Extraordinary inspections in Mexico derived from the declaration of sanitary emergency due to COVID-19

The Secretary of the Department of Health established a series of extraordinary measures to confront the coronavirus, among which we can highlight the suspension of non-essential activities. For such purposes, the Secretary of the Department established the following essential activities: financial sector, tax collection, distribution and sale of energy resources, telecommunications and media, as well as activities whose suspension may have irreversible effects for their continuation, among others.

The Department of Labor and Social Welfare is the agency that must ensure compliance with this order, which must be conducted through Federal Labor inspection.

Inspections may be conducted on corporations when the authority has become aware of an alleged noncompliance with any of their labor regulations, or in case of complaints filed by their employees. Inspections can be carried out at workplaces conducting essential or non-essential activities.

In the case of workplaces conducting essential activities, the inspector will verify compliance with the following measures:

• Meetings or gatherings of no more than 50 individuals;

• Frequent hand-washing;

• Sneeze or cough etiquette maneuvers;

• Current physical distancing measures, which include no kissing, shaking hands or hugging; and

• Immediate removal from the workplace of persons over 60 years of age, women during pregnancy or immediate postpartum, or workers diagnosed with high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, chronic heart or lung disease, (acquired or induced) immunosuppression, kidney or liver failure, regardless of whether their employment activity is considered essential.

When an inspector notices open workplaces conducting activities that have not been classified as essential, he will request the legal representative to suspend the activities immediately, ordering the removal of all workers from the workplace. If the corporation refuses to suspend activities, the inspector will report this fact to the head of the Federal Labor Representative Office, who must file a complaint with the public prosecutor.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions about whether your workplace can be considered essential, the scope of the restrictions or the potential commission of crimes.