Increasing Decent Employment in the Apparel Sector in Haiti - Decentralized

The project strategy is to improve the normative and institutional environment for compliance with labour standards. To take full advantage of the opportunity created by expanded trade preferences under the HOPE II legislation, the country will need to address a number of issues. One particular issue is compliance with national labour legislation and international labour standards. The perception of Haiti as a country with low levels of compliance with labour standards can, and has, deterred potential international buyers from sourcing there. This issue has been informally discussed at a Global Buyers Forum. This in turn is likely to negatively affect the opportunities for investment and employment growth created through the HOPE II Act. To effectively address these issues, the project adopts a comprehensive approach with targeted interventions both at the national and sectoral level. At the national level the project will enable the ILO constituents to assess the labour legislation’s compliance with ILO conventions. The project will also strengthen the institutional capacities of the labour administration and constituents to improve compliance with national labour law and facilitate increased social dialogue. In this perspective, the project will seek to support the labour inspectors to carry out more effectively their duties. It will also support the development of information access and management among the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, as well as among the main trade union federations (CSH, CTH, MOISE). In order to ensure the sustainability of the project, agreements will made by the project with the relevant partners in order to ensure that any equipment purchased under its auspices will contribute to the implementation of mutually agreed activities. At the sectoral level the project will sensitize employers and managers on the relevance of workers rights and the importance of social dialogue at the enterprise level. The project will also empower workers through education regarding worker organisations and organization strategies and facilitate a greater understanding of the role of worker organisations in the workplace. The project design serves another important purpose. It lays a solid foundation for further actions foreseen by ILO tripartite constituents, which are aimed at achieving compliance with the labour provisions of the HOPE II legislation. Such actions, in particular the Better Work Programme, would be of critical importance for the eligibility of Haitian garment producers to continue to receive the trade preferences granted under HOPE II.

Project symbol

HAI/12/51/USA

Admin unit

DWT/CO-San Jose

Start date

16/11/2012

End date

31/12/2020

Total allocation

8969138

Total expenditure

Status

Closed

8969138

Development Partners

USA, United States Department of Labor, Bureau for International Labor Affairs, Office of Trade and Labor Affairs

Country/Countries

Haiti

Outcomes

Outcome 7: Adequate and effective protection at work for all