| The RIAL bilateral cooperation and technical assistance activities have contributed greatly to the institutional strengthening of the Ministries of Labor. In this section you will find very valuable and concrete results in the following institution-building components:
Design or modification of internal procedures >>
Development of new products, services, and programs >>
Review and improvement of ongoing programs >>
Design or modification of training activities >>
Amendments of regulatory and legal frameworks >>
Enhanced capacity to identify cooperation priorities and needs >>
Greater communication and cooperation between each Ministry and its peers within >>
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Design or modification of internal procedures
This is the component of institutional strengthening where the RIAL’s greatest impact can be seen. Around 60% of the bilateral cooperation activities that have completed the follow-up survey resulted in, inter alias, improved processes, redesigned management tools, and improved systems.
Some notable outcomes are described below
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The modernization of the Department of Social Organizations of the Ministry of Labor of Costa Rica was facilitated and strengthened through technical assistance from Mexico, specifically regarding the simplification of the social organizations registry, and computerization and design of oversight and monitoring tools, achieving greater efficiency and better service for users.
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Statistics development processes in the Ministry of Labor of Paraguay were streamlined, and made more efficient and timely, better training was provided for statistics area officials, and that area was strengthened following assistance received from Argentina.
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Occupational health and safety procedures of the Department of Labour of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines are being developed using information and knowledge gained from seeing the Intervention Model of Canada. Among other issues, follow-up visits are part of inspectors training and forms used on inspection visits are currently being re-designed.
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The Occupational Health and Safety area of the Ministry of Labor of Guyana, following cooperation activities with Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados, made the following significant improvements: inspection kits were prepared as part of the inspectors' tools, the 4P model for evidence gathering implemented in Barbados was adopted, which enhanced investigations of workplace accidents and fatalities, and the use of scientific equipment and information systems in labor inspections was improved, resulting in increased efficiency in reporting.
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The procedures and structure of the Social Security Office of the Ministry of Justice and Labor of Paraguay, created in late 2008, and of the National Social Security System were strengthened and partially modeled after the Chilean experience, this was possible thanks to a technical assistance received in March 2009.
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The Ministry of Labour of Nicaragua redefined the actions and objectives of the General Employment Directorate after receiving technical assistance from Brazil. The modifications include the involvement of local actors and the creation of an institutional network to support the Employment National Policy.
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The restructuring of the data compilation system for labor statistics generation and the design of new indicators in the Ministry of Labor of Guatemala were based on training provided by Argentina.
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ILO convention report preparation procedures were redefined in the Ministry of Labor of El Salvador following a cooperation with Argentina to improve consultations with workers and employers.
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Proposed improvements to the organizational and functional structure of labor inspection in El Salvador, including the inspector career service, were developed based on the Dominican Republic model.
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Development of new products, services, and programs
The RIAL has provided the ministries with new ideas for developing services and programs. Around 50% of the documented cooperation activities made contributions in that direction.
Relevant examples
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The Ministry of Labor of Costa Rica took the decision to regionalize the conciliation service (presence of conciliators in regional offices), following a cooperation activity with Argentina wherein greater awareness was gained of the value of conciliation, and training and hiring processes were reviewed. The Argentine experience also served to improve conciliator training in Costa Rica.
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The recent establishment of the Job Training Center in the Ministry of Labor of El Salvador took account of the success of worker and employer education in the Ministry of Labor of the Dominican Republic, and some of its lessons learned were replicated. |
The Ministry of Labor of Argentina is studying the possible implementation of a program similar to the Preventive Mediation Program of Canada, following knowledge of it gained on-site.
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Colombia is creating the Rules of Procedure of the Commission for Wage Negotiations based on the Brazilian experience, after an on-site visit on Social dialogue.
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Review and improvement of ongoing programs
The RIAL’s workshops and bilateral cooperation activities have focused on analyzing the results, difficulties, and lessons learned from specific programs and initiatives, thereby enabling them to be reviewed, compared to other experiences and improved.
