VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHTG #0432/01 0652027
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 062027Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY TEGUCIGALPA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1306
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC PRIORITY
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS TEGUCIGALPA 000432 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/PPC PUCCETTI AND DRL/IL DEL VECCHIO 
STATE FOR WHA/CEN AND WHA/EPSC 
STATE PASS USAID FOR LAC/RSD: BARRY MACDONALD 
DEPT. OF LABOR FOR ILAB: JANE RICHARDS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB ETRD EAID ECON PGOV KJUS HO
SUBJECT: Proposal for Strengthening Honduran Judicial 
Procedures for Labor Cases 
 
Reftel: SECSTATE 26123 
 
¶1. Summary: As per the referenced cable, Congress 
appropriated $40 million ($20 million in ESF and $20 million 
in DA) in FY 2006 for trade capacity building in CAFTA-DR 
countries to be used in the areas of labor and the 
environment.  This proposal is the third of three 
USAID/Honduras responses to the request for input and ideas 
for projects that meet the labor and environment trade 
capacity building priorities for Honduras.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. Justification: When labor cases reach the courts, the 
principal complaint throughout the DR-CAFTA region is the 
length of time required to obtain a judgment.  Almost all 
proceedings rely on written arguments and processes.  Where 
oral procedures exist, they are often ignored or lapse back 
into written argument.  Conciliation, which could also 
shorten outcomes, is often a formality that is not usually 
given serious consideration.  Antiquated case management 
systems impede cases from moving forward rapidly.  In 
Honduras, the number of courts and the personnel to staff 
them are inadequate.  There are four first instance labor 
judges in Tegucigalpa, four in San Pedro Sula, two in La 
Ceiba and one in Cortes.  In the rest of the country labor 
justice is provided by judges with multiple specializations 
covering a wide range of legal areas, not exclusively labor. 
Additional judicial processes are found in the Appeals 
Courts and the Labor Division of the Supreme Court.  There 
are two Labor Law Specialist Judges on the Supreme Court. 
Cases can take anywhere from three to five years to proceed 
through the labor courts, appeals courts, and labor division 
of the Supreme Court. 
 
3A. Description: This program will focus on enhancing the 
capacity of the labor court system in Honduras to hear labor 
cases and come to judgment as expeditiously as possible. 
The most significant components to be addressed by this 
program, mentioned specifically for Honduras in the regional 
labor ministers' White Paper, in recent dialogue with the 
ministers and their staffs, and in a recent USAID 
assessment, are: 
 
3B. Labor Courts - Training: Although the Honduran labor 
code establishes that the labor justice process is oral and 
public, in practice the oral process is not utilized, 
resulting in delays in procedures.  This is due to lack of 
understanding and commitment to the oral process, as well as 
insufficient physical space and resources for holding verbal 
hearings.  Judges, public defenders, and private attorneys 
need to receive training in the oral process in labor cases 
to improve oral proceedings and the Supreme Court must 
provide leadership and direction to compel judges to conduct 
oral processes.  Despite the significant progress made in 
modernizing and improving labor law administration in 
Honduras, additional progress needs to be made in improving 
the awareness of international labor standards by labor, 
civil court judges and prosecutors.  An additional training 
program will be established with the International Labor 
Organization (ILO) for judges and others involved in labor 
law administration on national labor law and international 
standards.  This effort could be built upon the cooperative 
training program that the Ministry of Labor has established 
with the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH). 
 
3C. Labor Law Changes: A legislative package is being 
developed by the Ministry of Labor that will further 
harmonize Honduran law with ILO norms on fundamental labor 
rights.  It will be necessary to complete the analysis and 
consultation on reforms by the GOH's Council on Economic and 
Social Issues.  The outcome of these consultations, plus the 
position of the Labor Ministry, must be presented to 
Congress in order for them to complete the legislative 
process.  In addition, ILO support will be sought to define 
appropriate labor code reform and consensus-building for 
enactment of any such changes.  Support from labor unions 
and employer's organizations, as well as other civil society 
organizations, will be critical to passage of any proposed 
changes in the labor law. 
 
