Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Human Resources Development Convention, 1975 (No. 142) - Portugal (Ratification: 1981)

The Committee takes note of the observations of the Confederation of Portuguese Industry (CIP) received on 10 August 2018. The Committee invites the Government to provide its comments in this respect.

Articles 1–4 of the Convention. Formulation and implementation of policies and programmes of vocational guidance and vocational training. The Committee notes with interest a series of measures undertaken by the Government to enhance the qualifications and competitiveness of its workforce in terms of matching supply and demand of skills, which take into account the economic situation and demographical changes that have influenced labour market trends. The Committee notes that the 2018 National Reform Programme (NRP) identified the qualification of the Portuguese people as a priority in terms of national economic and social development. The Government launched the Qualifica Programme on 6 March 2017, within the framework of the NRP. The Qualifica Programme provides a set of flexible tools for adults with low qualifications that include: (i) skills assessments; (ii) adapted and flexible courses of learning; and (iii) recognition and certification of competencies. The Programme consists of: (a) a network of specialized Qualifica centres which provide guidance for adults seeking training or certification of acquired competencies; (b) the Qualifica Passport, a tool for recording qualifications and skills acquired throughout adult life; and (c) the Qualifica Portal, through which users may access information on how to obtain qualifications through means other than higher education. The Committee also notes the establishment of the National Credit System for Vocational Education and Training in 2017. With respect to the impact of these measures, the Government points to an increase in the economic growth rate to 2.7 per cent in 2017, as well as to the improvement in the education and training dropout rate, which fell from 20.5 per cent in 2012 to 12.6 per cent in 2017. The Government adds that the rate of young people with at least secondary educational level rose from 67.8 per cent in 2012 to 78.5 per cent in 2017. The Committee notes that the employment rate stood at 53.7 per cent in 2017, with higher employment rates recorded for people at the secondary and post-secondary levels (67.6 per cent in 2017). It also notes that the unemployment rate fell from 16.2 in 2013 to 8.9 per cent in 2017, with the unemployment rate for people who had attained higher education levels being consistently lower, falling from 12.6 per cent in 2013 to 6.5 per cent in 2017. A series of vocational guidance and training measures targeted young persons and the long-term unemployed, which the Government considers contributed to lowering unemployment rates for these target groups. The youth unemployment rate fell from 38.1 per cent in 2013 to 23.9 per cent in 2017 and the unemployment rate for long-term unemployed persons dropped from 10 per cent in 2013 to 5.1 per cent in 2017. In this context, the Committee refers to its comments under the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122), in which it notes the measures designed to raise the qualifications of the labour force with a view to reducing unemployment, in particular among young persons with low levels of qualification and long-term unemployed persons. In its observations, the CIP expresses the view that the policies and programmes put into place by the Government are in compliance with the Convention and have had positive effects on the promotion of vocational education and training for young people as well as adults, both employed and unemployed. The CIP considers that, despite this progress, human resources development in Portugal could be further improved and should remain a permanent priority of the Government. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide updated information, including statistical data disaggregated by age and sex on the impact of the vocational guidance, education and training policies and programmes implemented.

Article 5. Cooperation with the social partners. The Government indicates that the social partners are engaged in the coordination of the National Qualification System, participating in a wide range of councils and boards of human resources development bodies. In its observations, the CIP indicates that the competent bodies consult the social partners when drafting and monitoring human resources development policies and programmes. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide updated information on the manner in which the representative organizations of employers and workers are consulted in the formulation and implementation of vocational training and vocational guidance policies and programmes and the outcomes of such consultations.