Karin Law and mediation

Mr Director:

In these weeks since the Karin Law has been in effect, I have noticed during meetings with clients and training sessions with workers that, when it comes to file a complaint, many seek a mediation process with the involvement of their superiors, aiming to resolve a situation of harassment or violence without intending for the accused employee to be sanctioned. They view the complaint as a formal instance where a conflict can be raised for resolution, without realizing that this will not happen. Instead, the parties will be separated through protective measures, an investigation will take place, and sanctions or corrective actions will be applied if appropriate.

The tool provided by the Law is useful, but it operates within the stages of a highly regulated investigation process with strict deadlines, and there is no provision for mediation.

Companies should implement formal mediation stages beforehand, so that employees know their conflicts will be addressed and that there is an opportunity to seek solutions through dialogue. In this way, their concerns will be better addressed, and the number of complaints under the Law would decrease, as conflicts would have been resolved earlier.

Constanza Ríos

Director of the labor area at Lembeye

Source: Diario Financiero