In Panama, those benefiting from ILS training train others on return.
It is reported that in Panama, officials who are able to benefit from training on ILS are obliged to train others in government service on return. The knowledge received by one is thus transferred to many.
In Panama, ILS-responsible management promote training in ILS for other officials.
It has been reported that in Panama ILS-responsible managers promote the training of government officials outside the scope of their immediate management responsibility with a view to improving inter-departmental and inter-ministerial understanding.
Ms. Dorine Monica Brooks, Director, International Labour Agencies and Information, ILO Desk Officer, Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Jamaica tells how external expert advice is called upon.
“We call upon professionals from our main University of West Indies, Mona Campus, and sometimes University of Technology to advice the Minister and all the persons within the Ministry on ILS matters.”
Ms. Dorine Monica Brooks, Director, International Labour Agencies and Information, ILO Desk Officer, Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Jamaica contributes practice on involvement and follow up.
“The Social Partners are usually invited to take part in all events (training, seminars, conferences etc.). In addition, every document of importance is circulated all both areas, followed by telephone calls to ensure that documents are received.”
Ms. Dorine Monica Brooks, Director, International Labour Agencies and Information, ILO Desk Officer, Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Jamaica describes how exclusive responsibility can help responsiveness.
“Jamaica is one of the few Caribbean islands that has created an office in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and that has an officer that deals exclusively with ILS matters. This has helped to facilitate greater ease in locating documents sent to the Ministry by the ILO, because what happened is that whatever comes in sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but it is then sent directly to the ILO Office at the Ministry of Labour. This is a guarantee of greater promptness in producing responses and replies to most requests, e.g. questionnaires, report forms, unratified conventions, etc.”
Ms. Dorine Monica Brooks, Director, International Labour Agencies and Information, ILO Desk Officer, Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Jamaica describes the benefit of operational planning.
“Each Section of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security is required to submit a yearly operational plan, or operational work plan, to its Monitoring and Planning Unit. The proposed work schedule is taken into account, and thereafter performance reviews are held on a quarterly basis. It is here that all Offices, including that of the ILO Desk, are required to outline all work tasks accomplished in any given period. This exercised our features, prompting offices and departments, so increasing efforts in delivering the required work output for each period.”
Ms. Gloria Beatriz Gaviria Ramos, Chief, Oficina de Cooperación y Relaciones Internacionales, Ministerio del Trabajo, Colombia tells how interagency agreements in Guatemala encourage support and action.
“Guatemala draws up interagency agreements over information sharing, and information provision. We thought this was an interesting method, not only because of the cooperation factor, but it imposes a certain mandatory aspect, since we sometimes struggle to make information available to the Ministry of Labour and also to comply with certain aspects, which are covered by the Conventions. Having written agreements is binding for the parties, it is binding for one party and also for the other party.”
Ms. Catherine Abayao, Labor and Employment Officer, International Relations and Cooperation Division, Department of Labor and Employment, Philippines, describes her process of “on-the-job” training (December 2011).
“I learned ILO based on reading materials about the ILO so I was able to know that the Philippines is a member of the ILO and as a member it has several obligations like we have to report on certain conventions that we have ratified and there is a period of reporting and also on ratified conventions and also submission of international labour standards that are being adopted by the Conference to the competent authorities.”
[Man’s voice in background] “That was very pretty!”
I came from the private sector before I entered here in the department. So I don’t have any background on the ILO, what it’s working on, how it is working, so through my own readings. When I’m given a task, I have to read what I am going to do, and then through my colleagues, they are also guiding us on how to make things. Our former chief here in the Division here in the Division has also undergone training on international labour standards and so she is the one who guides us on the ILO structure, its supervisory mechanism and so she emphasizes to us that if we are not going to submit our reports on time then we will be subjected to a certain ‘ILO-gram’, ILO reminding us of the submission of our reports. So, that is to supplement my reading.”
In 2010, Ms. Abayao was able to complement her on the job training with ITC/ILO training on ILS.
Special thanks got to the Honorable Secretary of Labor and Employment of the Philippines, and the Director and staff of the International Labor Affairs Bureau of the Department of Labor of the Philippines for their generous cooperation in the production of this video.
Ms. Catherine Abayao, Labor and Employment Officer, International Relations and Cooperation Division, Department of Labor and Employment, Philippines, describes the use of employee performance commitments (December, 2011).
“Here in the Department also, we have an annual, how do you call this, employee performance commitment where we are being rated by our supervisors on how we are delivering our work or how are we performing, so like for example here in 2000 I’m holding a document from 2009 wherein I committed to… It is stated here that I commit to achieve the following targets: submission of compliance reports to the ILO so it mentions specifically here ratifying conventions, and ratified conventions ILO questionnaires if there are any ILO cases. So it’s included here in my commitment that I am going to perform these tasks. So failure to comply with these or failure to meet these targets, there would be a corresponding, huh, what do you call that, huh deduction on your performance rating. This maybe one of our motivation on improving our work.”
Special thanks go to the Honorable Secretary of Labor and Employment of the Philippines, and the Director and staff of the International Labor Affairs Bureau of the Department of Labor of the Philippines for their generous cooperation in the production of this video.
Ms. Celeste M. Valderrama, Director, International Labor Affairs Bureau, Department of Labor and Employment, Philippines, discusses the importance of ILS and ILS reporting for Philippines’ overseas workers (December, 2011).
“I might say that the fact that we have a lot of Filipinos working overseas emphasizes or puts emphasis to our mandate on overseas employment but not only in terms of programs that we are providing them but also the host country policy. So at the level of policy we are very much aware that it is through multilateral cooperation, bilateral cooperation that we can succeed in bringing about improvements in the conditions of our workers in bringing about more employment opportunities for them in the fields that they have chosen. In so many ways ILO is part of all this cooperation program, for most of which are the international labor standards. When a country, the host country has ratified this Convention, for example the migrant workers’ Convention, then we are sure that they will be, that they will care for our workers as much as we care for them. So they also of course provide a lot of technical support on our work concerning migrant workers and all the other international labour standards.”
Special thanks go to the Honorable Secretary of Labor and Employment of the Philippines, and the Director and staff of the International Labor Affairs Bureau of the Department of Labor of the Philippines for their generous cooperation in the production of this video.