Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare (MTPS)

Ministry of Foreign Affairs International Organization for

Migration

EXECUTING INSTITUTIONS OF THE PROGRAMME FOR TEMPORARY WORKERS ABROAD

The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare is the institution of the Executive Power that is in charge of managing employer-worker relations in the Republic of El Salvador.

Its mission is to act as the governing public administration institution on matters of labour and social welfare, in charge of potentiating labour relations based on dialogue, social coordination, and tripartite participation, with the primary purpose of improving real wages, labour conditions, and the quality of life of workers within a framework of equality and social justice.

Labour Context

The vision of the Ministry of Labour is to be a leading institution within the public administration linked to people, providing high quality services in an efficient and transparent manner, with the aim of achieving comprehensive development in the socio-labour area and protecting the sources of employment.

Labour Context

Primary Policies ofMTPS

Gender Equality

Strengthening a Culture of

Labour Unions

Labour Education

FORTALECIMIENTO INSTITUCIONAL

Revisión de la estructura organizativareformas legales y reglamentarias

transparencia y calidad en los servicios

Policy on DecentEmployment

and Work

PRIMARY POLICIES

CAPACITY-BUILDINGReviewing the organizational

structure;Legal and regulatory reforms;

Transparency and high quality services.

STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE To promote decent employment and work, and to

modernize the management of labour

PRIORITY PROCESS ACTIONS

I. To develop strategies that promote labour intermediation at a national and international level; including equal opportunities with a gender approach, young people, disabled persons, senior citizens, women heads of households, and the general population

I.1. Supporting strategies, through the National Employment Network, that facilitate the intensive generation of labour at a national level.

I.2 Implementing the national employment policy within the framework of the Five-Year Plan 2009-2014 of the Government of El Salvador.I.3 Promoting and implementing decent employment and work by identifying labour opportunities abroad through Temporary Foreign Worker Programmes.

I.4 Promoting the design of the recruiting, selection, and monitoring system for temporary workers abroad (within the temporary labour migration management model of El Salvador).

Information by Statistical Compendium, 2003 – 2008 Multiple Purpose Home Survey

Year Employed Population Unemployed Pop. Unemployment Rate 2003 2,520,060 187,212 6.92% 2004 2,526,363 183,874 6.78 % 2005 2,591,076 201,556 7.22 % 2006 2,685,862 188,746 6.57 % 2007 2,173,963 146,983 6.33 % 2008 2,349,050 146,858 5.88 %

Preliminary figures of CEPAL are available for 2009 which show that the

unemployment rate has increased from 5.9 % in 2008 to 7.3 %. This situation is a result of the change of administration in El Salvador and is currently being addressed through implementation of the Five-Year Plan 2009-2014 of the Government.

Migration Context

1.6 million

160000

80000

60000

20000

El Salvador is a country whose development is affected by the dynamics of migration. About 2.8 million Salvadorans live abroad.

6000

Migration flows of populations aged 20 to 39 years increased in the last decade of the 20th century and the first decade of the 21st century, according to the 2007 Population and Housing Census.

The 2008 Multiple Purpose Home Survey estimated that in 18% of the total number of homes, at least one member is living abroad.

The 2007 Population and Housing Census also estimated that 55% of Salvadorans abroad had been living abroad for less than 5 years in 2007.

Of the total number of Salvadorans living abroad, an estimated 64% are male and 36% are female.

According to reports from Banco Central de Reserva, El Salvador received $3,427,600 as remittances in 2010, which equals to 16.2% of the Gross Domestic Product.

Migration Context

Salvadoran men abroad are mainly engaged in economic activities in the sectors of construction, painting, carpentry, landscaping, electricity, and mechanics, and women are engaged as housekeepers, in child care, secretarial jobs, cleaning services, and restaurant services.

Migration Context

Migration and Development

Vision

That Salvadorans living abroad participate actively in sustainable development processes of El Salvador, advancing toward practices of inclusion and integration, building citizenship, protection of rights, and deployment of human, political, economic, cultural, and educational potential in societies of origin and destination.

Strategic Objectives

The migration and development approach through which the administration of the Government of El Salvador seeks to address migration dynamics in the country defines three strategic objectives:

SO1: To ensure that Salvadoran nationals and their families abroad exercise their rights and actively participate in national and territorial development processes.

SO2: To strengthen the links of Salvadoran nationals abroad with the country and with their communities of origin.

SO3: To provide comprehensive and efficient consular services with a dignified treatment and quality to all Salvadoran citizens and their families abroad.

Migration and Development

Migration and DevelopmentEthical Guidelines

1. Ongoing dialogue with other Salvadoran nationals abroad to collectively build links and inclusion in El Salvador.

2. Recognition of Salvadorans abroad as a driving subject for the development of El Salvador and an important source of thought.

