Peru Regulates Remote Working, Pleasing Employers and Employees

Peru enacted a law to regulate remote working, creating what analysts describe as “a level playing field” for both employers and employees.

Under the new legislation, a remote worker will enjoy the same rights and benefits as his colleagues who work in a traditional office.

More importantly, teleworking will be voluntary and reversible, meaning a remote worker can choose to work at the office a few months or years later, and vice versa.

In similar fashion to other countries in the region, the Peruvian law requires the employer to pay for Internet and electricity bills in behalf of remote workers.

The enactment comes as an increasing number of Peruvians choose to work from home even in the absence of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As many as 230,000 people registered to work remotely in the country as of June 2022, according to the Ministry of Labour and Employment Promotion, up from 143,000 in 2020.

The law gives employers all the power to deny any request for remote work. However, they cannot wait more than a week to notify their decision to the employee.

Remote working was largely unheard of in Peru before the pandemic. In mid-2020, the government issued an emergency decree, allowing people to work remotely.