Teleworking expenses will be subject to negotiation by the parties

The new Law of Telecommuting, which entered into force last January, already has regulations. From now on, employers will have 60 calendar days, counted from February 27, to adapt to this new form of labor normality, which employed some 227,000 people until September 2022. However, those in the public sector can continue with remote work during this period.

What novelties does the new regulation bring? Among the most important, the Vinatea & Toyama Study mentions that the company must assume the costs of teleworking, but an agreement to the contrary is possible. Thus, the most common modality in practice, in which the company delivers the laptop and assumes software license and antivirus costs and the worker assumes Wi-Fi, energy, etc., is viable; but, if there is no written agreement, it is recommended to have one.

Regarding privacy during the day, unless authorized by the worker, there is reserve on documents, communications, recordings, etc. If the work requires captures or recordings, it must be previously reported. With the exception of work verification, you cannot enter the worker’s home unless there is an authorization.

Comprehensive teleworking

In addition, the right to digital disconnection is maintained for 12 consecutive hours, except in unforeseen circumstances, force majeure or special cases.

Be careful, the company’s decision to include or exclude teleworking cannot be arbitrary or unjustified. The company You can change modality if there is a justified cause, 10 days in advance. When the change is requested by the worker, it must be resolved within 10 days after the request (if there is no response, the change is considered approved).

But the company must not only take care of the tools, but also the well-being of the worker, as if it were a face-to-face job. The Ministry of Labor and Employment Promotion (MTPE) indicates that the company has the same obligations as those established for workers or civil servants who work in person, depending on the type of regime to which each teleworker belongs. This is the case of accidents at work, even at home.

Aymé Límaco, head of the labor area of cuatrecasasexplains that the teleworker must demonstrate that the injury or damage to health occurred in the workplace, within working hours and with the work tools used for their work.

In this way, domestic accidents that do not occur due to or on the occasion of employment, even if they occur in the place intended for teleworking, will not be considered as work accidents.

Finally, in the event that teleworking is carried out out From Peru, The parties agree on the specific conditions of said modality, guaranteeing compliance with the corresponding labor, immigration and tax regulations.

The numbers

227,000 teleworkers existed until September 2022, the majority in the service sector.

27% telework mixed; that is, they attend a few days in person.

Teleworking arrived in Peru to stay

Teleworking is voluntary for the company and worker. In the absence of agreement, it is face-to-face. There is a preference for teleworking for vulnerable personnel, but if there is no possibility, this modality should be rejected.

The teleworker is obliged to report the work carried out within their shift to the employer. The latter establishes the mechanisms.

Serious fines (1.57 UIT per worker) are foreseen for unjustified changes to teleworking, not compensating expenses, rejection of vulnerable personnel, etc. For the affectation of privacy and disconnection, the fines are very serious (2.63 UIT per worker).