A couple of revealing examples
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The More and Better Jobs for Youth Program of the Ministry of Labor of Argentina was strengthened with new management elements and services following an on-site visit by its senior staff to the United States. Warranting mention are the regulations redesigned to allow for internships in the public and nongovernmental sector, improved management instruments, better relations with the private sector, and additional assistance provided to youth by the Secretariat of Employment.
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The initiatives promoted by the Ministry of Labor of Costa Rica on working children and youth were reviewed and improved based on successful practices in Uruguay. In particular, the regulations for the registry of working adolescents were amended to include a medical report requirement, and instruments such as the social and job assessment record of the working child or adolescent were improved.
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Design or modification of training activities
The RIAL contributes to Ministry training activities in two ways: (1) Directly: visits by RIAL Fund experts may include training activities; and (2) Indirectly: advantage may be taken of the content of the Hemispheric Workshops and RIAL Fund activities to improve Ministry training activities.
Among direct contributions, the following activities warrant mention owing to their multiplier effect
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Experts of the Ministry of Labour of Manitoba, Canada provided a workshop for officials of the Ministry of Labor of Mexico on the design and implementation of the Safe Work program, aimed at the prevention of workplace accidents. The workshop was held in Mexico City and simultaneously transmitted by videoconference to Mexico’s 32 federal labor offices.
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Experts of Trinidad and Tobago provided training at the “Seminar on Occupational Health and Safety” to officers of the Ministry of Labor of Guyana and employer and worker associations. |
Experts of Argentina provided a training workshop on labor conciliation for Ministry of Labor officials of the Dominican Republic, mediators, prosecutors, employers, and workers.
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As regards indirect contributions, 50% of Cooperation Fund activities for which follow-up exists have reported that the cooperation enabled training activities to be designed or improved. The best examples are the redesigned training programs for labor inspectors in Panama, an output of the training assistance received from Brazil during an on-site visit that provided guidance on developing skills and attitudes that promote harmonious work relations.
Although practices in this area have not been documented, Ministries in their training activities could refer to the Hemispheric Workshops’ presentations and sound recordings, available at the OAS/RIAL website. The RIAL Portfolio of Programs can also serve as an excellent source of information for training materials.
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Amendments of regulatory and legal frameworks
The RIAL has shown results fundamentally in internal Ministry of Labor management, but examples have also been found of its impact on regulatory or legislative framework reform. Although the negotiation of these reforms and their adoption transcends Ministries, RIAL impact may be seen in their conception, rationale, and preparation.
Two very important cases have been identified
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A bill drafted by the Ministry of Labor of Peru on mandatory payment through the financial system. Technical assistance from Argentina served to define proper mechanisms for the implementation of this law, provide the bill with additional technical support and greater soundness, and identify more benefits from this procedure than costs, the latter enabling the decision to draft this bill to be taken. In July 2010, the bill had been approved by the congressional technical committees, and was on the agenda for the Plenary.
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A preliminary draft law prepared by the Ministry of Labor of the Dominican Republic to make mandatory individual labor conciliation with it prior to having recourse to the courts. This preliminary draft law is based on the experience of the Mandatory Labor Conciliation Service (SECLO) of Argentina. The Labor Advisory Council of the Dominican Republic approved the preliminary bill as drafted.
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Enhanced capacity to identify cooperation priorities and needs
The RIAL Cooperation Fund calls for proposals, enabling Ministries to present proposals to receive technical assistance from their peers in the region, have afforded international affairs areas an opportunity to consult other Ministry areas each year regarding their cooperation needs. This exercise facilitates the building of capacities for the identification of cooperation areas and for proposal preparation. In the four calls for proposals conducted, for some countries, the quality of proposals has improved year by year, especially in those where the same officials responsible for cooperation matters have remained the RIAL focal point.
Greater communication and cooperation between each Ministry and its peers within the
The RIAL has provided wide-ranging opportunities for interaction among Ministries of Labor, in both their international affairs areas and technical areas. The RIAL Workshops and Fund activities have enabled technical staff to meet, debate, and exchange experiences in their areas of specialization, in and of itself an outcome as regards greater communication, but the challenge is for this interaction to continue and be maintained.
The 55% of participants in RIAL Fund activities replying to the questionnaire report that they remain in communication with the ministry that provided them with technical assistance.
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