Costa Rican Deputy Villalobos supports controversial labor law

Costa Rican Deputy José Miguel Villalobos of the Pueblo Soberano party voted in favor of the Labor Responsibility Law for State Contractors during its second debate, despite expressing strong personal opposition to the bill's design.

Villalobos criticized the text as being poorly drafted, specifically regarding the reform to Article 119 of the General Public Procurement Law. He warned that the current wording is excessively broad, potentially allowing minor labor infractions—such as a single day's delay in salary payments—to trigger a ban on a company's ability to contract with the State for six months to two years.

While he described the project as “esperpéntico” (grotesque) and stated he would have voted against it based on his personal convictions, he explained that he chose to support it due to party discipline and the political necessity of maintaining negotiations within his legislative fraction.