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Ministers of Labor of the OAS to Debate Sustainable Development, Decent Work, and Social Inclusion in El Salvador

The strategies for making progress on economic and social recovery by the countries of the Western Hemisphere, with sustainable development, decent work and social inclusion will be the main theme for discussion at the next conference of Ministers of Labor of the Organization of American States (OAS), according to what was agreed yesterday by the Member States in a first preparatory meeting.

In particular, the representatives of the countries that met this week at the headquarters of the hemispheric Organization in Washington, DC, agreed to center the 17th Inter-American Conference of Ministers of Labor (IACML) of the OAS, to be held October 31st and November 1st, 2011, in San Salvador, on various points of interest: the search for strategies in creating a strong, sustainable and balanced economy; the creation of more just working conditions; and child labor as an obstacle to the integral development of society.

More specifically, the Ministers of Labor will discuss a series of issues with emphasis on the strengthening of the role and resources of the Ministries of Labor as key instruments for decent work; the promotion of respect for labor rights, social dialogue, labor union freedom, and collective bargaining in economic recovery; the development of the gender perspective in labor and employment policies; the generation of policies and opportunities for access to decent employment for all vulnerable groups; and the strengthening of initiatives promoted by the Ministries of Labor to eradicate child labor and its worst manifestations, among other issues.

On the importance of these subjects for the sustainable development of countries in the region, the Director of the OAS Department of Social Development and Employment, Ana Evelyn Jacir de Lovo, remarked on the fact that even though the economic crisis did not have as negative an impact in Latin America as had been foreseen, “that does not mean we don’t have big problems and big challenges in the labor field.” “There are large unregistered work sectors and a very large informal economy, the problems we had before are still present, and we must face them in order to be able to give our citizens a better quality of life,” she added.

“The great challenge for countries is to develop good labor policies that can help make qualitative progress on the development of our countries,” since the economic and social recovery must be made “with sustainable development, decent work and social protection” for workers, Jacir de Lovo said. On the subject of youth in particular, the OAS official recalled that “the growth of the youth population in countries of the region is a very big opportunity for investment and growth, but if our economies are incapable of incorporating it within an active economy then we could have something very tragic.”

The IACML in San Salvador will provide follow-up to the same meeting held in Buenos Aires in 2009, when the global economic crisis and the obstacles to sustainable development were discussed. Furthermore, an ongoing subject will be the development of the Inter-American Network for Labor Administration (RIAL), which from now on will receive financing from the countries that integrate it, as agreed by the representatives that met this week at OAS headquarters.

Created in 2005, the RIAL has had a significant impact on the improvement of internal management processes at the Ministries of Labor; in creating new employment programs to benefit job seekers, among others; and in the review and reformulation of normative or legal frameworks in labor affairs. Also, the RIAL, in which all Member States of the Organization have participated, guarantees the sharing of best practices among the region’s Ministries of Labor and makes it possible for countries to provide each other with technical assistance in policy matters.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-677/11