User:Georginamackie9/Venezuelan labour law: Difference between revisions

=== Lead ===

=== Lead ===

The Venezuelan labour law regulates the relations between workers and employers by establishing their rights. It is governed by a specific legal text called the the ”Ley Orgánica del Trabajo, los Trabajadores y las Trabajadoras (LOTTT)” which was enacted in April 2012 through the decree powers of [[Hugo Chávez|President Chavez]]. It safeguards workers against discrimination by employers on the basis of [[protected characteristics]]. <ref>{{Cite book |last=Ibp |first=Inc |title=Venezuela Banking and Financial Market Handbook Volume 1:Strategic Information and Basic Regulations |date=September 23, 2018 |publisher=IBP USA |year=2018 |isbn=978-1433058417 |edition=6th |language=English}}</ref> The law is underpinned by the [[Constitution of Venezuela]] which contains articles that establish labour rights.

The Venezuelan labour law regulates the relations between workers and employers by establishing their rights. It is governed by a specific legal text called the the ”Ley Orgánica del Trabajo, los Trabajadores y las Trabajadoras (LOTTT)” which was enacted in April 2012 through the decree powers of [[Hugo Chávez|President Chavez]]. It safeguards workers against discrimination by employers on the basis of [[protected characteristics]]. <ref>{{Cite book |last=Ibp |first=Inc |title=Venezuela Banking and Financial Market Handbook Volume 1:Strategic Information and Basic Regulations |date=September 23, 2018 |publisher=IBP USA |year=2018 |isbn=978-1433058417 |edition=6th |language=English}}</ref>

The law is underpinned by the [[Constitution of Venezuela]] which contains articles that establish labour rights. For example, Article 87 states that all people have the right and duty to employment. The [[Constitution of Venezuela]] also establishes the principle of equality before the law. This is seen in Article 21 which forbids discrimination based on race, gender, religion, or socioeconomic background.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zachary |first=Elkins |last2=Ginsburg |first2=Tom |last3=Melton |first3=James |title=Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 1999 (rev. 2009) |url=https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Venezuela_2009 |website=Constitute: The Worlds Constitutions to Read, Search and Compare}}</ref> [[File:Carlos Luis Michel Fumero – Equipo de Aducarga.jpg|thumb| In 2024, 37.7% of women and 68.4% of men were employed in Venezuela <ref>{{Cite web |last=World Bank Group |date=2025 |title=Venezuela RB, Gender Data Landscape |url=https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/099033307042230164/pdf/IDU09195d3c4008210424b08c660e19297ead4fe.pdf}}</ref>]]

[[File:Carlos Luis Michel Fumero – Equipo de Aducarga.jpg|thumb| In 2024, 37.7% of women and 68.4% of men were employed in Venezuela <ref>{{Cite web |last=World Bank Group |date=2025 |title=Venezuela RB, Gender Data Landscape |url=https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/099033307042230164/pdf/IDU09195d3c4008210424b08c660e19297ead4fe.pdf}}</ref>]]

=== History ===

=== History ===

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The Venezuelan labour law regulates the relations between workers and employers by establishing their rights. It is governed by a specific legal text called the the Ley Orgánica del Trabajo, los Trabajadores y las Trabajadoras (LOTTT) which was enacted in April 2012 through the decree powers of President Chavez. It safeguards workers against discrimination by employers on the basis of protected characteristics. ^[1]

The law is underpinned by the Constitution of Venezuela which contains articles that establish labour rights. For example, Article 87 states that all people have the right and duty to employment. The Constitution of Venezuela also establishes the principle of equality before the law. This is seen in Article 21 which forbids discrimination based on race, gender, religion, or socioeconomic background.^[2]

The law marked a significant enhancement in the recognition of Venezuelan women’s rights in the workplace. Many feminist organisations influenced the provision of gender justice within the law. ^[4]

Much of Latin American feminist movements emerged in the 1970s and 1980s as a result of state programs that failed to protect women and subjected them to further hardships. These state programs typically involved neoliberal restructuring (citation), which lessened trade and labor regulations and made it more difficult to access social programs. Latin America experienced an oil, economic, and debt crisis over these two decades, inspiring a change in government. However, neoliberal restructuring had many negative effects on Latin American women, inspiring some to organize and protest such effects. Popular women played a massive role in political mobilization and community service (cite) due to their valued role as mothers. Much of their grassroots mobilization was effective in incorporating women’s rights into state discourse and policies (cite). However, women politically organizing added another weight on their lives on top of childcare, housework, and their jobs.
Venezuelan women were especially instrumental and impactful in resisting neoliberalism. Despite President Chavez’s socialist regime, he still promoted popular participation and democracy (cite). This allowed for the rise of populism, where minorities, such as popular-sector women, could be seen and heard by the government through a unitary leader. This further promoted the organization of women to collaborate for better rights. A notable organization of women was La Arana Feminista (cite), which was a group of socialist feminists who worked with the Bolivarian movement and government to represent women.

The 1999 Constitution of Venezuela was a monumental victory in securing greater rights to education, healthcare, and political representation (cite). This constitution pledged to reform the Puntofijista Organic Labor Law (cite), yet failed to follow through. As a result, La Arana Feminista and other feminist groups pushed forward for labor law reform into the 21st century. They created a labor law proposal in 2010 with the Frente Bicentenario de Mujeres (cite) that primarily focused on social security and unpaid/unacknowledged women’s labor. They asked that women who worked at home receive state-funded social security that could finance women during pregnancy, early motherhood, old age, disability, and incapacity (cite). They also proposed that social security cover paternity leave and paid leave to care for relatives in need. The National Assembly commission failed to act on this proposal; however, popular movements and organizations in support of labor law gained traction. Araña, Frente, and other feminist groups united in marches, protests, and social movements which prompted Chávez to pledge a new organic labor law the next year in 2012. Ironically, Chavez’s commission for the new labor law included only one woman and no commissioner with involvement in feminist movements. Venezuelans across the country took Chavez’s pledge as an opportunity to write their own proposals.