Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Cuba (Ratification: 1971)

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. The Committee notes the Government’s report for the period May 1998 to June 2000. The Government indicates that in 1999 total employment in the country showed an increase of 351,400 workers over the previous year, which indicates that employment levels have picked up. The number of women in State jobs continues to grow. High level graduates enter employment by means of two-year training contracts which guarantee a job following that period. According to data published by ECLAC in its Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2000-2001, employment grew by 1 per cent in 2000 while the unemployment rate stood at 5.5 per cent; the eastern provinces registered the highest unemployment rates. However, self-employment in the formal sector dropped 5.5 per cent due to greater competition, heightened supervision and the stringent tax regime. The Committee would be grateful if in its next report the Government would provide additional information on the situation, level and trends of unemployment and underemployment, specifying the extent to which they affect particular categories of workers such as women, young people in search of their first job, workers in the state sector and workers in the non-state sector.

2. The Government mentions in its report the special employment programmes for persons with disabilities, the employment programme for single female parents and the programme of comprehensive care for minors with social disadvantages. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would include in its next report information on the impact of the abovementioned programmes.

3. The Committee notes the financial measures, referred to by the Government in its report, which were adopted to attain higher targets in respect of employment (tax advantages for using the labour force, hard-currency subsidies for competitive products, financing of export production and small investments) and would be grateful if the Government would continue to provide information on the impact of such measures on employment.

4. In its report the Government mentions improvement in the employment system involving greater flexibility in existing labour and wage policies. The Committee requests that the Government, in its next report, provide information on the abovementioned improvement and its impact on employment productivity in the enterprises concerned, and the scope of the changes made to the labour and wage policies.

5. Part V of the report form. The Committee notes with interest the information sent by the Government on ILO assistance with the measurement of employment and employment trends, modernization of the employment agency service and a new system for human resources management. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would continue to provide information on the impact of ILO assistance on employment.