The Federación Nacional de Comerciantes Empresarios (Fenalco) announced on March 25 that it has filed a lawsuit seeking the annulment and provisional suspension of Decree 234 of 2026. The organization said the decree creates new rules for collective bargaining, affects fundamental rights, and disregards the authority of Congress.
According to Fenalco, this legal action matters because it challenges what the group sees as an overreach by the government in labor relations policy. The organization argues that changes to collective bargaining should be made by Congress rather than through executive decrees.
Jaime Alberto Cabal, president of Fenalco, said: “El Gobierno está legislando por decreto en un tema tan sensible como la negociación colectiva, desconociendo abiertamente al Congreso y alterando las reglas del juego para empresas y trabajadores.”
Fenalco’s complaint states that one serious issue with the decree is its inclusion of provisions previously rejected by Congress. The group says the measure imposes a mandatory multi-level model for collective bargaining not present in current law. Cabal said: “Esta configuración redefine estructuralmente el sistema de relaciones laborales en el país.”
The organization also questions new requirements for employers to share economic and strategic information with unions. Cabal stated: “El decreto obliga a las empresas a revelar información sensible sin que exista una ley que lo autorice. Esto genera inseguridad jurídica y pone en riesgo la ncompetitividad del tejido empresarial.”
Fenalco further warns that smaller unions could lose influence under new representativity rules introduced by the decree. Cabal added: “Se están restringiendo derechos fundamentales por decreto. Eso es inaceptable en un Estado de Derecho. Las reglas sobre derechos deben ser defi nidas por el Congreso, no por el Ejecutivo.”
Finally, Fenalco criticizes an obligatory economic charge on non-unionized workers resulting from sector-wide agreements—a payment they say could resemble a tax without representation or participation in negotiations.
“In síntesis, el decreto desborda la potestad reglamentaria, crea nuevas reglas de juego para la negociación colectiva, afecta derechos fundamentales y desconoce la competencia del Congreso de la República, razones por las cuales solicitó su declaratoria de nulidad y la suspensión provisional ante la jurisdicción de lo contencioso administrativo,” concluded Cabal Sanclemente.
