In rural areas, layoffs act as Compulsory fund that supports the employee in times of unemployment or is used to finance education and housingin accordance with the substantive Labor Code.
Although its nature cannot be grasped, this has been established The rule takes into account certain circumstances in which this resource may be withheld by court order.
The first exception, recognized as the most commoncorresponds to cases of food debt.
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Laws contained in the Children and Youth Act allow judges to order the confiscation of severance pay if an employee defaults on child support payments.
The prerequisite for this is that there is a court-determined obligation towards a minor or a legally recognized beneficiary. Once the debts are verified, The judge may authorize the use of savings as a mechanism to cover violations.
Both Porvenir and Colfondos pointed this out in their attention lines Such withholding is only possible through a court decision or order.thereby making it clear that the creditor’s application or proceedings before various bodies are not valid to initiate the process. The health insurance companies emphasized that the procedure requires formal support from the responsible authority.
The second situation provided for by law relates to material damage proven to the employer. This applies if an employee causes damage in the course of their work that is quantifiable and can be directly attributed to their actions. In these cases, a judge is responsible for deciding whether the debt should be covered by a severance payment. To do this, damage must be proven and a decision issued allowing funds to be withheld.
In this exception applies: The pension fund is entitled to withhold the amount required to cover the severance paymentas long as there is a legally binding judgment or court decision. Without this order, the employer cannot demand withholding and a private agreement to activate this collection mechanism is not valid.
W radio He also explained that apart from these two causes It is not possible to seize the severance payment for any other type of debt. Bank debts, private loans, reports in risk centers, tax debts, collections by government entities, late rents or non-payment of public services do not allow any actor to demand retention of these labor savings.
The pension funds confirmed this Any attempt at seizure for reasons other than those provided by law will be rejected.as the protection of these savings remains intact in all other scenarios. For employees, this means that the use and use of severance pay remains strictly regulated, with the aim of ensuring that this resource retains its social and work purpose.
The Asofondos union recalled that in 2020, affiliated workers deducted more than 6.2 billion pesos from their severance pay for permitted purposes, showing the importance of savings in the economic structure of Colombian households. These funds play a key role in supporting training, employment or housing improvement processes, as well as meeting needs resulting from job losses.
According to the current regulations, dismissals continue to be a protected instrument, except in the two exceptional situations described, in which the burden of decision rests exclusively with the judges of the Republic. The Funds reiterate that all actions must be carried out in accordance with the legal framework, both to protect members and to ensure compliance with the obligations established by the competent authority.
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