Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2017, published 107th ILC session (2018)

Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122) - Dominican Republic (Ratification: 2001)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Formulation and implementation of an active employment policy. The Committee notes with interest the adoption in 2014 of the National Employment Plan (PNE), whose objectives include the creation of 400,000 jobs in four years, the promotion of decent jobs, the formalization of employment, equality of opportunities, equity and access to security. The Committee also observes that, according to the statistics contained in the PNE, men account for 60.64 per cent of the active population, the unemployment rate has fallen in recent years (to between 5.7 and 6 per cent), and young persons who are neither working nor studying (NEET) account for 7.71 per cent of the working-age population. Furthermore, as regards informality in the labour market, the PNE indicates that the reduction in the unemployment rate is based on an increase in informal employment and that 56.16 per cent of the active population was working in the informal economy in 2012. In this respect, the Government indicates in its report that the current definition of “informality” is being revised with ILO technical assistance and that the statistics will better reflect that definition in the future. The Committee also notes that the Government has prepared a guide concerning the formalization of micro-enterprises. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the implementation and impact of the PNE and to supply statistical data on labour market trends, including employment, unemployment and underemployment rates, disaggregated by age and sex. It also requests the Government to provide up-to-date information on the open unemployment rate and the rate of informality in the labour market, including information on the impact of the measures taken to facilitate the transition of workers from the informal to the formal economy. In this regard, the Government may consider it useful to take account of the guidance provided by the Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy Recommendation, 2015 (No. 204).

Coordination of training and employment policies. The Government refers to training programmes established under the PNE, such as labour training provided by the Directorate of Employment for 10,037 young persons in vulnerable unemployment conditions between 2013 and 2016, and training by the National Institute of Vocational and Technical Training for 1,820 young entrepreneurs, 60 per cent of whom were women. In the course of the abovementioned training, access to micro-financing for their businesses was provided for 3 per cent of participants. The Committee also notes that, in order to facilitate access to employment services, in 2016 the virtual platform of the National Employment Service (SENAE) was modernized, enabling the registration in the “Electronic employment exchange” of 55,966 requests for employment and 912 enterprises. The same year saw the establishment of the “Integrated labour registration system” (SIRLA), facilitating the registration of new employees on company payrolls and the exchange of information with the Treasury Department of the National Social Security System, thereby enabling the incorporation of 171,078 workers into the system. Lastly, the Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that the technical committee at the Ministry of Labour responsible for follow-up to the implementation of the PNE is undertaking a qualitative evaluation of the Plan. The Committee requests the Government to provide relevant data, including statistics disaggregated by age and sex, on the impact of training programmes on securing sustainable employment. The Committee also requests the Government to send a copy of the qualitative evaluation of the PNE once it is available.

Specific groups vulnerable to decent work deficits. The Government indicates that the Ministry of Labour has established a series of programmes and projects for specific groups of disadvantaged workers, such as young people, persons with disabilities and women. In this regard, the Government indicates that: (i) from 2013 to 2015, the Ministry of Labour implemented the “Training programme for young persons in different occupations”, whereby training was provided for 602 unemployed young persons between 16 and 26 years of age, of whom 25 per cent were living with some form of disability; (ii) from 2015, the “Special projects workshop” was set up, with the aim of helping to secure employment for individuals with moderate hearing and learning disabilities; (iii) the “Ministry of Labour reaching out to communities” initiative, which provides the most vulnerable sectors in the country with information on employment, was implemented in 11 communities and was attended by 4,197 unemployed persons; (iv) 430 young persons took part in the “Entrepreneurship unit” training programme for unemployed persons between 20 and 35 years of age belonging to a disadvantaged category (persons with disabilities, women who are single parents, and young people who are neither working nor studying) and seeking to develop opportunities for self-employment; and (v) the “Youth entrepreneurship” training programme set up regional groups to provide local support and follow-up for the projects of young entrepreneurs and published a guide to the formalization of business and a national entrepreneurship policy. As regards persons with disabilities, the Committee notes the adoption of Act No. 5-13 of 15 January 2013 concerning disability in the Dominican Republic, which provides for minimum quotas, tax deductions and tax exemptions for companies hiring persons with disabilities. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the impact of programmes for the promotion of youth employment, including statistics disaggregated by age and sex. It also requests the Government to supply information on any measures taken or contemplated to promote women’s access to formal and lasting employment, particularly for women who are single parents. Moreover, referring to its previous comments on the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Disabled Persons) Convention, 1983 (No. 159), the Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the impact of Act No. 5-13 and its implementing regulations regarding the access of persons with disabilities to the open labour market.

Article 1(2)(c). Migrant workers and workers of Haitian origin. With regard to migrant workers, the Government indicates that the Ministry of Labour, in order to prevent abuses at the time of hiring and to observe the respective proportions of national and foreign workers laid down in the Dominican Labour Code (80 and 20 per cent, respectively), drew up a proposal for the regularization of the hiring of foreign workers. The Government also states that the Directorate of Employment drew up an inventory of occupations whose nature is such as to make it difficult to recruit national workers in sufficient numbers; this will give the Directorate greater powers of discretion when granting recruitment permits, particularly in the construction sector and agriculture. In this regard, the Committee refers to its previous comments on the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), relating to discrimination in employment against persons of Haitian origin (Dominican citizens of Haitian extraction and Haitian nationals), and hopes that the PNE will include measures to prevent abuses in the hiring of foreign workers in the country. The Committee requests the Government once again to indicate the measures taken or contemplated to prevent abuses in the hiring of foreign workers in the country. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the outcome of the Ministry of Labour’s proposal relating to the regularization of the hiring of foreign workers.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The Committee notes that the objectives of the PNE relating to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises envisage the creation of 5,000 new enterprises and 90,000 new jobs in four years, a 10 per cent increase in the rate of formality and the creation of 200 new agricultural and commercial cooperatives. In this regard, the Government refers in its report to a series of measures taken to facilitate the creation of SMEs, such as the creation of a guarantee fund (provided for in Act No. 488-08), the setting up of a single window at the National Tax Directorate to expedite formalization procedures, and the promotion of new export markets. The Committee also notes that, in agreement with the Inter-American Development Bank, the Government has implemented policies regarding the award of public contracts to SMEs, enterprises owned by women, ecological enterprises and innovative entrepreneurs. The Government has also taken steps to evaluate the impact of such policies. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the measures taken or contemplated to facilitate the creation of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises and of cooperatives in the country, particularly in regions which are adversely affected and have the highest unemployment rates. The Committee also requests the Government to supply statistical data on the number and type of enterprises created and the number of jobs created by such enterprises. Lastly, the Committee further requests the Government to provide information on the evaluation of policies for the award of public contracts to SMEs and the impact thereof.

Article 3. Consultations. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the consultations held with the social partners, at both national and regional level, regarding the formulation and implementation of labour policy measures and employment and training programmes. The Committee also requests the Government to indicate the manner in which consultations are ensured with persons affected by the measures taken or contemplated, in particular representatives of workers in rural areas and in the informal economy, in order to take account of their experience and views in the formulation and implementation of programmes and measures to promote full and productive employment.