COUNTRY

Written Agreements

Bolivia’s labor law recognizes oral and written contracts. Written contracts must be registered with the Bolivian labor ministry and authorized by a labor inspector or higher administrative authority. Fixed-term contracts must be in writing and receive approval from the Ministry of Labor.

Written contracts must include the following mandatory provisions:

• Employer's contact details
• Employee's age, nationality, and domicile
• Nature of service or task
• Place where service or task will be performed
• Working hours
• Compensation
• Duration of contract
• Termination conditions
• Place and date of employment contract

Oral Agreements

Bolivia’s labor law recognizes oral and written contracts. Oral contracts are assumed to be indefinite unless otherwise specified. Written contracts need to be authorized by a labor authority or the administrative authority to be legally valid. Fixed-term contracts must be in writing and receive approval from the Ministry of Labor. Temporary employment might not require a formal written contract.

Implied Agreements

An employment contract can be established verbally or in writing, and its existence can be proven through any legal means. This contract serves as the governing law for both parties as long as it's legally valid. In the absence of specific terms, the contract will be interpreted based on local customs and practices.

The effective work day must not exceed 8 hours a day and 48 hours a week over a 6-day work week. Women and minors cannot work more than 40 hours a week during the day. Exceptions apply to employees or workers in management, surveillance, or confidential positions, those working discontinuously, or those who perform tasks that, by their nature, cannot be subjected to work days. In such cases, the maximum number of work hours is 12 per day.

The working day hours can be increased in the event of force majeure.

The ordinary workday must be interrupted by 1 or more breaks amounting to a total of 2 hours. It is prohibited to work for more than 5 continuous hours without a break.

Employees in Bolivia are entitled to paid annual leave, which varies based on their length of service:

• 1 week for 1-5 years of service
• 2 weeks for 5-10 years of service
• 3 weeks for 10-20 years of service
• 1 month after 20 years of service

Annual leave cannot be compensated in money, except in the case of employment contract termination. It cannot be accumulated or carried over except by mutual agreement in writing.

In Bolivia, employees are eligible for 26 weeks of paid sick leave annually. Employers must cover 100% of regular pay during this period. However, starting on the 4th day of illness, Social Security reimburses 75% of the employer's costs, provided a medical certificate is submitted within 48 hours of the initial illness. The leave can be extended for another 26 weeks if this avoids a state of disability for the employee.

Female employees in Bolivia are entitled to 90 days of maternity leave, split into 45 days before the expected date of birth and 45 days after delivery. They are entitled to 100% of their salary during these 90 days. Employers can claim reimbursement for 90% of the salary they pay during this period from the Bolivian Social Security system.

Female employees are protected from dismissal during pregnancy and up to 1 year after childbirth. Mothers are granted time off for breastfeeding during working hours, at least 1 hour a day, until the child reaches 12 months of age.

Bolivia grants fathers 3 days of paid paternity leave after the birth of a child. To be eligible for paternity leave, fathers must present to their employer an accredited birth certificate. Legal partners are also eligible for this leave.

Similar to female employees, male employees are also protected from dismissal until the child becomes 1 year old.

Minimum Wage

The General Labor Law of Bolivia prohibits employers to pay their employees less than the statutory minimum wage. The national minimum wage is BOB 2,500 (Bolivia bolivians) per month. The minimum wage is determined after a negotiation between the national government and the Bolivian Workers' Central (COB).

Overtime, Holiday & Vacation Pay

Overtime work refers to hours worked beyond the standard workday of 8 hours per day or 48 hours per week for men, or 40 hours per week for women and children. The employer must request from the Labor Inspectorate permission for overtime hours, which cannot exceed 2 hours per day.

The Law requires that overtime work be compensated at a rate of 100% on top of the regular wage, or double the regular hourly rate for each hour worked. This includes working on weekends and public holidays.

