Panama's Minister of Labor on Call Center Worker Death Investigation

The Minister of Labor and Labor Development, Jackeline Muñoz, commented on the statements of some deputies of the National Assembly regarding the death of a call center worker, stating that the information they have is inaccurate. Nevertheless, relevant investigations are being carried out to determine responsibility in the case. She reiterated that the entity is in charge of overseeing labor relations between the employer and the worker, complying with the competent authorities in the face of filed complaints, but they cannot act without having the evidence that proves the fact. The minister explained that the deceased young man had not been hired by the company in question, was in a training stage, and had previous health problems; therefore, the case remains under investigation. “Deputies cannot, by trying to gain popular acceptance, say things, because behind each family that loses someone there is a grieving person, so we cannot say things that are not true, the Ministry of Labor will not allow it,” she said. The death of Pedro Pablo Rodríguez, allegedly under irregular circumstances, has motivated citizens and deputies to demand stricter supervision of these work centers. Additionally, she said that the working conditions in these spaces expose many young people to high-stress shifts and unacceptable practices. She pointed out that it is ‘irresponsible’ for the Ministry of Labor and Labor Development (Mitradel) to take action before obtaining the results of the investigations corresponding to the Public Ministry; therefore, she requested the deputies to refrain from spreading erroneous information to gain followers. The head of Mitradel indicated that so far this year, it has carried out 5 inspections of the company, of which 4 are in executor courts and 1 in a conviction, but none of them are related to workplace harassment issues. One of them was Deputy Neftalí Zamora, who stressed that what happened must be thoroughly investigated.