DOMINICAN REPUBLIC Law and Practice Contributed by: Carlos Hernández Contreras, Hernández Contreras & Herrera
Labor’s resolution do not entail risks or fines, since prior to the pandemic, case law had already validated remote work in cases such as drivers, salespeople, and even employees working outside the employer’s premises but at the employer’s client’s premises. 5.2 Sabbaticals The law allows for the suspension of an employment contract without pay, so it is common to agree to sus - pend employment for a period so that the employee can pursue a master’s degree abroad. However, the law does not specifically mention sabbatical leave. 5.3 Other New Manifestations Following the COVID-19 pandemic, new forms of services have emerged outside the scope of labour legislation, such as delivery services, Uber, and complementary services in companies, for example, supermarket packers, who themselves prefer to oper - ate outside the law because they earn more money than a permanent employee in the same company. The same is true for loaders and dispatchers of goods that arrive at the company or are taken to the compa - ny’s customers. Another trend is that goods distribu - tion services are being performed by individuals (and even companies) not subject to labour legislation. Trade unions are practically non-existent. Dominican workers are not interested in union membership. How - ever, there are still some unions in the country, 95% of which were created in the last century and are made up of older workers. 6.2 Employee Representative Bodies Local legislation does not provide for worker represen - tation bodies, with the exception of the Joint Health and Safety Committee, composed of representatives of the company and the workers, which only operates in companies with 15 or more employees. 6.3 Collective Bargaining Agreements Collective bargaining is practically non-existent in the country. Only a few large companies have collective agreements. Furthermore, with the exception of two 6. Collective Relations 6.1 Unions
or three cases, all existing collective agreements date back to the last century.
7. Termination 7.1 Grounds for Termination
The law provides for the “ desahucio ” (or discretionary dismissal), which allows the employer to terminate the employee without having to give a reason, provided that advance notice is given and severance pay is paid. On the other hand, there is disciplinary dismissal, which allows the employer to terminate the contract on the grounds of serious misconduct, in which case they must prove such misconduct, and if they fail to do so, they are obliged to pay severance pay and other compensations. There is no prior procedure for desahucio or discipli - nary dismissal. 7.2 Notice Periods If the employment contract is for three months, the employer must give seven days’ notice; if the contract is for six months, the notice period must be 14 days, and if the contract reaches one year, the notice period must be 28 days. And, if the employer does not wish to give the days’ notice, they are obliged to pay the salary equivalent to those days. In addition, the employer must pay severance pay as follows: • if the contract is for three months, they must pay six days’ salary; • if it is for six months, they must pay 13 days’ sal - ary; • if it is for one to four years, they must pay 21 days’ salary for each year; and • if the contract is for five or more years, they must pay 23 days for each year. 7.3 Dismissal for (Serious) Cause Disciplinary dismissal is possible if the employee com - mits any of the 19 offences listed in Article 88 of the
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