Costa Rica Celebrates National and Foreign Workers Month Highlighting Labour Migration Contributions

 
Costa Rica
28 May, 2021

 

On May 27, Costa Rica’s Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MTSS) with support from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), held the first national event to showcase concrete progress and actions aimed at the protection of labour rights with special focus on the migrant population. 

 

The event focused on presenting successful cases, such as the Labour Migration Traceability System (SITLAM) and the protection of labour and labour rights for national and foreign workers in Costa Rica in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also identified follow-up actions based on the progress and challenges identified and served to discuss the impact of actions to promote employability and entrepreneurship in the context of the pandemic, with a vision of inclusion and territorial development. 

  

Interventions are based on the programmatic offer of the MTSS driven by a people-centred vision, answering to their needs and their potential. Many of the actions presented have emerged from tripartite dialogue processes, and others have had a special focus on vulnerable populations such as migrants and have also reflected the concerns of the actors in the workplace.  

 

The virtual event was mainly aimed at workers' organizations, social organizations linked to the world of labour and working people in general, as well as international cooperation agencies, academia, tripartite forums and the private sector (business chambers and companies). A total of 5049 people participated in the virtual event. 

 

The President of the Republic, Carlos Alvarado, highlighted in his welcoming remarks the contribution of the actions presented to the economic development of Costa Rica, through the socio-economic integration of vulnerable populations, especially migrants and their direct contribution to host communities. He also mentioned the joint work between the Government of Costa Rica and IOM in this area. 

  

This event was developed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security of Costa Rica in collaboration with the National Commission for Risk Prevention and Emergency Response (CNE), the General Directorate of Migration and Aliens, the Presidential House, the University of Costa Rica (UCR), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Nicaraguan Women’s Network, the Costa Rican Judiciary, the Caribbean Women’s Business Chamber (CEMCA), the Costa Rican Coffee Institute (ICAFE), the National Federation of Food, Hospitality and Related Workers and the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). 

 

This activity was organized under IOM’s Western Hemisphere Program, funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration.