Category: Uncategorized

Expanding Responsible Recruitment from Guatemala

Posted on October 17, 2025 by - Uncategorized

For Guatemala, a country rich in talent and potential, legal labor pathways abroad offer a life-changing opportunity for thousands of workers. A 2023 study by the organization Action Against Hunger (Acción contra el Hambre) found that Guatemalan workers involved in seasonal labor programs in Canada and the United States experienced increased sending of remittances, improved economic situations for households of migrant families, and a greater availability of work for those who stay behind.1 Temporary labor opportunities through schemes like H-2A visas in the United States and the SAWP in Canada consistently grow as labor demand in those destination countries increases each year. That said, Guatemalans’ ability to access these opportunities is often complicated, at best. Complex bureaucratic requirements and the presence of malicious actors can make even regular migration pathways risky.2

Private Sector Recruiters Lead the Way for Responsible Labor Mobility in Guatemala

Launched in 2023, the Association of Responsible International Recruitment Agencies (GAREX for its initials in Spanish) emerged out of a collective desire to transform Guatemala’s labor recruitment ecosystem. The first responsible recruitment association in Latin America, GAREX is conformed of twelve Guatemalan recruitment agencies united by a mission to promote safe, transparent, and ethical recruitment practices for Guatemalans. Each year, its members help connect more than 20,000 Guatemalan workers to jobs in sectors like agriculture, construction, hospitality, landscaping, and food processing—primarily in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

As private sector labor recruiting agencies, GAREX members carry the responsibility of protecting migrant workers’ rights and ensuring compliance and transparency in their operations. GAREX has also recently taken the important step of developing an internal Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol which establish concrete mechanisms to ensure adherence to the association’s rules and principles. In doing so, GAREX is further fostering a system of mutual accountability—not only by aligning quality standards, but also by equipping members with practical tools that build towards consistent responsible recruitment services.

GAREX: A Regional First Mover 

The services and activities of GAREX members have, from the start, gone beyond job placement alone. Member agencies guide workers and employers through every step of the recruitment journey—from visa processing and travel logistics to pre-departure orientation for employers and workers alike. Their operations provide a much-needed alternative to irregular migration while maintaining high standards of responsible recruitment services. Now united under GAREX, these agencies are not just filling jobs—they are collectively leading by example. To date, the association has:

  • Inter-governmental collaboration: established cooperation with key government entities such as Guatemala’s Ministry of Labor and the Migration Institute to ensure faster passport processing and worker protections while abroad; 
  • Multi-sectoral partnerships: built ongoing partnerships with international organizations like the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) to leverage the knowledge and experiences of diverse actors and achieve the shared goals of responsible and ethical labor mobility; 
  • Responsible recruitment promotion: participated in international forums, like with the National Council of Agriculture Employers (NCAE), to attract more opportunities for Guatemalans abroad and promote responsible recruitment practices; and 
  • Association principles formation: agreed upon association principles and signed the ILO Code of Conduct for Recruitment Agencies of Migrant Workers. Through support from LaMP, GAREX members have also recently developed their own internal Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol.

This Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol draw on the ILO code of conduct but take a more targeted approach to the principles, rules, and circumstances pertaining specifically to responsible recruitment practices for private sector recruiters as an association. This includes developing tailored principles of inter-member relationships, the prevention and management of conflicts of interest, and a mechanism for member infractions and sanctions. More information about the Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol content can be found below.

LaMP GAREX Code of Conduct & Protocol 01. GAREX Overview GAREX is an association of responsible recruiters in Guatemala and the first responsible recruitment association in Latin America. GAREX members collectively support the annual recruitment of 20,000+ Guatemalans for seasonal work in the agriculture, trade, and services sectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. 02. Code & Protocol Overview GAREX developed a Code of Conduct which outlines the association's rules and principles. A Complementary Protocol establishes concrete mechanisms for adhering to this Code and building mutual accountability. 03. Code of Conduct Principles 04. Implementation Protocol • Compliance with Guatemalan & international labor laws • Fair & transparent recruitment and employment contracts • Inter-member relations • Prevention & management of conflicts of interest • Internal sanctions • Monitoring & accountability Tools and processes for: Employer due-diligence • Worker grievances Pre-departure information for workers (prior to travel) • Internal conflict resolution • Member participation and co- responsibility • Board of Directors standards • Infractions & sanctions This initiative is supported through funding by the Walmart Foundation

Overview of Garex Code of Conduct and Implementation Protocol.

