Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Paraguay (Ratification: 1969)

Articles 1 and 3 of the Convention. Implementation of an active employment policy. Participation of the social partners. The Government indicates in its report that employment is a fundamental instrument for increasing productivity, competitiveness and sustainable development in the country. The Government refers to a revised proposal for a national employment plan which will be submitted to the political, economic and social partners for consideration. The Committee notes the information on the labour market provided by the Government in its report confirming the data in the Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2015 published by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). According to ECLAC, despite the growth experienced by the country, employment remained relatively stable in 2013–14. According to the results of the continuous employment survey, in 2014 the average annual employment rate remained at 59.7 per cent and the average open unemployment rate stood at about 8 per cent, including up to the first quarter of 2015. However, in disaggregating the data by gender, ECLAC observed a rise of 1.4 percentage points in the employment rate for men and a similar fall in the same rate for women, giving an unemployment rate of 6.5 per cent for men and 9.9 per cent for women. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the adoption and implementation of the national employment plan and to describe the manner in which account has been taken of the experiences and opinions of the social partners in formulating and implementing employment policy measures. The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing up-to-date information on the situation, level and trends of employment, unemployment and underemployment in both urban and rural areas of the country. The Committee refers to the Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy Recommendation, 2015 (No. 204), and requests the Government to continue providing information on the scope of the informal economy and on the steps taken in line with its national employment policy to facilitate the transition to the formal economy.

Contribution of the employment service to the promotion of employment. The Government indicates that, in addition to the employment offices operating in Asunción and the metropolitan area, the National Employment Office has signed various cooperation agreements with local governments. A total of 18 offices have opened in the rest of the country and another six will open soon. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the steps taken to improve the quality of job placement and vocational guidance services and extend the coverage of the network of employment offices to the whole of the country.

Coordination of employment policy with economic and social policy. The Committee notes the adoption in 2014 of the National Development Plan 2030. This plan considers employment to be an integral part of inclusive economic growth and also one of the strategies of social policy. The Government indicates that contingency employment plans are being devised for population groups living in extreme poverty who are beneficiaries of the Tekopora and Abrazo programmes (involving cash transfers with joint responsibility) and the Sembrando Oportunidades programme (for combating extreme poverty). These programmes provide for training and employment in public works carried out by the Ministry of Public Works and the National Secretariat for Housing and Habitat, and skills certification in relation to such works. The Government explains that the initial objective is to cater for over 3,000 persons in situations of extreme poverty. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved in terms of job creation as a result of the implementation of the government programmes.

Youth employment. The Government indicates that, as a result of ILO technical assistance, vocational counsellors have been equipped to follow up on job placements effected through the National Employment Office. As regards the impact of the “Single window” facility, the Government adds that, since the National Employment Office started to operate, more than 12,000 persons have been catered for and over 3,600 persons have been placed in jobs, of whom 83 per cent are young people between 18 and 29 years of age. The Government adds that regulations are being adopted in relation to the Youth Employment Act (No. 4951/13). The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the impact of programmes targeting youth and the “Single window” facility in terms of long-term employment for their beneficiaries. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of the Youth Employment Act and on the extent to which the new contractual arrangements have contributed towards creating productive employment for beneficiaries.

Promotion of small and medium-sized enterprises and promotion of employment. The Government indicates that the National Employment Office and the local offices have a support service for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises with a view to their formalization and the appropriate selection of staff. With regard to the Job Creation in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Recommendation, 1998 (No. 189), the Committee indicated in its General Survey of 2010 concerning employment instruments, paragraph 398, that any measures designed to promote full employment and encourage the creation of productive and sustainable jobs, particularly in small and medium-sized enterprises, should be adopted in consultation with the social partners, under conditions that are socially adequate for all those concerned, and in full conformity with ratified international instruments. The Committee requests the Government once again to include detailed information on the impact of Act No. 4457 on the creation of productive and sustainable jobs. The Committee also requests the Government to indicate the manner in which the legislation in force ensures adequate labour protection for workers in micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises and enables the gradual integration of workers in the informal economy into the formal employment market.

Coordination of training policy with employment opportunities. The Government indicates that the interaction between the Directorate-General of Employment, the National Vocational Promotion Service (SNPP) and the National Vocational Training System (SINAFOCAL) has resulted in improved links with enterprises with a view to identifying the skills required by the priority sectors of the economy. In addition, the Government is ensuring that the coordination between the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce makes it possible to identify in advance the labour profiles that would require future private investment and to arrange the necessary training. The Government adds that the “Programme of training in employment and vocational guidance policies” implemented jointly by the ILO and the Inter-American Development Bank, designed for officials at the Ministry of Labour and local employment offices, is in the initial stage of implementation. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the coordination of education and vocational training policies with employment policies, and specifically on the manner in which the provision of training is coordinated with the demand for the requisite knowledge and skills and the needs of the labour market.