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

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Observation

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Articles 1 to 3 of the Convention. Implementation of an active employment policy. Participation of the social partners. The Committee notes with interest the adoption in May 2022 of the National Employment Plan for 2022–26, which was drawn up in consultation with the employers’ and workers’ organizations and with ILO technical support. The plan is intended to promote decent work through policies and action that contribute to economic growth and regeneration. Its objectives include public and private action to stimulate formal employment growth as the economy grows, to revive employment following the COVID-19 pandemic, with an emphasis on youth, women, and vulnerable groups. Noting also that the Government indicates that one of the objectives of the Employment Reactivation Plan for 2020–21 was to revive employment and productive occupational reskilling through tripartite consensus. The Government also reports that in 2019 the Tripartite Advisory Council of the National Vocational Promotion Service (SNPP) was created, and that together with the governing body of the National Training and Labour Skills System (SINAFOCAL) both bodies have integrated social dialogue as a permanent feature. The Committee notes, according to the National Institute for Statistics, that in the first quarter of 2023 the labour force participation rate stood at 70.1 per cent (57.4 per cent for women and 83.1 per cent for men); the employment rate stood at 65.6 per cent (52.3 per cent for women and 79.2 per cent for men); while the unemployment rate stood at 6.5 per cent (8.9 per cent for women and 4.8 per cent for men). Given the significant gender gap in labour force participation and the higher unemployment rates for women, the Committee requests the Government to indicate measures adopted or envisaged to counter these inequalities and promote women’s employment at all levels and in all sectors, including in decision-making positions. It further requests the Government to continue to provide detailed and updated information on the manner in which the social partners have participated in the implementation and evaluation of the above measures that form part of the employment policy and its action programmes. The Committee also requests the Government to send clear, updated statistical information, disaggregated by age and sex, on employment, unemployment and underemployment trends, situation, and level, both in urban sectors and in rural areas of the country.

Contribution of the employment service to employment promotion. The Government reports that in 2021, a total of 65,077 jobseekers were alerted to work opportunities via the “Employment Window” (Vidriera de Empleo) put in place on the Web portal of the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security (MTESS), and through virtual and in-person employment fairs, with the result that 4689 women and 8351 men obtained a formal sector job. The Government also indicates that it has organized labour intermediation action for victims of trafficking in persons, such as registering the data on these persons in the MTESS Employment Exchange (Bolsa de Empleo), with a view to proposing them training and occupational opportunities. The Government further indicates that it has concluded an agreement with the Saraki Foundation with the aim of generating opportunities within the private sector for young persons with disabilities to integrate the labour market. Services offered include the registration of candidates in the MTESS “Employment Exchange” and “Employment Window”, job offers, interpersonal skills training, application of employment skills testing and business consultancy. Finally, the Government refers to the “Work in your own town” plan (Empléate en tu ciudad), the aim of which is to undertake skills training and promote new employment in each municipality in the country with the help of the National Employment Network. While noting this information, the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide detailed and updated information on the nature and impact of the measures adopted to increase employment services and improve their quality, such as increasing funding levels and investment to optimize the internal operational capacity of the public employment services, and strengthening coordination between the different entities, both public and private, that participate in applying employment and social policies at local level. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to send information on the measures adopted to increase the coverage of employment offices across the entire country.

Youth employment. The Government indicates that it has developed partnerships with various institutions and bodies to allow it to undertake a series of activities aimed at young persons, such as the Social Project in Vulnerable Neighbourhoods, which includes skills and entrepreneurship training, employment promotion and labour protection. It also reports on the December 2018 establishment of the Entrepreneurs’ Training Centre (CEE), the objective of which is to increase young persons’ entrepreneurial skills through training, technical assistance and leverages other actors of the national and international entrepreneurial system. Various projects have been implemented through the CEE aimed at young persons of 18 to 29 years in vulnerable regions, including: (i) the “Sape’a 2.0” project, which from 2020 to 2022 provided training in drafting business plans for 900 young persons, 69 of whom obtained seed capital funding equivalent to 5,000,000 Paraguay guaranis. In 2022, a total of 23 entrepreneurs from the Asunción, Central, Guaira, San Pedro and Caaguazú regions benefited from capital sums of 6,000,000 guaranis; (ii) the “Start your business now” (Emprende ya) project, through which 251 young persons were trained in drafting their business plans, 74 of whom obtained seed capital funding of 5,000,000 guaranis and ten of whom each obtained seed capital of 8,000,000 guaranis. The Government refers to the introduction of the apprenticeship contract, a new form of contract for recruitment of workers, which aims at providing young learners with knowledge through training, while enabling them to earn an income. The Committee observes that this contract type was introduced in 2019 under MTESS Decision 1159/2019 on regulating the apprenticeship contract and establishing the procedure for its approval. Noting that the Government provides no information regarding the impact in terms of young persons’ sustainable labour market integration, including those in rural areas who have benefited from Government projects, the Committee requests the Government to provide updated information on all measures taken to promote sustainable labour market integration of young persons. In this regard, the Committee wishes to stress that to improve the employment rate among young persons, it is in general necessary for them to acquire skills answering to the needs of enterprises. The skills gap is to a certain extent often related to low levels of education – the longer the time spent in the education system, the better the employment prospects, including as regards the quality of the employment. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the amendment process of the Youth Employment Integration Act.

