Rica suspends final vote on 4×3 schedule — The Rio Times

Costa Rica has suspended the final vote scheduled for October 13 on bill No. 24,290 concerning exceptional working-time arrangements. On October 12, 16 opposition lawmakers filed a constitutional petition with Sala IV, the Constitutional Chamber of the country’s Supreme Court, The Rio Times reports.

The initiative provides for the possibility of introducing 12-hour shifts four days a week with three days off for medical device manufacturing companies and corporate service centers. The bill passed its first vote in the Legislative Assembly on October 8 but has not yet become law.

Constitutional Chamber review

Sala IV reviews whether laws and bills comply with Costa Rica’s Constitution. At least 10 lawmakers may initiate such a procedure after the first vote on a bill and before the second, final vote.

According to the publication, the signatories to the petition pointed to possible procedural violations. In particular, they believe that suspending the expedited consideration of the bill until April 30 may have contradicted Article 97 of the Legislative Assembly’s rules of procedure.

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Possible consequences

Article 101 of the Law on Constitutional Jurisdiction gives the court one month from the receipt of the petition to respond. Sala IV may decline to issue an opinion, find no violations, or determine that the procedure or content of the bill is unconstitutional.

If the court finds no problems, the Legislative Assembly will be able to return to the second vote. A finding of a procedural violation would mean returning the bill to the stage at which the error occurred. The Constitutional Chamber confirmed receipt of the petition but has not yet said whether it will accept it for consideration or when it will make a decision.

Until this procedure is completed, the 4×3 schedule is not legal, and employers must act in accordance with Costa Rica’s current Labor Code.