Background:
The Organic Law of Humanitarian Support to Combat the Humanitarian Crisis Derived from COVID-19 (“LOAH”), in Article 19, created the so-called “special emergency employment contract,” a fixed-term employment modality with a maximum duration of one year, renewable only once for the same term.
In practice, an important legal question arose: what happens when a special emergency contract expires while the employee is pregnant or in a breastfeeding period? Several judicial claims addressed this issue.
Constitutional Court’s Decision
Through Judgment No. 36-22-CN/26 dated May 14, 2026, the Constitutional Court of Ecuador resolved the constitutional consultations and determined that broad constitutional protection must be granted, not limited solely to verifying whether the termination was caused by pregnancy, but rather considering the employee’s situation comprehensively.
The Court established that, when a special emergency employment contract expires while the employee is pregnant or breastfeeding, there are two constitutionally valid alternatives:
The first option is to extend the employment contract until the end of the breastfeeding period, without transforming the special emergency contract into an indefinite-term contract.
The second option is for the employer to use other employment modalities that guarantee continuity of the employment relationship under the same or better working conditions, position, and remuneration until the end of the breastfeeding period
Both alternatives apply specifically when the contract termination is due to the expiration of its term and the employee is pregnant or breastfeeding.
Important Considerations
It is important to note that this judgment does not change the legal nature of the special emergency employment contract or convert it into an indefinite-term agreement. Rather, it prevents termination due to expiration of the term while the employee is pregnant, in maternity, and/or breastfeeding periods, extending the term until th breastfeeding period concludes. Once this period ends, the contract may terminate upon expiration of the term without being considered wrongful dismissal or triggering the corresponding severance payments.
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