Notice Period

Either party can terminate the employment contract with proper notice as outlined in the General Labor Law, which provides for different notice periods for indefinite contracts according to whether it is a worker or an employee (employees often work in an office on a set schedule and special circumstances and primarily perform intellectual work, workers provide material or manual services), and their employment period at the time of termination:

• 1 week’s notice for a worker with 1 month of uninterrupted work
• 15 days' notice for a worker with 6 months of uninterrupted work
• 30 days' notice for a worker with over a year of uninterrupted work
• 30 days’ notice by the employee to the employer
• 90 days’ notice by the employer to the employee after 3 months of uninterrupted work

The party that fails to give notice shall pay an amount equivalent to the salary or wage for the established periods.

Severance Benefits

In Bolivia, employees dismissed unfairly or for reasons beyond their control are entitled to severance benefits. This includes 1 month’s salary for each year of continuance service or its proportional amount for months of service if less than a year within 15 days of dismissal. They are not entitled to severance pay if they are fairly dismissed, dismissed during the probationary period, or voluntarily resign. However, if the employee or worker has more than 8 years of service, they are entitled to receive severance pay even if they resign or retire voluntarily.

In addition to pay, severance benefits include accrued vacation time, bonuses, 13th-month salary or bonus, and social security benefits.

Pension

Bolivia established a comprehensive pension system in 2010, designed to provide retirement benefits to a wide range of its citizens. This system is comprised of 3 regimes:

• Contributory Regime: This regime is funded by contributions from both employees and employers. It offers a variety of benefits, including old-age pensions, disability benefits, and survivor benefits. To qualify for old-age benefits, individuals must meet specific age and contribution requirements. The amount of the pension is determined by the individual's accumulated savings and the number of years of contributions.
• Semi-Contributory Regime: This regime is designed to provide additional protection to low-income employees. To be eligible for solidarity benefit, the insured must be at least 58 years of age, and must have paid contributions for at least 120 months, but not long enough to be eligible for long-term social security contributory pension. Benefits under this regime are typically lower than those under the contributory regime.
• Universal Non-Contributory Regime: This regime provides a basic income, known as the Dignity Income, to elderly individuals who do not qualify for benefits under the other two regimes. The amount of pension is BOB 4,550 (Bolivian Boliviano) per year for those who do not receive any other pension, and BOB 3,900 per year for those who receive pension.

Dependents/Survivors Benefits

The Bolivian Comprehensive Pension System provides death benefits to surviving beneficiaries of insured members. First-degree beneficiaries include spouses and children who have priority and receive both life and temporary pensions. Second-degree beneficiaries, like parents and minor siblings, are also eligible for benefits without explicit declaration by the insured. Third-degree beneficiaries, who are freely declared by the insured, can only access the accumulated balance.

In case of death due to common risk, the deceased insured must meet specific age and contribution requirements. The pension amount is calculated based on a percentage of their salary risk reference. For deaths due to occupational risk, the deceased dependent must have been under 65, and the death must occur during or shortly after employment. The pension amount, in this case, is based on 100% of the deceased's salary risk reference. Both types of death benefits include coverage for funeral expenses.

Invalidity Benefits

Insured employees in Bolivia's Comprehensive Pension System are eligible for disability benefits if they become temporarily or permanently disabled resulting from either common risks or occupational risks.

The disability benefit for common risk is granted in the event of partial disability or permanent total disability due to an accident and/or illness not arising from occupational risk. To be eligible for disability benefits, insured employees must meet the following criteria: they must be under 65 years of age, have at least 60 paid contributions to the Distribution System, Mandatory Long-Term Social Security, or Comprehensive Pension System, and experience a disability while premiums are being paid or within a year of their cessation. Additionally, the degree of disability must exceed 50%. The pension amount for the insured is determined based on their disability grade and Risk Salary Reference.

Disability benefits for occupational risks are provided for partial or permanent total disability, provided the insured is under 65, have a disability degree exceeding 10% due to professional causes, and being employed at the time of the occupational accident or within a year of leaving employment in case of occupational disease. The pension or compensation amount is determined by the disability grade and Risk Salary Reference, with 100% pension for 60% or higher disability, a calculated pension for 25-60% disability, and a one-time compensation for 10-25% disability.