All employers in Costa Rica employing ten (10) or more workers must have an Occupational Health Commission and if they employ more than fifty (50) workers, they must have an Occupational Health Department headed by a person trained in this matter. (Articles 288 and 300 of the Labor Code).

The Occupational Health Council (CSO) of Costa Rica has recently approved a new “Regulation of occupational health commissions and departments”, and created a Digital Platform (which can be accessed on the website of the institution www.cso.go.cr) with the purpose of updating the registration procedures; for submitting mandatory reports and other acts required in relation to the Commissions and Departments of Occupational Health in the company.

The new regulation describes the procedure that must be followed for internal votes to appoint the representatives of the Commission on behalf of the workers, the applicable deadlines, minimum number of members that must integrate the Commission according to the number of active workers in the company, among other information requirements that must be completed through the Platform, as are the mandatory annual reports of the activities carried out in the previous year by the Commission and by the Department that must be submitted during the first two (2) months of each year.

The Regulation establishes the obligation of all workers to support the operation and development of the Commission or the Department; to communicate to the Commission or the Department any situation that is likely to cause damage to the health of workers; participate and collaborate in all occupational health training activities; respect and comply with the promotion, prevention, protection and surveillance measures issued by the employer and those recommended by the persons in charge of the Commission or Department, as well as not hinder the performance of the Commission or the Department.

In turn, it includes several employer obligations, such as:

a) Appointing the employers’ representatives that are required for the Commission.

b) Registering the Commission and/or Department with the CSO through the digital platform, within certain deadlines.

c) Granting the necessary time, during working hours and with pay, for the workers to participate in the election of their representatives and for the members of the Committee to perform their functions, without any surcharges for their attendance at the sessions.

d) Providing the materials, physical space and documentation required by the Commission and/or the Department for the performance of their functions.

e) Training the members of the Commission at least once a year in occupational health.

f) Attending to the improvements to the working conditions proposed by the Commission, so that, within a period of no more than thirty working days after the date of submission of the applications, the remedial action plan is issued.

g) Deregistering the Commission and/or the Department when appropriate.

h) Disseminating information on recommended measures in the field of occupational health to the working population and not obstruct their dissemination.

Based on the above, it is recommended for all companies with operations in Costa Rica to validate whether your Commissions and Department of Occupational Health are duly registered with the CSO, as well as to update as soon as possible what corresponds to comply with the provisions in force on this subject.