Colombia gov't open to compromise for labor, pension reforms: finance minister

The pension and health bills are the government's priorities for now, Bonilla said, adding he thinks there remains time to pass them before the end of the legislative session in six weeks if the right discussions can be had in time. "In the case of the pension reform there is more in common to reach a consensus...

The Colombian government is willing to make compromises on labor, pension and health reform proposals to get them through Congress, so long as the changes are viable, new Finance Minister Ricardo Bonilla told Reuters on Tuesday. "What we want is an ample, serene, calm discussion where there are alternatives and not simply to return to a game of polarization with each of the issues," Bonilla said in an interview.

The reforms are key policy promises of leftist President Gustavo Petro, who took office last year. Bonilla was named to his post in a cabinet reshuffle at the end of April as Petro made changes amid the fracturing of his congressional coalition over the health reform.

"The person changed, not the policy," Bonilla said. Bonilla previously worked as the finance secretary for the city of Bogota when Petro was the mayor. The pension and health bills are the government's priorities for now, Bonilla said, adding he thinks there remains time to pass them before the end of the legislative session in six weeks if the right discussions can be had in time.

"In the case of the pension reform there is more in common to reach a consensus... it is necessary to reach accords, to look at what is most important for the country," Bonilla said, adding the labor reform may take longer. "We don't want to return to the polarization of the health reform," he added.

The pension bill would strengthen the state pensions administrator in an effort to give benefits to more people. Some Wall Street analysts say it could pose a risk to capital markets and public finances. The health reform would increase access, raise healthcare worker wages and fight corruption by eliminating payment intermediaries, the government says, and could cost more than $2.6 billion each year for the next decade.

Earlier on Tuesday Colombia's autonomous fiscal rule committee said the pension and health bills would negatively impact the country's finances and recommended the government make changes. The labor reform, proposed in March, would reduce working hours and boost overtime pay in a bit to fight poverty. Critics say the measures could hurt job creation because it would increase salary costs, while Petro has said it addresses the reduction of salaries and job instability that impede national growth.

The government's growth projection of 1.3% is under revision, Bonilla added, and slowing economic growth is a top challenge for the country. He will meet this week with credit rating agency Moody's, Bonilla said.