Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1996, published 85th ILC session (1997)

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Suriname (Ratification: 1976)

1. The Committee notes the Government's report for the period ending June 1996 and the brief information in reply to its previous comments. The Committee recalls that an ILO technical cooperation project covering employment planning and the implementation of employment policies was to have led to the compilation of statistics on the situation and trends of employment, underemployment and unemployment. However, the Government only provides very partial information and indicates that it is awaiting the execution of the project. The Committee hopes that the Government will soon be able to report progress in compilation and analysis of the statistics that are indispensable for the elaboration and pursuit of an employment policy in accordance with the provisions of the Convention, and that it will remain in contact with the competent ILO multidisciplinary team for this purpose with a view to obtaining its technical assistance, if necessary.

2. The Committee notes that, according to the Employment Service estimates for 1993, only 6 per cent of unemployed persons were registered with it, of whom around 25 per cent were placed in job vacancies. It refers in this respect to its comments concerning Convention No. 88.

3. The Committee notes the provisions of Act No. 112 of 1994, which envisage a subsidy amounting to 60 per cent of wage costs in the event of the recruitment of young persons under 25 years of age. It requests the Government to provide available information on the application of these provisions.

4. In view of the fact that the information provided by the Government does not reply to all the various matters raised in the report form adopted by the Governing Body, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would indicate the difficulties encountered in collecting data and in deciding upon and keeping under review the employment policy, as provided in Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. The Committee recalls in this respect the possibility of obtaining technical support from the competent services of the ILO. In particular, please indicate the impact that the implementation of the Long-term Development Programme (MOP) is expected to have or has had on employment.

5. The Committee re-emphasizes the importance that it attaches to giving full effect to the provisions of Article 3 of the Convention, which provide for the consultation of representatives of the persons affected by employment policy measures. With reference to the requests that it has been making for many years in this respect, it once again requests the Government to indicate the manner in which the representatives of employers' and workers' organizations and the representatives of other sectors of the economically active population such as those working in the rural sector and the informal sector, are consulted with a view to securing their full cooperation in the formulation and implementation of the employment policy.