More than 150 people engaged in domestic work, mostly migrant women of various nationalities, participated in an information services fair and job orientation day organized by the National Directorate of Employment of the Ministry of Labour and Professional Development (MITRADEL) to prevent labour exploitation, protect their human and labour rights, and recognize the need for decent work for all domestic workers.

The fair also had the support of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and served as a stage to bring together government entities such as the National Migration Service and the Ombudsperson's Office, as well as civil society organizations such as the Domestic Workers’ Trade Union (SINGRETRADS) and the Trade Union Convergence, security forces and other strategic partners in the fight to promote decent work in our country.

The Director of Employment, Alfredo Mitre, said that the main objective of these partnerships is to promote decent employment as established in the Sustainable Development Goals. "We carry out these actions in order to strengthen and generate a reliable database in which we can offer the intermediation service from the National Employment Directorate to guarantee formal employment where the social security of domestic workers is complied with”, said Mitre.

He added that the objective of preventing fraudulent recruitment and promoting labour rights is to guarantee the protection of migrants, the correct management of the recruitment process, and the inclusion of a contract record through MITRADEL.

During the fair, which was organized to commemorate the International Day of Domestic Workers (March 30), orientation on migration status was provided, as were explained the latent risks of trafficking in persons for labour exploitation, the assistance and protection provided for victims, access to health services, registration with the National Employment Service, the employment exchange offered by MITRADEL in its intermediation work with private companies, information on work permits and labour rights.

IOM and a coalition of strategic partners created the International Recruitment Integrity System (IRIS), to promote the ethical recruitment of migrant labour force, since ethical recruitment entails the legal recruitment of workers in a fair, equitable, and transparent manner that respects their dignity and human rights.

Since 2020, IOM has been working within the framework of IRIS with the MITRADEL Employment Directorate to promote the ethical recruitment of migrants, prevent trafficking in persons and protect their labour rights. For more information, contact IOM's External Relations Unit in Panama via erupanama@iom.int and the Ministry of Labour and Professional Development through its web page.