 

Too often, private recruiters are painted with a broad brush—primarily through lenses of exploitation or predation. However, this framing overlooks the critical role that well-regulated, professional recruiters can play in facilitating safe labor migration opportunities. GAREX’s activities and actions illustrate a privately-driven recruitment model that aspires and works towards integrity, transparency, and mutual accountability. As such, this responsible recruitment association continues to find itself at the forefront of industry innovation.

Why LaMP Supports GAREX 

At LaMP, we envision a world where safe and fair labor migration pathways develop into a mainstream mechanism for development – a vision closely aligned with GAREX’s own objectives and recruitment outcomes. With support from the Walmart Foundation, LaMP has provided strategic guidance to GAREX from legal inception to operational framework to future growth plans. We focus on three pillars of support: 

  1. Recognition: Facilitating collaboration with government agencies to reduce bureaucratic barriers.
  2. Integrity: Establishing and enforcing ethical recruitment standards among all members.
  3. Growth: Connecting global employers to Guatemala’s talented and experienced workforce. 

We at LaMP believe that recruitment businesses can “do well while doing good.” GAREX’s presence and principles demonstrate this mission in action, setting an example of what’s possible when recruiters decide to organize on the basis of collective accountability.  

Fewer than two years since the association’s inception, GAREX’s impact is already undeniable: tens of thousands of workers placed, millions of dollars in remittances generated, and most importantly, a new standard set for international recruitment practices. This is just one example of how small steps can build a world where ethical labor mobility is the norm rather than the exception.

We invite governments, employers, civil society, and development partners to join us in this journey. If you’d like to learn more, feel free to contact us.

To stay up to date on GAREX and other LaMP initiatives, sign up for our newsletter and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Bluesky!  

This initiative is supported by funding from the Walmart Foundation. The findings and conclusions presented in this blog are those of LaMP alone, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Walmart Foundation.

 

References

1 “Impact of Regular Temporary Migration to Canada and the United States: on the living conditions and migration intentions of families and communities in Guatemala,” Action Against Hunger, May 2023, https://accioncontraelhambre.org.gt/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Impact-of-regular-temporary-migration-to-Canada-and-the-U.S.-FINAL-INFORM-2023.pdf. 

2 Gordon, Jennifer. “Regulating the human supply chain.” Iowa Law Review. 102 (2016): 445. 

Project Link: Cross-border livelihoods for Kenyan workers in Japan

Posted on September 11, 2025 by - Uncategorized

For Guatemala, a country rich in talent and potential, legal labor pathways abroad offer a life-changing opportunity for thousands of workers. A 2023 study by the organization Action Against Hunger (Acción contra el Hambre) found that Guatemalan workers involved in seasonal labor programs in Canada and the United States experienced increased sending of remittances, improved economic situations for households of migrant families, and a greater availability of work for those who stay behind.1 Temporary labor opportunities through schemes like H-2A visas in the United States and the SAWP in Canada consistently grow as labor demand in those destination countries increases each year. That said, Guatemalans’ ability to access these opportunities is often complicated, at best. Complex bureaucratic requirements and the presence of malicious actors can make even regular migration pathways risky.2

Private Sector Recruiters Lead the Way for Responsible Labor Mobility in Guatemala

Launched in 2023, the Association of Responsible International Recruitment Agencies (GAREX for its initials in Spanish) emerged out of a collective desire to transform Guatemala’s labor recruitment ecosystem. The first responsible recruitment association in Latin America, GAREX is conformed of twelve Guatemalan recruitment agencies united by a mission to promote safe, transparent, and ethical recruitment practices for Guatemalans. Each year, its members help connect more than 20,000 Guatemalan workers to jobs in sectors like agriculture, construction, hospitality, landscaping, and food processing—primarily in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

