GUATEMALA Law and Practice Contributed by: Ignacio Andrade Aycinena, Alejandro Solares Solares, Claudia Pontaza Rubio and Lester Meda Ruano, Lex Atlas
Restrictions regarding land ownership in Guatemala’s coastal areas and frontiers continue to exist in Guate - mala’s Constitution. 2.4 Antitrust Regulations Antitrust regulations will enter into force in Guatemala on 9 December 2026 and prohibit as absolute prac - tices the following activities related to price fixing and collusive behaviour: • price fixing; • division of the market among offerors; • limiting or fixing production limits; The following practices are prohibited when proven as relative practices, but may be justified and excepted: • imposing a price or margin between a producer and distributor; • imposing as a condition not acquiring, selling or commercialising other parties’ products or ser - vices; • selling under variable average cost; • measures taken by economic agents that increase costs for other economic agents; • setting up discriminate prices or sales conditions for different types of buyers of goods or services; • restricting access to essential goods or services needed for the manufacture of any products or to provide services; • joint efforts by economic agents to pressurise other economic agents, to refuse the sale of products to another economic agent, or reprisal measures; and • efforts by economic agents with a dominant posi - tion on a market to deny access to a professional or producers’ association, creating obstacles for other economic agents either already in or trying to access said market. 2.5 Labour Law Regulations Three issued stand out regarding labour matters in M&A. • supply or distribution of products; and • concerted efforts in a bidding process. • The fact that a labour contract or relationship is deemed to exist even if disguised under a profes - sional services relationship or any type of services
agreement. For as long as there is a personal obligation to render services and some degree of subordination and obedience to the instructions of the other party, the relationship may be deemed as labour. Payments made under such contracts would be deemed as salary, and, based on such amounts, other fringe benefits such as severance pay, annual paid vacation, and Christmas and July bonuses do arise and remain contingent. • Matters relating to the rights of employees granted under collective bargaining agreements which have not been renewed due to unions that are dormant or have ceased to exist. • Matters relating to payments made to employees as “incentive bonuses”, which carry with them matters related to potential social security claims, claims regarding severance pay and other fringe benefits unpaid on these, which, according to International Labour Organization (ILO) Agreement 95, form part of an employee’s salary. Labour rights (salary, benefits, bonuses, vacations, unionisation, striking, etc) are considered human rights, and are recognised in the Constitution of the Republic of Guatemala. Also, the country is part of the ILO and has ratified international agreements that protect workers’ rights. Workers’ rights are minimum guarantees that enhance more favourable benefits and cannot be waived at a later stage. Some of the most important labour laws in Guatemala are: • the Labour Code, which includes the rights and obligations of employers and workers, as well as processes to resolve disputes in labour matters; • the Organic Law of the Social Security Institute of Guatemala, which establishes the social secu - rity regime – Decree 295 (old age, disability and survival) – for workers and regulations issued by its board of directors; • Governmental Agreement 221-94; the Regulation for the Negotiation, Homologation and Denuncia - tion Procedure of the Collective Pacts of Working Conditions of Company or Certain Production Centre; and
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