Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2017, published 107th ILC session (2018)

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Iceland (Ratification: 1990)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Employment trends and active labour market measures. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the impact of the measures taken to generate employment through the implementation of an active employment policy, including measures targeting the long-term unemployed. The Committee welcomes the statistical information provided by the Government, indicating that the employment situation improved during the reporting period. According to labour market surveys conducted by Statistics Iceland, the employment rate rose from 81.4 per cent in 2013 to 82.5 per cent in 2015, while the average annualized unemployment rate decreased from 5.4 per cent to 4.0 during the same period. The Committee also notes that the operational plans of the Directorate of Labour for the reporting period paid special attention to disadvantaged groups, providing them with individually tailored services to assist them in accessing employment: jobseekers of foreign origin; unemployed women; young university graduates in search of work; long-term unemployed persons; and jobseekers who were not entitled to unemployment benefit. The Government indicates that there were about 23,300 persons registered in all labour market measures during the aforementioned period and that 85 per cent of those who participated in these measures were no longer on the unemployment register three months after completing their projects. Moreover, long-term unemployment fell from 28 per cent of all persons registered as unemployed to 22 per cent from 2013 to 2015. The Government attributes this trend to the amendments to the Unemployment Insurance Act which, as of 1 January 2015, reduced the unemployment benefit entitlement period from 36 to 30 months; to the improved labour market; and to the success of measures taken to provide the long-term unemployed with better services. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information, including statistics, disaggregated by age and sex, on the impact of the active labour market measures taken to promote employment through the implementation of an employment policy and programmes. It also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the employment measures targeting the long-term unemployed as well as the other target groups identified by the Government.

Youth employment. In reply to the Committee’s previous comments, the Government indicates that youth unemployment (persons aged 16–24) remains higher than among older people (55 and over), standing at 10.6 per cent in 2013, 9.9 per cent in 2014, and 11 per cent in the first half of 2015. A project to provide integrated counselling for young people was launched in 2013 by the Directorate of Labour in collaboration with local authorities and the secondary schools. It focuses on people aged 16–25 that are unemployed or have dropped out of school. In addition, at the beginning of 2015, the Directorate of Labour and the Welfare Department of Reykjavík City signed a collaborative agreement to provide counselling, vocational training and other remedial measures to young jobseekers who receive financial assistance from the city. The Government indicates that municipalities and state bodies also provide summer jobs for students, although as the need for these measures has declined with falling unemployment, the number of jobs offered has also dropped, from 650 summer jobs on offer in 2013 to 365 in 2015. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken or envisaged to tackle youth unemployment, as well as information, including statistical data, on the impact of measures implemented.

Vulnerable categories of workers. The Government indicates that the Directorate of Labour provides counselling, assistance with employment searches, support and follow-up measures in the workplace to persons with disabilities and other jobseekers with diminished working capacity through the “Employment with Support” (AMS) project. There were 962 persons covered by the AMS scheme in the period 2013–15 and 308 persons with reduced working capacity received counselling services from the Directorate of Labour between 2013 and 2014. Furthermore, the Harnessing Abilities–All Abilities collaborative project was launched in 2015. This project is run by the Directorate of Labour, the Organization of the Disabled in Iceland together with the National Association of People with Intellectual Disabilities. By taking part in it, public institutions and local authorities can engage individuals with reduced working capacity and receive a reimbursement of part of the wages and wage-related payments in respect of the worker, who may also receive support from counsellors at the Directorate of Labour. In September 2015, 62 positions had been created under the project, engaging 48 participants. The Government also refers to the VIRK Rehabilitation Fund, a private institution owned by all the main workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Fund provides services to build up the working capacity of people who have not been able to work due to health-related issues through vocational rehabilitation programmes. During the reporting 76 per cent of the 3,311 persons that completed the VIRK’s vocational rehabilitation programmes became active in the labour market (in employment, seeking employment or in a course of study which qualified for student loans). The Committee also notes the information provided by the Government on a collaborative project between the VIRK and the Psychiatric Department of Landspítali to develop a vocational rehabilitation scheme to enable young persons with psychiatric diagnoses to find suitable work. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the impact of the measures adopted to promote the access to the labour market for persons with disabilities and other jobseekers with diminished working capacity, including information on measures to promote employment for persons with mental or psychiatric disabilities.

Business development. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the impact of business development measures on employment creation and decent work. It notes the information provided by the Government concerning the project “Develop Your Own Commercial Idea”, and the Women’s Credit Guarantee Fund, including the total number of loan guarantees granted in 2014 and 2015. The Committee also notes the Government’s policy statement of 2013 indicating that it intends to strive to create a working environment that will promote investment and job-creation, focusing on small and medium-sized enterprises and on growth in export industries and innovation. It further notes that the Government intends to undertake a review of the regulatory framework for the business sector, aimed at simplification and greater efficiency. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the impact of business development measures on employment creation and decent work. The Committee further requests the Government to provide information on the status of the review of the regulatory framework of the business sector.