3. Defense and protection of human rights and Salvadorans abroad to seek in every action the rights that need to be compensated, promoted, and restored.

4. Shared responsibility and complementarity in the design and implementation of programmes built with active participation of organizations of Salvadorans abroad, State institutions in El Salvador, private enterprises, social organizations, civil society, and nongovernmental organizations and cooperation organizations in the country.

Management Model for Temporary Employment Abroad

Managing Remittances, Co-development Projects, and other

Options

A comprehensive tool to manage the regular and orderly movement of temporary workers, ensuring respect for their rights and encouraging their development and participation in development processes in the territories through programmes under the management model.

Programmes for Temporary Workers Abroad

Background: Origin: The programme initiated in 2002.Justification: It initiated to address the high

unemployment levels in the country during the first decade of the 21st century, as illustrated below:

• In 2006 MTPS, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and IOM signed a cooperation agreement to strengthen programme management.

• In 2007 the programme was expanded to Spain.

• In 2009 a second cooperation agreement was signed between the above-mentioned institutions. Since then, advances have been made in developing the current Management Model for Temporary Labour Migration in El Salvador.

Programmes for Temporary Workers Abroad

To manage a safe and positive temporary and circular labour migration for Salvadoran workers to help improve the living conditions for them and their families in El Salvador.

To ensure that Salvadoran workers who are selected to work abroad temporarily are hired under decent work conditions in accordance with international standards.

To help raise the labour profile of Salvadoran workers through gaining new knowledge and skills in the destination country where they work.

To establish links between actors of the programme and other strategic actors to undertake development initiatives in El Salvador in the communities of origin of the hired workers.

Primary Objectives of the Management Model

Financial Education Programme

This programme, aimed at the families of migrant workers receiving remittances, seeks to encourage good habits of consumption and savings and to promote appropriate use of remittances received by families. In addition, dependent family members of migrant workers are expected to become active subjects of community development, taking on different roles in the local economic dynamics.

Development InitiativesIncorporated into Migration Management

Programme to Maintain Family Links

Family separation is one of the hardest experiences when a household is faced with migration. During the stay of workers abroad it is important to ensure that migrant workers are able to maintain communication and bonds with their families. Based on some methods that have already been used in counselling programmes for families of migrants, this programme seeks to provide options for communication between workers and their families, primarily through the Internet.

Development InitiativesIncorporated into Migration Management

Training To strengthen the capacity of institutions coordinating this management model, ongoing training on specific topics relating to management of labour migration needs to be developed, including circular and temporary migration, as well as other topics to expand knowledge about the connections between the different dimensions of migration, such as migration and development and its implications for public policy.

Development InitiativesIncorporated into Migration Management

Programme for Talent and Knowledge Transfer

Aimed at creating opportunities for Salvadorans returning or visiting the country to exchange experiences and knowledge, regardless of their communities of origin. The main objective is to recognize and project skills and talents of Salvadoran workers and to create spaces where they can share with others in different communities in the country in order to stimulate their entrepreneurial spirit.

Development InitiativesIncorporated into Migration Management

Within the vision of migration management and the framework of protecting the rights of migrants, Salvadoran consulates take on the following responsibilities:

Welcoming temporary workers in the country of destinationMonitoring migration movements of temporary workers abroadVisiting workplacesA database of migrant workersConsular services / mobile consulatesMonitoring the status of workers and their performance in the

contracting firmsA closure meeting with representatives from the contracting firms

upon conclusion of the employment periodSeeking employment offers

The Consular Role in the Protection of the Rights of Migrants

Challenges in the Migration and Development Approach

To raise awareness among different local actors about the fact that migration is a cross-cutting dynamic in the central themes of human and territorial development.

To raise awareness among institutional actors about the need and importance to address migration from different sectors.

To maintain records of Salvadorans (data bases) living abroad and whose places of origin are the territories included in the intervention.

To promote, among fellow countrymen living abroad, a vision of increasing the local and national development with the aim of motivating them to direct their contributions to the country.

To create spaces that encourage an ongoing, strategic, and sustainable participation of Salvadorans in the development of their communities.

To develop information systems on opportunities for economic (productive, employment, business), cultural, and educational integration, both for local actors and Salvadorans returning to the country.

To disseminate the rights approach to address the topic.

To establish monitoring and follow-up mechanisms for migrant Salvadoran workers, especially the figure of “Labour Attachés”.

Challenges in the Migration and Development Approach

Contacts Ministry of Labour and Social WelfareIrene Magaña, Migrant Workers Unit maganaabogada@gmail.com

Ministry of Foreign AffairsJosé Manuel Castillo, Director for Strengthening Organizations of Salvadorans Abroad (Fortalecimiento de Organizaciones de Salvadoreños en el Exterior) jcastillo@rree.gob.sv