In our last edition we talked about the special conditions of the Housemaid labor contract and all the benefits and important conditions of this special contract that is important to know when you contract, but know it is also important to know about the normal contracts and the consequences of termination. This consequences will depend on certain acts or attitudes of the contractor and the worker and depending of this, there will be money involved. The first thing you have to know is Who is a employee ?, what special characteristics established by law, determine who is and who is not a employee, The person you call your employee has to do the following A persons who gives you a service, material or intellectual He gives that services in virtue of a Work Contract This Contract can be verbal or written, individual or collective This person receives a salary for his work, he has a eight hour work day, and he is subordinated to your orders This is the person you can call your employee, he has to follow your rules and you have to follow the legislation in order to create this rules, both are protected by law in case of differences PROBLEMS WITH YOUR EMPLOYEE Costa Rica´s, Labor Law protects the indiscriminate dismissal of employees without a just case, this just case is establish by law and will determine if the worker is entitled to a compensation for his dismissal or he was fired and deserves no compensation, this because of his actions or work attitude JUST CASES TO FIRE AN EMPLOYEE They are established by the Labor Code, in its article 81, and they are the following When the workers conduct during his job is immoral, or he insults , slanders or hits his employer Its is difficult to determine exactly what is immoral, but we can go by the normal behavior of a person which will not do things that for the general public is not correct, this will depend on the case, and also its analysis When the workers conduct is the same mentioned above but against a work mate, in working time and that with his actions he disturbs work and efficiency in the job When the worker after working hours , and out of the work facilities, insults, slanders or hits his employer, or his representatives in the job, only if his actions where not provoked by them, and as a consequence of the event the daily living and working is impossible for the efficient development of work When the worker commits a crime or a grave damage to the property of the employer or when he intentionally causes a damage in the materials or the machinery, tools, raw materials, products and any other object related with no doubt to the job When the worker reveals the employer secrets of the products, techniques or commercial strategies When the worker, because of his inexcusable unwise conduct, puts in danger the security of the working area, or of the people inside When the worker does not come to work , without a permit from the employer, without a justification for two days consecutively or three days in a month When the worker denies in a reiterative mode, to adopt the preventive measures or the indicated procedures to prevent accidents or illness, or when he denies in the same way, the directives for efficiency issued by his employer, causing grave loss in the production or the services When the worker after been censured once for his actions according to items a,b,c,d,e he continues the same actions When the employee at the moment of making the work contract, lied pretending to have special qualifications for the job, knowledge, or present fake references that can be proved false, or that while performing his job it is obvious he does not have the capability to do it and for which he has been contracted When the worker is serving a sentence for a criminal act When he worker commits a grave fault to the obligations established in the contract The only thing you pay to dismiss a worked who fits any of the previously sited, is Vacations, pay one day for each month worked. Aguinaldo, add all the amount he has earned from the past December to the date and divided into 12, that will give you the amount to pay for aguinaldo If the worker is fired without one of the just cases sited above, he will be entitled to Vacations and Aguinaldo and the following “Pre-aviso”, this is a legal figure, that gives the worker the right to be indemnified, if the employer is letting him go without proper notice, this figure will work under the following conditions If the worker has less than 30 days working, you don’t have to give them previous notice If she or he has from 30 days to 6 months working, you have to give one week notice or the equivalent in cash If the worker is 6 months to 1 year in the job, you have to give 15 days notice or the equivalent in cash If the worker has over a year working for you, the previous notice is one month, or that same amount in cash For every week of “PRE-NOTICE” or “PREAVISO”, they have one extra day off to find a new job The term “Cesantía” is used to give the worker some laying off insurance money in case they don’t find a job in the period of time they are “PRE-NOTICE”, this amount will be paid by the contractor in the following way If the worker is less than 30 days old in the job she is not entitled to any amount If she or he has 30 days to six months, then the amount is the equivalent of ten days work If they’ve worked from 6 months to one year, they get paid 20 days work. From one year and on, 1 month of salary for each year worked until you reach 8 months This information is important, so you know what can be spected from a work relation with an employee, the basic information is provided here but you know that every individual case is different and might or might not fit in one of the above, any consultation about the concepts explained, I will be glad to answer just write to us and we will gladly help you.