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Plan of Action

We, the Ministers responsible for human resources development in APEC, meeting in Washington, D.C., July 28 and 29, 1999, reaffirm our commitment to the principles of our Joint Ministerial Statement and direct the Human Resources Development Working Group to:
  • Facilitate and coordinate an ongoing exchange of information on labor market systems and social safety net issues, and effectively disseminate such information to APEC member economies.
  • Identify and demonstrate more effective ways to work in cooperation with labor, business, and civil society, as appropriate, and consistent with APEC guidelines, in considering employment policy and labor market systems, social safety nets, workplace practices, and other aspects of human resources development.
  • Ensure effective communication with other APEC fora, in particular the Finance Ministers? process, so that the human resource aspects of the financial crisis are given priority, that policies developed to address the crisis take into account the fiscal policy frameworks of member economies, and that labor market programs avoid employment disincentives and ensure broadly shared prosperity.
  • Restructure the HRD Working Group to improve its coordination among the education, skills development, business, and labor activities, and to reflect Ministers? priorities.

We call for the following action items on labor market policy, social safety nets, and workplace security to be implemented by the HRD Working Group.

Action Items

1. The HRD Working Group will develop a program of work for capacity building and exchange of information in the areas of labor market systems, social safety nets, and building the workplace of the 21 st century.

A. Issues for work on labor market systems should include:

  • further development of quality labor market information and services;
  • executive, professional and technical personnel development;
  • school-to-work and other business-education-training linkages;
  • general skills development appropriate to the needs of the labor market, with specific attention to the needs of SMEs;
  • promotion of women's economic advancement;
  • role of the private sector in designing and implementing employment services; and
  • programs targeted to address the needs of vulnerable populations, in particular, women, youth, migrant workers, older workers, disabled and indigenous populations.

B. Issues for work on social safety nets should include:

  • unemployment or social insurance;
  • pensions;
  • income support systems for people not covered by formal plans; and
  • programs to enhance employability, empower individuals, and mitigate social assistance dependency.

C. Issues for work on the workplace of the 21 st century should include:

  • productivity;
  • adopting new technologies; labor-management relations;
  • executive and worker development and training; and
  • safety and health.

2. In developing and implementing the program of work, the HRDWG should regularly consult with other regional and international organizations and representatives of government, labor, business, and civil society.

3. The HRD Working Group will develop a project to share expertise on measures to monitor and evaluate labor market programs. This project should bring together experts from governments and regional and international organizations to improve the capacities of ministries to assess the performance of the programs.

4. The HRD Working Group will develop follow-up activities to continue the work begun in the Victoria Colloquium on Labor-Management-Government Collaboration, the Penang Seminar on Private-Public Partnerships in Skills Development, and the Thailand Conference on Workplace Safety and Health. These activities will be designed to provide a framework for cooperative and participative approaches, and should lead to practical outcomes that benefit both employers and workers.

5. The HRD Working Group will develop a project to exchange information on best practices for eliminating the worst forms of child labor and promote educational opportunities for youth in the region. This work should use the collective experiences of APEC to consider regional perspectives on the issue and share experiences regarding successful approaches.

6. The HRD Working Group will continue to address and enhance women's participation in the labor market by implementing a project to promote inclusion in the workplace. Such work will examine both government policies and workplace practices that encourage equitable participation and opportunity in employment, building on previous activities in the HRDWG. The Working Group will also develop work to study and share innovation and best practices in building educational and labor market capability for indigenous people.

7. The HRD Working Group will develop a program of work reflecting the HRD priorities identified by SME Ministers, including the mutual recognition of professional skills across the region.

The HRD Working Group will report on its progress in implementing this action plan at the next HRD Ministerial Meeting.