80-20 regulation: considered from a practical point of view

The draft State Ordinance 80-20 regulation and its amendment was approved  by Parliament on September 14, 2011. However before this regulation can take effect, certain steps in  the legislation process still have to be completed . The 80 -20 regulation will not take effect until  the legislation process has been completed and the  regulation promulgated in the Official Gazette.

The 80-20 regulation requires  the employer in Curaçao  to have at least 80% of its jobs   fulfilled by local workers, for the other 20% the employer is free in its choice. The purpose of this regulation is to promote a fair chance of employment for the local population.

In the 80-20 regulation, a local worker is defined as a person performing work in Curaçao pursuant to  an employment contract and:

a.   who has the Dutch nationality and was born in Curaçao; or

b.   whose father or mother has  the Dutch nationality and who was born in Curaçao; or

c.   who has the Dutch nationality and was born in Aruba, Bonaire, Saba, Statia, or St. Maarten and who has been residing in Curaçao prior to October 10, 2010; or

d.   who is eighteen years  or older and has lived in Curaçao for at least five consecutive years with the required permit. Persons belonging to  this category must be sufficiently settled in, meaning that at any rate  these persons must have sufficient verbal and written skills in Papiamentu and sufficient knowledge of the Curaçao community. The requirements as to the level of knowledge and skills and the manner in which this will be tested shall be laid down in a separate decree.. The Explanatory Memorandum to the draft  regulation indicates that “sufficiently settled in” means to be able to read, write, speak, and understand Papiamentu and to have knowledge of Curaçao , values and standards.

The Minister of Social Development, Labor and Welfare can grant exemption from the 80-20 requirement upon request of the employer.

The Minister of Social Development, Labor and Welfare designates officials charged with the supervision over the compliance. These supervisory officials have the following powers, in as far as necessary for the fulfillment of their task:

a.    they can demand information;

b.    they can demand inspection of all books, documents and other data-carriers and take copies hereof with them or take these documents  with them temporarily;

c.     they can enter any place (with the exception of dwellings) without explicit permission of the occupant, if necessary with the assistance of the police.
 
The 80-20 regulation distinguishes intentional violation thereof, which is considered a crime, and unintentional violation, which is considered an offense. In the first case, imprisonment not exceeding 4 years, a penalty not exceeding 100,000 guilders, or both punishments can be imposed. In case of an offense, imprisonment not exceeding 3 months, a penalty not exceeding 25,000 guilders, or both punishments can be imposed.

After the 80-20 regulation becomes effective, the employer will have a maximum period of six months, commencing from the date the regulation has taken effect, to comply  with the requirement that  at least 80% of the jobs should be fulfilled by local workers.

For more information or questions, please contact VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne.

Molly Steward
Tel: +5999 461 3400 ext 231
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Mayesi Hammoud
Tel: +5999 461 3400 ext 271
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