After only five months in office, President López Obrador—who won by a landslide during the last presidential election and whose political party holds the majority of Congress—amended the Mexican Federal Labor Law and other applicable laws on May 1, 2019.
Mexico is in a new era when it comes to labor law, with several significant developments affecting the country’s labor landscape.
There are about 2.4 million domestic employees in Mexico, 95 percent of whom are women and do not have social security benefits. The Mexican Supreme Court of Justice recently held that it is not legal to exclude domestic employees from the country’s social security system, which is administered by the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS).
Mexico’s Ministry of Interior (Secretaria de Gobernación, SEGOB) and National Immigration Institute (NII) (Instituto Nacional de Migración, INM) published new governmental fees for immigration procedures related to foreign nationals and expatriates that took effect January 1, 2019.
In December 2018, the Mexican National Commission on Minimum Wages (Comisión Nacional de los Salarios Mínimos, or CONASAMI) issued a resolution to increase the daily general minimum wage (DGMW) beginning on January 1, 2019.
As a result of July’s presidential election, Andrés Manuel López Obrador became the new president of Mexico, winning by a wide margin over his competitors. He took office on December 1, 2018, for a six-year term extending from 2018-2024.
On January 10, 2018, Mexico’s National Institute of Statistics and Geography issued in the Official Gazette of the Federation the daily, monthly, and annual value of the Unit of Measure and Update (UMA) that will become effective on February 1, 2018.
On November 21, 2017, the Mexican National Commission on Minimum Wages (Comisión Nacional de los Salarios Mínimos or CONASAMI) issued a resolution decreeing an increase in the Daily General Minimum Wage (DGMW) applicable for Mexico .
As provided by the Mexican Federal Constitution and the Federal Labor Law (FLL), employees are entitled to receive profit participation on their employer’s profits every fiscal year.
On February 24, 2017, Mexico’s Official Gazette of the Federation (known as the Diario Oficial de la Federación or DOF) published a decree that reformed and added several dispositions of Articles 107 and 123 of the Mexican Federal Constitution.
On December 19, 2016, it was issued in the Official Gazette of the Federation that the daily minimum wage for 2017 in Mexico will be Mex$80.04.
On December 1, 2016, the Mexican National Commission on Minimum Wages (Comisión Nacional de los Salarios Mínimos or CONASAMI) issued a resolution effecting an increase in the Daily General Minimum Wage (DGMW) applicable for Mexico in 2017.
Several months ago, President Enrique Peña Nieto proposed to amend the Mexican Constitution in order to modify the labor process. The Senate of the Republic approved the amendment on October 13, 2016.
Pursuant to the November 30, 2012, amendment to the Mexican Federal Labor Law (FLL) that took effect on December 1 of the same year (the “Reform”), the FLL incorporated, among other things, changes in the law focused on maternity disability periods.
On July 15, 2016, the Third Circuit Court on Administrative Matters, acting in plenary session (based in Jalisco), published a Judicial Interpretation titled, “Provision of Independent Services: In order to determine whether or not outsourcing personnel falls within the scope of the exemption under the Value Added Tax, as set forth in the second to last paragraph of article 14 of the applicable law, it is necessary to consult the provisions of article 15-A of the Federal Labor Law.”
In accordance with the International Labour Standards on Freedom of Association (enshrined in the International Labour Organization (ILO) Constitution, the ILO Declaration of Philadelphia, and the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work) and the Mexican Political Constitution, Mexico’s Administration of Labor Inspection of the Labor Ministry has issued the Collective Bargaining Freedom Protocol measure, which, among other things, establishes the procedures and rules that inspectors of the administration will have to follow when conducting labor-related inspections at the worksites of employers operating in Mexico to verify the existence or absence of collective bargaining agreements (CBAs).
On January 20, 2016, the Second Chamber of Mexico’s Supreme Court, in plenary session and by a majority vote, issued a decision holding that the reformed Article 48 of the Mexican Federal Labor Law (FLL) does not violate the Mexican Constitution. Therefore, the accrual of back salaries (or back wages) claimed by plaintiffs in cases that were filed after November 30, 2012) will be capped at one year from the date the plaintiff was allegedly discharged. The application of this amendment will not be retroactive to any case filed before November 30, 2012.
On December 11, 2015, the Council of Representatives of the National Minimum Wage Commission, pursuant to a vote to determine the minimum wage held every year, unanimously decided to increase the daily minimum wage by 4.2 percent in 2016.
Mexico was divided into two geographical areas—Zone A and Zone B—for purposes of determining the minimum wage. The minimum wage in these zones was different because it depended on the conditions, economy, and lifestyles of the people from the different states of Mexico.
The Second Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation in Mexico recently issued guidance establishing that outsourcing does not violate the constitutional principles of legal certainty and freedom.
On June 12, 2015, a new amendment to the Federal Labor Law (FLL) was published in the Official Gazette, increasing the minimum age for employment from 14- to 15-years-old.
On December 19, 2014, Mexico’s National Minimum Wage Commission published its decision to increase the minimum wage for 2015. The Commission approved an increase of 4.2 percent, effective January 1, 2015.
