A late job offer no longer shields employers in dismissal suits
Job offer. In the ordinary labor proceeding, the proper procedural moment to make it is when answering the complaint; otherwise the right is forfeited.
Official heading (Spanish): OFRECIMIENTO DE TRABAJO. EL MOMENTO PROCESAL OPORTUNO PARA REALIZARLO EN EL PROCEDIMIENTO ORDINARIO LABORAL ES AL CONTESTAR LA DEMANDA, DE LO CONTRARIO PRECLUYE EL DERECHO.
The ruling
In a reinstatement suit, the employer denied the dismissal and offered the job only at the trial hearing; the worker refused and the labor court limited the award. The Collegiate Circuit Court held that, under articles 873-A and 873-B of the Federal Labor Law, the offer must be made in the answer; if made later and refused, it has no effect on the merits.
Our take
In the ordinary labor proceeding, the job offer is no longer a card to play whenever convenient. If it is not in the answer, it only helps if the worker accepts it in settlement talks; a refusal no longer caps back pay or defeats reinstatement. It is an isolated precedent, but its reading of articles 873-A and 873-B is sound and we expect others to follow it. Companies must decide whether to offer the job before answering, with full details on position, salary and schedule.
What to do
- Decide before answering whether to offer the job, and include it in the answer with precise terms.
- Gather position, salary, schedule and seniority as soon as served so the offer qualifies as made in good faith.
- Treat any later offer purely as a settlement proposal, with no expected effect on the award.
Details
- Court
- Tribunales Colegiados de Circuito
- Type
- Isolated precedent
- Identifier
- III.1o.T.10 L (12a.)
- Digital registry
- 2032793
- Published
- October 23, 2026
- Area
- Labor and social security
- View official source ↗
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Prepared by Artegia for information only; not legal advice. Headings in English are unofficial translations. The official text is the one published in the Semanario Judicial de la Federación or the TFJA journal.