Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

Migration for Employment Convention (Revised), 1949 (No. 97) - Belize (Ratification: 1983)

1. Article 1 of the Convention. Information provision. The Committee notes from the report that in 2000 there were 633 foreign nationals working in Belize under temporary employment permits, and that in 2002 the Employment Agency had referred approximately 127 Belize nationals to work in the United States. It notes that there appear to be significant differences between the numbers of migrant workers reported by the Government under this Convention and the number of migrants reported by the Government to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 1996 (CEDAW/C/BLZ/1-2). The Government’s 1996 report to CEDAW stated that there were an estimated 29,000 refugees in Belize at least 20 per cent of whom represented female-headed households. The report also noted that possibly one in eight young, educated Belizeans had migrated for employment in the United States. The Committee recalls that the provisions of the Convention are intended to cover refugees and displaced persons in so far as they are workers employed outside their home country (see General Survey on migrant workers, 1999, paragraph 101). The Committee would welcome information from the Government on the conditions of work and livelihood of the refugee community together with statistical data, disaggregated by sex if possible, on all foreign nationals working in Belize. It also notes that no agreements or arrangements are in place between Belize and other countries for the purpose of regulating the emigration for employment of Belizean nationals, and requests the Government to inform it in future reports of any such agreement that may be concluded (Article 10).

2. The Committee also notes the provision of a copy of the Caribbean Community (Free Movement of Skilled Persons) Act, 1999. It reiterates its request for information on the practical application of this Act, including statistical data, disaggregated by sex, on the numbers of foreign workers entering Belize who are covered by the Act.

3. Article 2 and Article 7. Free service to assist migrants. The Committee notes the establishment of employment offices reported by the Government under section 79 of the Labour Act. However, no information has been provided on the practical working of these employment services as concerns migrant workers or on the numbers of migrant workers, including refugees, accessing them. It observes that under section 81 of the Labour Act the employment offices are to give guidance and assistance to applicants for employment in respect of vocational training necessary for obtaining available employment in Belize. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number of migrants receiving vocational training. Noting in particular the illiteracy rate of refugee women reported in the Government’s 1996 report to CEDAW, it would welcome information from the Government on the number of migrant and refugee women benefiting from the vocational training offered by these employment offices. Please indicate whether these services are provided free of charge.

4. The Committee notes that neither the legislation nor the Government report refers to the provision of "accurate information" to migrants, in addition to employment assistance, as referred to under Article 2. Considering the numbers of young Belizeans migrating for employment, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the application of Article 2 of the Convention.

5. The Committee also notes that the Caribbean Community (Free Movement of Skilled Persons) Act, 1999, includes no provisions on the services available to incoming migrants. It recalls that under Paragraph 2 of Recommendation No. 151 such information could include reference to vocational guidance and training, conditions of work, social security measures, welfare facilities, trade union membership, and conditions of life, including housing, education and health facilities. The Committee would welcome information from the Government as to the measures taken to provide assistance and information to Caribbean skilled migrants admitted under this Act, as well as to other migrants.

6. Article 3. Misleading propaganda. The Committee notes that Part VIII of the Labour Act regulates the recruitment of workers. Under section 68(1), recruiters must be licensed, such licences being subject to a number of conditions, and that failure to comply with these conditions can lead to their withdrawal (section 68(5)). The Committee would welcome information from the Government on the measures it is taking to ensure that recruitment agencies are not responsible for misleading propaganda in their recruitment of migrant workers for work in Belize or placement of Belizean nationals or others abroad.

7. The Committee further notes that the Government’s report to CEDAW refers to a large number of immigrant women working or trafficked into the sex sector. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the immigrant status of these women and the extent to which they may have been victims of misleading propaganda in relation to work opportunities in Belize.

8. Article 6. Equality of treatment. The Committee notes with interest the Supreme Court decision of June 2002 upholding the principle of equality of treatment between national and non-national workers regardless of the appellant’s irregular immigration status. The Committee notes however that the applicant, at the time of the proceedings, was a naturalized citizen of Belize. It therefore asks the Government to provide information on the access of regularly admitted migrant workers to legal proceedings, especially in circumstances where a migrant’s fixed-term contract may have terminated.

9. The Committee also notes that section 12 of the Caribbean Community (Freedom of Movement of Skilled Persons) Act requires reciprocity in its application. The Committee recalls that the application of the Convention is not dependent on reciprocity (see General Survey on migrant workers, 1999, paragraph 109). The Committee asks the Government to confirm that equality of treatment is ensured in all cases for regularly admitted migrant workers.

10. Article 8. Residence rights of permanently admitted migrants and members of their family. The Committee notes from previous government reports that, under section 8A of the Labour Ordinance of 1959, permanently admitted migrants were protected from return to their country of origin where the migrant was unable to follow his or her occupation by reason of illness contracted or injury sustained subsequent to entry. As the Labour Ordinance is no longer in force, please indicate how this right is now protected. The Committee also notes that section 9 of the Caribbean Community Act provides that the permission to enter granted to skilled worker from a Caribbean Community country will not be revoked except in circumstances where the country of that national would expel a Belizean. The Committee asks the Government to provide more information on the application of this section in practice.