OEA - CP- Resolución XIX VI 1 CIMT 22 GT1 GT2 INF 4

INTER-AMERICAN COUNCIL FOR INTEGRAL DEVELOPMENT

MEETING OF WORKING GROUPS 1 AND 2 OEA/Ser.L/XIX.VI.1

OF THE TWENTY-SECOND INTER-AMERICAN CIMT-22/GT1-GT2/INF.4/26

CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS OF LABOR 11 May 2026

May 11 to 13, 2026 Original: Spanish Asunción, Paraguay

PRESENTATION BY MS. VALENTINA CORTINEZ, CONSULTANT

OF THE SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT DIVISION, ON THE ROLE OF

MINISTRIES OF LABOR IN ADDRESSING ENVIRONMENTAL

TRANSFORMATIONS

(Delivered during the Meeting of Working Group 1, Panel 2: Just Transition, Green and Blue Jobs, and the Contribution of the World of Work toward Environmentally Sustainable Economies and Societies)The World of Work in the Face of Environmental Transformations Valentina Cortínez O'Ryan Consultant at ECLAC Asunción, Paraguay May 2026 Implications and ways to act from Labour PolicyLatin America and the Caribbean: Highly exposed and disproportionately affected CEPAL. (2025c). The economics of climate change in Latin America and the Caribbean, 2025: Climate action to overcome development traps. More than 1,500 disasters Between 2000 and 2022 190 million million people affected 53% of global economic losses 1 in 4 disasters occur in LACClimate-related phenomena challenges labour and social inclusion In a scenario of intensification of extreme weather events, by 2050: 42,8 million jobs will be lost: 10,9 million of them in agriculture and 4,4 million in tourism 2 million more people falling below the poverty line 1,1 million below the extreme poverty line ECLAC. (2025a). Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2024: Low Growth Trap, Climate Change and Employment DynamicsINCREASE OF

TEMPERATURES

CONTRACTION

DESTRUCTION

NON-VIABILITY

2 million more people falling below the poverty line 1,1 million below the extreme poverty line ECLAC. (2025a). Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2024: Low Growth Trap, Climate Change and Employment DynamicsINCREASE OF

TEMPERATURES

CONTRACTION

DESTRUCTION

NON-VIABILITY

DETERIORATIONION

MECHANISMS

CHANNELS DEMAND Sectoral contraction Sectoral reallocation OFFER Deteriorating health and well-being Reduced availability and capacity Migration Time poverty PRODUCTIVITY Generalized reduction Decrease and vulnerability of income

DIMENSIONS

CLIMATE DISASTERS

DECARBONIZATION

OF ECONOMIES

ENVIRONMENTAL

DEGRADATION

HEALTH

OCCUPATIONAL

INFRASTRUCTURE

AND ASSETS

LIVELIHOODS USE OF TIME Job destruction and creation How do environmental challenges affect the labour market? Evidence synthesisCLIMATE CHANGE

WORKING CONDITIONSLABOUR MARKET INTEGRATION

SOCIAL

PROTECTION

ADEQUATE LEVELS OF

REMUNERATION

OCUPATIONAL SAFETY

AND HEALTH

ACCESS TO THE

LABOUR MARKET

CAPABILITIES FOR WORK Job creation in the Green economy Destruction of productive assets New entry barriers Transformation of skills Green labour skills gap Destruction of jobs in the brown economy Displacement Increase in Informality Reduction or loss of Income Intensification of risks and New occupational risks

LABOUR INCLUSION

CLIMATE DISASTERS

DECARBONIZATION

OF ECONOMIES

ENVIRONMENTAL

DEGRADATION INCREASE OF TEMPERATURESThe impacts are not distributed evenly among workers

VULNERABILITY/

LACK OF ROTECTION Individual actors Age Educational level Immigration status and ethnicity Occupation Informality Gender Contextual factors Geographical area Access to basic infrastructure and services Work environment conditions Institutional factors they vary depending on EXPOSURE LEVELFour key roles in addressing climate challenges in the world of work Anticipating

Educational level Immigration status and ethnicity Occupation Informality Gender Contextual factors Geographical area Access to basic infrastructure and services Work environment conditions Institutional factors they vary depending on EXPOSURE LEVELFour key roles in addressing climate challenges in the world of work Anticipating The impacts and transformations and identifying the most exposed territories, sectors and workers Responding To new risks to occupational health and safety, as well as sudden losses of employment and/or income. Transforming Job opportunities for the most vulnerable population groups and territories. Adapting Labour policies to prepare workers and territories for the new requirements of a lowcarbon economy.Function Instruments Example Anticipate · Job market prospecting · Standardization of Green Profiles · Educational green strategies · Early warning systems for heat and other occupational risks

Chile: National Labour Prospecting

Strategy and Labour Observatory Program Peru/Colombia/Chile/Mexico: Cadastre of green profiles and competencies. Reply · Temporary employment programmes focused on reconstruction/restoration of livelihoods · Job retention subsidies · Unemployment insurance · Financial support for micro and small enterprises affected by disasters · Heat stress regulations, adaptation of working hours, strengthening of labour inspection systems Argentina: Manos a la Obra –Emergencias Productivas

Brasil: Brasil Resiliente –Defensa Civil

Guatemala: Plan Nacional de Gestión del

Riesgo –Recuperación

Guatemala: National Risk Management Plan – Recovery Paraguay/Guyana: Strengthening of labour inspection systems, focusing actions on sectors of greater labour risk and informality.

Some experiencesFunction Instruments Example Adapt · Greening public employment/intermediation services · Certification of competencies · Curricular updating of programs · Labour reconversion pathways Colombia: Greening Strategy of the Public Employment

sectors of greater labour risk and informality. Some experiencesFunction Instruments Example Adapt · Greening public employment/intermediation services · Certification of competencies · Curricular updating of programs · Labour reconversion pathways Colombia: Greening Strategy of the Public Employment Service.

Costa Rica: National Strategy for Employability and

Human Talent (ENETH – Brete).

Paraguay: Adaptation of SINAFOCAL and SNPP curricula to integrate sustainability content Mexico: Youth Building the Future with environmental training.

Transform · Green skills training in specific sectors · Financing for adaptation/creation green enterprises · Subsidies for the hiring of specific groups in green sectors · Alliances/agreements with local companies · Green public procurement · Inter-institutional coordination and articulation Argentina: Green Employment Program with increased allocation for sustainable profiles.

Uruguay: Green Modality Productive Investment Program to finance small productive units.

Guyana: Upskilling and reskilling projects for green jobsTo conclude

1. Environmental changes amplify vulnerabilities, exacerbate labor market segmentation, informality, and disparities in access to quality employment.

2. Access to quality jobs is the primary means of reducing poverty, decreasing inequality, and strengthening household resilience.

3. Labor market policies—both active and passive—and social protection systems offer tools with significant potential to address these challenges.

4. Specific initiatives in the areas of labor and social protection with an environmental focus remain in their infancy in the region.

5. It is necessary to move toward policies and programs with a preventive and forward-looking approachThank you

Valentina Cortínez O'Ryan Consultant at ECLAC valentinacortinez.cepal@gmail.com Access to the document