As private sector labor recruiting agencies, GAREX members carry the responsibility of protecting migrant workers’ rights and ensuring compliance and transparency in their operations. GAREX has also recently taken the important step of developing an internal Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol which establish concrete mechanisms to ensure adherence to the association’s rules and principles. In doing so, GAREX is further fostering a system of mutual accountability—not only by aligning quality standards, but also by equipping members with practical tools that build towards consistent responsible recruitment services.

GAREX: A Regional First Mover 

The services and activities of GAREX members have, from the start, gone beyond job placement alone. Member agencies guide workers and employers through every step of the recruitment journey—from visa processing and travel logistics to pre-departure orientation for employers and workers alike. Their operations provide a much-needed alternative to irregular migration while maintaining high standards of responsible recruitment services. Now united under GAREX, these agencies are not just filling jobs—they are collectively leading by example. To date, the association has:

  • Inter-governmental collaboration: established cooperation with key government entities such as Guatemala’s Ministry of Labor and the Migration Institute to ensure faster passport processing and worker protections while abroad; 
  • Multi-sectoral partnerships: built ongoing partnerships with international organizations like the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) to leverage the knowledge and experiences of diverse actors and achieve the shared goals of responsible and ethical labor mobility; 
  • Responsible recruitment promotion: participated in international forums, like with the National Council of Agriculture Employers (NCAE), to attract more opportunities for Guatemalans abroad and promote responsible recruitment practices; and 
  • Association principles formation: agreed upon association principles and signed the ILO Code of Conduct for Recruitment Agencies of Migrant Workers. Through support from LaMP, GAREX members have also recently developed their own internal Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol.

This Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol draw on the ILO code of conduct but take a more targeted approach to the principles, rules, and circumstances pertaining specifically to responsible recruitment practices for private sector recruiters as an association. This includes developing tailored principles of inter-member relationships, the prevention and management of conflicts of interest, and a mechanism for member infractions and sanctions. More information about the Code of Conduct and Complementary Protocol content can be found below.

LaMP GAREX Code of Conduct & Protocol 01. GAREX Overview GAREX is an association of responsible recruiters in Guatemala and the first responsible recruitment association in Latin America. GAREX members collectively support the annual recruitment of 20,000+ Guatemalans for seasonal work in the agriculture, trade, and services sectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. 02. Code & Protocol Overview GAREX developed a Code of Conduct which outlines the association's rules and principles. A Complementary Protocol establishes concrete mechanisms for adhering to this Code and building mutual accountability. 03. Code of Conduct Principles 04. Implementation Protocol • Compliance with Guatemalan & international labor laws • Fair & transparent recruitment and employment contracts • Inter-member relations • Prevention & management of conflicts of interest • Internal sanctions • Monitoring & accountability Tools and processes for: Employer due-diligence • Worker grievances Pre-departure information for workers (prior to travel) • Internal conflict resolution • Member participation and co- responsibility • Board of Directors standards • Infractions & sanctions This initiative is supported through funding by the Walmart Foundation

Overview of Garex Code of Conduct and Implementation Protocol.

 

Too often, private recruiters are painted with a broad brush—primarily through lenses of exploitation or predation. However, this framing overlooks the critical role that well-regulated, professional recruiters can play in facilitating safe labor migration opportunities. GAREX’s activities and actions illustrate a privately-driven recruitment model that aspires and works towards integrity, transparency, and mutual accountability. As such, this responsible recruitment association continues to find itself at the forefront of industry innovation.

