Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Peru (Ratification: 1967)

Precarious employment and the informal economy. In its observation in 2011, the Committee requested the Government to provide information allowing it to examine whether, when promoting the creation of productive and sustainable jobs in smaller enterprises, it is also ensured that the rights contained in ratified Conventions are applied to the workers in these enterprises. The Government indicates in a report received in August 2012 that, according to the register of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), between 2009 and the first quarter of 2012, a little over 76 per cent of workers in micro-enterprises were covered by health benefits. Moreover, 60 per cent of workers in micro-enterprises are covered by some type of pension scheme (almost 60 per cent are registered with the Pensions Standardization Office). The CATP reiterates that the legislation does not ensure an end to precarious employment and to the erosion of the social benefits affecting around 5 million workers in micro-enterprises. According to the CATP, SMEs can easily be closed down and the rights acquired by workers weakened, without monitoring bad employers who use the system to create new SMEs and to grow rich through the failure to pay workers’ social contributions. The Committee once again recalls that, in the Conclusions relating to the promotion of sustainable enterprises (96th Session, June 2007), the Conference urged all enterprises, regardless of their size, to apply workplace practices based on full respect for fundamental principles and rights at work and international labour standards. The Committee invites the Government to provide updated information in its next report allowing it to examine the progress made in the creation and formalization of micro- and small enterprises by facilitating their access to commercial information, advisory and other enterprise development and financial services which promote their expansion in a conducive environment, and the implementation of policies and programmes which contribute to improving their productivity and competitiveness.

Vulnerable categories of workers. Employment of persons with disabilities. The Government provides information on the number of beneficiaries of the employment programmes of the Ministry of labour, particularly for persons with disabilities, and the programme Trabaja Peru for women heads of households. The CATP indicates that the Government’s efforts are insufficient, as appropriate action has not been taken at the sectoral level, in the textile industry, in agro-industry and in other sectors in which women are particularly affected by informality in the labour market. The CATP indicates that there is a lack of political will to ensure compliance with the quota set out in the legislation for persons with disabilities. The Committee once again asks the Government to provide updated information in its next report on Convention No. 122 on the impact of the measures adopted to help the most vulnerable categories of workers obtain productive and quality employment. The Committee hopes that in the report that is to be submitted in 2014 on the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Disabled Persons) Convention, 1983 (No. 159), updated information will be provided so that it can examine the effectiveness of the measures that are in force to promote the integration of persons with disabilities into the open labour market.

Youth employment. The Committee notes that, through the implementation of the Sectoral Action Plan for the Promotion of Youth Employment 2009–12, the key role has been recognized of measures to integrate young persons into the labour market. The Government proposes to formulate and implement a new sectoral youth employment plan for the period 2012–16. Furthermore, as a result of the “National Youth Dialogue” workshop held in March 2011, a youth dialogue forum has been established within the CNTPE with a view to analysing the problem of youth employment and developing initiatives for decent work, with the technical support of the ILO. The Committee notes with interest that the Youth Social Dialogue Forum for Decent Work has been selected, identified and evaluated as a “good practice” for the promotion of programmes and policies intended to encourage the role of young persons as players in the development of their own community. The Government adds that it is necessary to develop a strategy of sustainable businesses for young entrepreneurs through the provision of guidance and training to persons between 15 and 29 years of age. The Government indicates that it is currently implementing a pilot project on a culture of entrepreneurship. The CATP indicates that the projects are carried out in model colleges (colegios emblemáticos) in each area and it would appear to be a mistake for them not to benefit the poorest sectors of the population. According to the CATP, a public inter-ministerial policy should be adopted to promote the inclusion of young persons in decent, sustainable and adequate employment, as young persons are the principal beneficiaries of temporary programmes and precarious jobs. The Committee welcomes the tripartite approach followed with the participation of young persons for the promotion of youth employment. The Committee invites the Government to include information in its next report as a basis for examining the impact of the measures adopted to promote youth employment, vocational training and entrepreneurship development for young persons.

Coordination of training and employment policies. The Government indicates that it is hoped that an inter-institutional cooperation agreement will be concluded between the government departments responsible for labour and those responsible for education for the harmonious implementation of national and sectoral policies and plans in the field of vocational training. In 2011, studies were undertaken on vocational training needs in the region of La Libertad and Metropolitan Lima. The CATP reiterates its concern at the lack of the necessary technical teams and commitment by the social partners to ensure that the orientations of training policy receive the necessary validation. The CATP also emphasizes that the Vocational Guidance and Information Service (SOVIO), a service provided free of charge which seeks to provide guidance and facilitate the choice of a professional, technical or occupational career that could be followed by young persons when leaving school, should receive greater coverage in state communication media directed at the most vulnerable social groups. In its previous observation, the Committee understood that the National Vocational Training Policy Guidelines (LNPFP) were being implemented to create more effective links between vocational training and the requirements of the labour market. Vocational training policies had been established in 18 regions, while there were regional vocational training plans in six regions. The trade union confederations observed that the level of investment in education was abnormally low. The Committee asks the Government to indicate in its next report the impact of the regional policies and plans on improving the prospects for lasting employment of persons who have participated in vocational education and training programmes. Please also provide information on the coordination of education and vocational training policies with employment policies and, specifically, on how the supply of training is coordinated with the demand for knowledge and skills and the needs of the labour market.

Cooperatives. The Government indicates that 278 inspections were undertaken between 2010 and the first quarter of 2012 in labour and employment promotion cooperatives, involving 14,393 workers. Workers’ cooperatives created 9,222 jobs over the same period. Between 2009 and 2011, the number of worker members of labour cooperatives fell from 5,522 workers to 3,464. The Committee also notes that section 68 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, No. 29783, promulgated and published in August 2012, makes the employer responsible for the safety and health conditions envisaged in the legislation in installations in which workers’ cooperatives carry out activities. The Committee reiterates the importance of ensuring the application of labour laws so as to avoid the emergence of “pseudo-cooperatives”, which are only intended to gain access to the benefits related to the status of cooperatives, while avoiding the application of labour legislation (General Survey concerning employment instruments, 2010, paragraph 465). The Committee invites the Government to provide updated information on the impact of the measures taken to combat and eradicate the practices of “pseudo-cooperatives”. The Committee also refers to the Promotion of Cooperatives Recommendation, 2002 (No. 193), and hopes to be able to examine updated information on the manner on which cooperatives have contributed to the promotion of productive employment.