106. As the Court has exhaustively found, the right to work is guaranteed by
articles 34(g),67 45(b)68 and (c),69 and 46 of the OAS Charter; by Article XIV70 of the
American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man; by Article 26 of the
Convention; and by article 671 of the Protocol of San Salvador. This right includes not
only the duty of the state to guarantee people access to employment with decent
conditions, but also the right to employment stability, understood as the guarantee
that the dismissal of a worker must be justified and that the worker may appeal the
decision before the competent authorities.72
107. This latter approach to the right to work—especially relevant to the case at
hand, given the unjustified and discriminatory dismissal of Mr. Guevara Díaz—was
weighed by this Court in the case of Pávez Pávez vs. Chile, in which it added that the
termination of employment through direct or indirect interference by public
authorities impacts persons’ freedom to earn a living in the job of their choosing.73
108. As this is an area of protection specifically of people with disabilities, the state
also has an active and enhanced duty to guarantee the full enjoyment of the right to
work, as analyzed by this Court in the judgment with which I concur.74 This special
duty translates into obligations that go beyond simply abstaining from discriminatory
treatment to include a positive effort to develop public policies for these persons’
effective inclusion and permanence in their respective jobs. In other words, rather
than establishing policies to insert them into the labor market, the government has
the responsibility to ensure that the work environment itself is adapted to be
receptive to this social group.
Article 34: The Member States agree that equality of opportunity, the elimination of extreme
poverty, equitable distribution of wealth and income and the full participation of their peoples in decisions
relating to their own development are, among others, basic objectives of integral development. To achieve
them, they likewise agree to devote their utmost efforts to accomplishing the following basic goals: (...)
g) Fair wages, employment opportunities, and acceptable working conditions for all;
67
Article 45. The Member States, convinced that man can only achieve the full realization of his
aspirations within a just social order, along with economic development and true peace, agree to dedicate
every effort to the application of the following principles and mechanisms (...) b) Work is a right and a
social duty, it gives dignity to the one who performs it, and it should be performed under conditions,
including a system of fair wages, that ensure life, health, and a decent standard of living for the worker
and his family, both during his working years and in his old age, or when any circumstance deprives him
of the possibility of working;
68
c) Employers and workers, both rural and urban, have the right to associate themselves freely for the
defense and promotion of their interests, including the right to collective bargaining and the workers' right
to strike, and recognition of the juridical personality of associations and the protection of their freedom
and independence, all in accordance with applicable laws;
Article 46: The Member States recognize that, in order to facilitate the process of Latin American
regional integration, it is necessary to harmonize the social legislation of the developing countries,
especially in the labor and social security fields, so that the rights of the workers shall be equally protected,
and they agree to make the greatest efforts possible to achieve this goal.
69
Article XIV. Every person has the right to work, under proper conditions, and to follow his vocation
freely, insofar as existing conditions of employment permit. Every person who works has the right to
receive such remuneration as will, in proportion to his capacity and skill, assure him a standard of living
suitable for himself and for his family.
70
Everyone has the right to work, which includes the opportunity to secure the means for living a
dignified and decent existence by performing a freely elected or accepted lawful activity.
71
72
Cf., for example, Case of Lagos del Campo v. Peru. Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations,
and Costs. Judgment of August 31, 2017. Series C No. 340, para. 150, and Case of Casa Nina v. Peru.
Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment dated November 24, 2020. Series C No.
419, para. 107.
Case of Pavez Pavez v. Chile. Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment dated February 4, 2022.
Series C No. 449, para. 88.
73
74
Judgment, para. 73 and 74.
20