USMCA will enter into force on July 1, 2020

On April 24, 2020, the United States of America notified Mexico and Canada that it had completed its domestic procedures for the entry into force of the Mexico, United States of America and Canada Agreement (USMCA), which means that everything is ready for the Agreement to enter into force.

It is foreseen that the Agreement will enter into force on July 1 of the current year. The Agreement provides for a strong monitoring program through an Interagency Committee, responsible for actively monitoring compliance with the Labor chapter by Mexico.

In line with the entry into force of the USMCA, we must remember that the fulfilment of the Labor Reform (DOF 1/05/19) also gains importance, which represents the achievement of the following objectives:

• The transition to an effective union democracy by introducing transparency in the election of union leaders and accountability regarding the activities of unions.

• The eradication of the so-called “protection agreements” executed without obtaining the workers' consent.

• The guarantee for an effective collective bargaining, where collective agreements and their reviews will be approved by a majority of workers through personal, free, direct and secret vote.

• The establishment of an effective, transparent and independent labor justice system by establishing autonomous entities for labor conciliation, and transferring the duties of the Executive Branch to the Judicial Branch with the creation of labor courts.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns on the obligations that the corporation should fulfil within the framework of the new Labor Reform, and the manner to fulfill them.