Promotion of small and medium-sized enterprises and employment promotion. The Committee notes that the Government has adopted the National Promotion and Formalization Plan for Developing and Increasing the Competitivity of MSMEs. The Plan has five, crosscutting objectives: (1) design and promote instruments to develop and make MSMEs more competitive; (2) simplify the procedures for formalizing MSMEs; (3) promote a favourable environment for entrepreneurship and new sectors; (4) encourage suitable financial products for MSMEs; and (5) encourage quality, innovation, and technological development among MSMEs. The Government also reports the adoption of: (i) Act 6380/2019 on modernizing and simplifying the tax system which, it maintains, is primarily intended to simplify tax obligation compliance for small and medium-sized enterprises; and (ii) MTESS Decision No. 2852/2019 on approving the plan for strengthening and improving small and micro-enterprises’ compliance with administrative labour standards and occupational safety and health standards. It further reports that it has joined with the Paraguayan Industrial Union (UIP) to implement the “Paraguay Poguapy” Plan, the main objective of which is to boost economic revival in the country. The “Action MSMEs” competition was held under the Plan, which awarded seed capital and provided entrepreneurship training to 131 MSMEs from various sectors. Moreover, in 2021, under the project “Improve Occupational Skills, Strengthen MSMEs and the SINAFOCAL, to Reactivate the Economy”, more than 500 MSMEs benefited from occupational training and seed capital. In view of the high rate of Paraguayans economically active in small and micro-enterprises, where productivity tends to be low and informal labour predominates, and the economic base enabling the generation of productive employment and decent work is deficient, the Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the impact of Act 6380/2019 and MTESS Decision No. 2852/2019, as well as on the National Promotion and Formalization Plan for Developing and Increasing the Competitivity of MSMEs for 2018–23, on the creation of productive and sustainable employment; and on the manner in which these initiatives ensure adequate labour and social protection for MSME workers through the progressive integration of informal economy workers in the formal employment market.

Coordination of training policy with employment opportunities. The Government indicates that SINFOCAL provides training courses and occupational training to support labour market integration, aimed at specific sectors, including indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, persons in confinement, the economically active population, and those in social reintegration. The courses are provided in three ways: (1) occupational training projects mounted through specific agreements concluded with education entities and non-profit institutions; (2) training activities undertaken by SINAFOCAL officials; and (3) course given by the occupational training institutes (IFCL) through calls for public tender. The training given responds to market research and opinion surveys carried out by the Occupational Observatory. On that basis, decisions are taken that allow occupational training courses to be aligned to labour market needs. Thus, through implementation of the National Vocational Training Strategy, approved in 2020, a total of 10,203 training courses were given to 130,903 women and 67,538 men. Under this Strategy, and in conjunction with well-known national and international enterprises, the “Digital Generation” Plan was launched in 2021, which seeks to train 100,000 young persons and adults in digital skills to integrate them into the labour market. The Plan also offers international training with internships and international certification. The Government reports on the adoption in 2020 of the 2020-2023 Road Map for Reinforcing the National System of Occupational Qualifications in Paraguay, which aims to respond to the country’s competitive challenges, allowing persons to follow lifelong occupational learning trajectories and recognizes knowledge acquired through formal, non-formal and informal channels, through linkages between the public institutions involved and the productive sector. The Committee also notes the statistical information provided by the Government on the number of young persons participating in diverse technical and occupational training programmes in 2021. In this regard, the Committee observes that there is a significant gap between young men and women. For example, only 81 young women participated in the apprenticeship programmes, against 295 young men; only 70 young women took part in the Sheltered Work Training Programme, against 277 young men. It further notes that the majority of programmes are concentrated in the municipalities of Asunción and Itauguá. The Government also reports that between 2019 and 2022, SINAFOCAL gave 1,829 courses and awarded 468 certificates. The Committee requests the Government to communicate information on: (i) the reasons for the significant gap in the participation of men and women in the technical and occupational training programmes; (ii) the specific measures to promote access of women and young indigenous women in rural areas to these programmes; (iii) updated statistical data, disaggregated by age and sex, on the number of persons participating in the education and training programmes and the impact that these have on their access to decent, productive and sustainable work. Finally, the Committee requests the Government to continue to supply detailed and updated information on the coordination between occupational training and education policies and employment policies and, specifically, on how the supply of training is coordinated with the demand for knowledge and skills required and both current and future needs of the labour market.