3D. Labor Ministry - New Authorization Law: The proposed new 
organic law ("Ley Organica Administrativa de la Secretaria 
del Trabajo y Seguridad Social") has been reported favorably 
by the Labor Committee, and is now pending for discussion 
and approval on the floor in Congress.  This law would give 
clear authority to the Ministry to impose sanctions for 
violations of the labor law, rather than going through a 
 
court.  Passage of the pending new authorization law for the 
Ministry of Labor will be promoted through labor unions and 
employer's organizations, as well as other civil society 
organizations. 
 
3E. Labor Ministry - Inspectorate: The labor inspectorate 
has salary limitations due to a lower classification within 
the civil service.  The personnel system of the labor 
ministry inspectorate will be reformed to reclassify and 
improve their career status within the civil service so they 
have improved overall conditions and salary.  These improved 
conditions will attract higher qualified applicants. 
 
3F. Mediation and Conciliation: The judges' lack of 
understanding of the techniques of conciliation often 
hinders the possibility of a more rapid resolution of the 
conflict.  The phase of obligatory conciliation in the 
courts is not carried out following any technical 
guidelines.  Judges tend to give directives rather than 
conciliate.  Another problem has been the custom practiced 
by lawyers and judges to carry out the process in writing 
thereby ignoring the oral procedural process mandated by 
law.  In addition, the Ministry has a limited capacity to 
perform its mediation and conciliation function.  An 
increase in the budgetary resources for mediation and 
conciliation as well as a training program should be sought 
in order to strengthen the conciliation process. 
 
3G. Gender and Discrimination: Strengthening the 
implementation of the laws in this area is critical.  There 
is a need to train judges and other involved officials on 
the proper application of anti-discrimination legislation. 
There is also a need for programs to educate women workers 
on their labor rights and the procedures available to 
protect them.  Training programs on anti-discrimination laws 
for judges and other officials need to be implemented.  It 
is also necessary to develop programs to educate women 
workers on their labor rights and the procedures available 
to protect them. 
 
3H. Promoting a Culture of Compliance - Training and 
Dialogue: In the last few years Honduras has made 
significant efforts to increase social dialogue and 
consensus building on workplace issues through the new 
Council on Economic and Social Issues.  But more progress 
could be made in strengthening the role and impact of this 
important institution.  It will be necessary to implement a 
program of training and dialogue development for members of 
the Council on Economic and Social Issues intended to 
enhance their effectiveness.  In addition there is a need to 
establish a "Mobile Labor System" focused on advancing 
compliance with fundamental labor standards in the key 
sectors of the economy with broader geographic coverage. 
 
¶4. Other components of this program of lesser priority 
include: 1) strengthening information systems so that judges 
can have access to the body of law that forms precedent in 
the labor field; 2) developing or strengthening of small 
claims systems that can relieve the case burden on the 
regular courts; 3) creating or strengthening systems that 
provide legal assistance to poor workers so that all 
plaintiffs are well represented before the law; and 4) 
developing recommendations related to the overall structure 
and staffing of the courts.  Technical assistance, training 
and equipment will be provided as required to examine the 
needs for improvement, recommend a course of action, and 
assist the courts and ministries of justice in implementing 
agreed changes 
 
¶5. Estimated Cost:  $3,000,000 (three-year program period). 
 
¶6. Advancing U.S. Policy Objectives:  The courts are an 
integral part of the process of ensuring that each country 
has the ability to uphold international core labor 
standards, the key U.S. policy interest.  Speed and 
efficiency in adjudicating cases involving national labor 
law linked to those standards is critical to increasing 
public confidence that each country has the capacity and the 
will to effectively enforce the law. 
 
¶7.  New or Related to Previous Work: This program is linked 
to work that will be carried out by USAID to strengthen 
judicial procedures using FY 05 labor earmark funds.  This 
project will build upon the work of the Cumple y Gana 
project in alternative conflict resolution. 
 
¶8. Local Buy-In:   Specific activities under this proposal 
on a country-by-country basis have been vetted with 
representatives of the Ministry of Labor, confirming 
previous interest established in the White Paper or in other 
contacts with these officials. 
 
¶9. Public Diplomacy Strategies: Overall improvements in 
court efficiency in the handling of labor cases, as measured 
both in terms of improvement in volume of cases handled and 
the average length of time required to reach judgment can be 
the subject of media reporting.  Any physical improvements 
in the courts such as the installation of new case 
management tools and associated equipment may also be 
opportunities for media attention. 
Ford