Council of State suspends rules on bargaining between unions and company groups

At a glance

• The Council of State provisionally suspended Decree 234 of 2026 (Decree).
• The decree's special obligations cannot be enforced until the Council of State reaches a final decision.
• The right to bargain with unions remains in force. Demands from company, industry and occupational unions continue through the ordinary process under the Colombian Labour Code.
• The suspension does not allow employers to disregard existing collective agreements.

On 1 October 2026, the Council of State provisionally suspended the Decree, which established rules for collective bargaining above the company level, ie between unions and groups of companies or economic sectors.

While the Council of State makes a final decision, the special obligations in the decree cannot be enforced.

These include:

• forming a single bargaining table and submitting a single set of demands for an entire sector;
• applying sector-wide minimum standards to all companies in that sector; and
• providing the economic information required by the decree.

The right to bargain with unions remains in force. Accordingly, demands submitted by company, industry, or occupational unions continue through the ordinary process under the Colombian Labour Code. The suspension also does not permit existing collective agreements to be disregarded.

Companies that participated in sector-level bargaining, signed an agreement, or provided information under the suspended decree should review their specific circumstances, since the suspension is provisional and the final ruling could either annul or uphold the decree.