2023-11-10 01:02:50
When Decree 96 – published in the Official Gazette No. 66 Extraordinary of 2023 – came into force on September 28, Cuba took an important and decisive step to guarantee safe and healthy work environments; in addition to promoting conditions of harmony and equity in these environments.
The document, defined as “Protocol for action in situations of discrimination, violence and harassment in the workplace”, becomes an instrument of prevention, protection and action against acts of exclusion and impairment of the physical and psychological integrity of people.
Although it is true that there are other mechanisms that protect the rights of each worker – Law 116 of the Labor Code (2013) and Law 151 of the Penal Code (2022) -, this legal tool will contribute, in a timely manner, to detect, identify , assist, accompany and guide workers affected by these crimes.
From its publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic, the Decree established 90 days for the organizations to study and analyze its content and articulate the training processes of the personnel in charge of ensuring compliance with the provisions of the Protocol. Likewise, alliances must be established between the institutions and entities in charge of dispensing justice so that the law does not become a “dead letter.”
This was alerted by experts in legal and labor issues during a Panel held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (MTSS). During the meeting, Ingrid Travieso Rosabal, Director of Employment of the State Sector, presented essential aspects of the regulations whose application applies to both public and private spaces.
Ingrid Travieso, Director of Employment of the state sector, led the panel of experts in legal and labor affairs who reported on the application of the action protocol in situations of discrimination, violence and harassment in the workplace. Photo: Taken from ACN.
In this sense, he explained that employers in the state and non-state sectors have the responsibility of promoting a work scenario of no tolerance against expressions of discrimination, violence and harassment. Therefore, they must encourage the participation of the union organization at the corresponding level in its capacity as representative of the workers in the analyzes carried out.
According to Travieso, the recipients of this regulation involve both those seeking employment and those who perform their duties in any workplace. Likewise, to people new to preparation courses, including students who are in pre-professional practices, workers who aspire to a position and those who occupy management positions and exercise the authority, functions or responsibilities of an employer. .
When detailing the implementation of this mechanism, the MTSS directive said that in the state sector the head of the entity designates, by common agreement with the union organization, after consultation with the workers, a structure, organization or person in charge of attending to and processing the phenomena of discrimination, violence and harassment.
For its part, the non-state sector will be in charge of creating a commission or appointing an individual who will analyze and manage the occurrence of this type of events. The mechanism chosen to act must be made known to all employees, Travieso pointed out.
Regarding the procedure to follow after receiving the complaint, which may or may not be anonymous, he clarified that the channels established by employers must be activated to facilitate and provide assistance to the injured worker and initiate the pertinent investigations and the administration of justice.
According to plans, the training period should conclude at the end of next December. From that date the implementation of what is legislated in the Protocol and the processing of complaints will begin.
The participants in the Panel agreed that the approval of Decree 96 represents not only a mechanism of legal support and protection for people who are victims of discriminatory acts, violence and harassment in the work environment. It also demonstrates the political will of the Cuban State to guarantee greater social justice and to contribute to the enjoyment and respect of the labor rights of each worker.
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