striking a balance between the interests at stake and the level of sacrifice required from one party compared
to the level of benefit of the other. 67
90. As for the legitimate goal, the IACHR believes that, in principle, the requirements for prior voting by the
workers to undertake strikes is aimed at ensuring that they benefit from the collective endorsement of the
workers in their call for labor rights, which is a legitimate goal. Furthermore, in terms of suitability, the IACHR
considers that the measure contributes, to a certain extent, to securing the goal indicated because the meaning
of the voting highlights the will to go on strike.
91. Regarding the requirement of necessity, the IACHR underscores that there are less restrictive measures to
achieve the goal proposed, such as establishing simple or relative majorities of the workers present in the vote,
as set forth by the ILO Committee of Experts. Taking into account that the requirement of necessity has not
been met, it would not be necessary to review the requirement of proportionality in the strict sense; however,
the Commission notes that the requirement that workers account for at least two thirds of the total employees
of the Judiciary constituted a severe restriction on the right to strike which could be construed, in practice, as
rendering it meaningless.
92. Considering that the majority requirement referred to in the preceding paragraphs does not comply with
the principle of proportionality, and that the consideration of said requirement was inherent and fundamental
to the pronouncement of the legality of the strike by a competent body, for the IACHR it becomes unnecessary
to assess whether the workers did not wait for said pronouncement to carry out the strike since in any case,
the decision on the legality or not of the strike would have been based on a requirement that does not comply
with international standards.
93. Likewise, for the IACHR it does not go unnoticed that the direct consequence of declaring the strike illegal
was the collective dismissal of the workers identified in this petition. In that sense, considering that for the
IACHR the State violated the right to strike, and that the corresponding authorities based the dismissals on the
execution of the strike, there are also sufficient elements to declare the violation of the right to work 68 of the
dismissed workers identified in this report.
94. Notwithstanding the above, the Commission notes that the state remedied this violation against 28
persons, who were rehired and whose names appear on the list that is attached to the present report.
95. Based on the foregoing considerations, the Commission concludes that the State violated the rights to strike
and work contained in Article 26 of the American Convention in relation to the obligations established in
Articles 1.1 and 2 of the same instrument, to the detriment of the 65 workers who were dismissed for
participating in it.
D. The right to judicial protection 69
96. The IACHR recall that the state has the general obligation of providing effective judicial remedies to
persons who allege they are victims of human rights violations (Article 25), which must be substantiated
according to the rules of due process of law (Article 8.1). So that remedy can be effective, it is not enough that it is
established in the law, but it must be truly appropriate to establish whether there has been a violation of human rights
IACHR, Application before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Karen Atala and daughters, September 17, 2010, para. 86; I/A
Court H.R. Case of Atala Riffo and daughters v. Chile. Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of February 24, 2012. Series C No. 239, para.
164.
68 Both the IACtHR and the IACHR have recognized the protection of the right to work through Art. 26 of the American Convention. See,
for example: IACHR. Report 25/18, Case 12.428. Admissibility and Merits. Employees of the Fireworks industry in Santo Antonio de
Jesus and their families. Brazil. 2 March, 2018; IACtHR. Case of Lagos del Campo v. Peru. Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations and
Costs. Judgment of August 31, 2017. Series C No. 340.
69 Article 25.1 of the Convention stipulates that: Everyone has the right to simple and prompt recourse, or any other effective recourse, to
a competent court or tribunal for protection against acts that violate his fundamental rights recognized by the constitution or laws of the
state concerned or by this Convention, even though such violation may have been committed by persons acting in the course of their official
duties.
67
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