Why LaMP Supports GAREX 

At LaMP, we envision a world where safe and fair labor migration pathways develop into a mainstream mechanism for development – a vision closely aligned with GAREX’s own objectives and recruitment outcomes. With support from the Walmart Foundation, LaMP has provided strategic guidance to GAREX from legal inception to operational framework to future growth plans. We focus on three pillars of support: 

  1. Recognition: Facilitating collaboration with government agencies to reduce bureaucratic barriers.
  2. Integrity: Establishing and enforcing ethical recruitment standards among all members.
  3. Growth: Connecting global employers to Guatemala’s talented and experienced workforce. 

We at LaMP believe that recruitment businesses can “do well while doing good.” GAREX’s presence and principles demonstrate this mission in action, setting an example of what’s possible when recruiters decide to organize on the basis of collective accountability.  

Fewer than two years since the association’s inception, GAREX’s impact is already undeniable: tens of thousands of workers placed, millions of dollars in remittances generated, and most importantly, a new standard set for international recruitment practices. This is just one example of how small steps can build a world where ethical labor mobility is the norm rather than the exception.

We invite governments, employers, civil society, and development partners to join us in this journey. If you’d like to learn more, feel free to contact us.

To stay up to date on GAREX and other LaMP initiatives, sign up for our newsletter and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Bluesky!  

This initiative is supported by funding from the Walmart Foundation. The findings and conclusions presented in this blog are those of LaMP alone, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Walmart Foundation.

 

References

1 “Impact of Regular Temporary Migration to Canada and the United States: on the living conditions and migration intentions of families and communities in Guatemala,” Action Against Hunger, May 2023, https://accioncontraelhambre.org.gt/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Impact-of-regular-temporary-migration-to-Canada-and-the-U.S.-FINAL-INFORM-2023.pdf. 

2 Gordon, Jennifer. “Regulating the human supply chain.” Iowa Law Review. 102 (2016): 445. 

Open Letter: UK Social Care Visa Scheme

Posted on July 21, 2025 by - Uncategorized

Home Office

2 Marsham Street

London, SW1P 4DF

RE: Social Care Visa Scheme

 

Dear Home Secretary Cooper,

The Immigration White Paper, released on 12 May 2025, outlined a strategy to reduce net migration to the UK. The paper took particular aim at the social care sector, pledging to end overseas recruitment as of 22 July 2025.[i] The White Paper findings emphasized that the social care visa scheme requires fundamental changes to resolve:

  1. The minimal oversight of sponsorship licenses which permitted at least 470 unqualified or fraudulent providers to recruit workers from abroad;
  2. The lack of grievance response mechanisms for workers to report abuse and illegal fees, allowing unscrupulous actors to carry on for far longer than they should; and
  3. The limited support and significant barriers for foreign workers to exercise their right to change employers on an existing visa when dismissed or in a dangerous working environment.

We write this open letter following a wide consultation process with private sector, civil society, and research institute actors across the UK Social Care sector. We agree that these challenges must be addressed. We also believe that eliminating the social care visa scheme, and solely prioritizing domestic workforce training, will not be effective or sufficient approaches to resolving these issues.

Social care is one of the most frequently used and understaffed labour sectors in the UK. A multi-decade study found that at some point in their lives, two-thirds of UK adults have been or will be carers of a loved one.[ii] The UK’s more than 1.59 million professional social carers help reduce that burden by supporting the unpaid caregiving of individuals responsible for the wellbeing of children, elders, and individuals with physical and mental disabilities.[iii]

Yet, despite social care’s ubiquity, the sector faces substantial labour shortages. In early 2025, Care England reported around 131,000 care sector vacancies.[iv] The Health Foundation has also estimated that these shortages will only grow. From 2020-2030, more than 627,000 additional social care staff will be needed to support an aging UK population.[v] To fill this gap, currently about 32 percent of all UK social care professionals are migrant workers.[vi]

We support the government’s objective to invest in a skilled domestic workforce and to target qualified labour migration pathways to fair and responsive levels. However, in the social care sector, this will take time, and domestic workers alone might never be able to fully address the market needs as the social care sector grows with an aging UK population. As such, the UK should design a care visa scheme that is selective and responsive to the needs of care providers and care beneficiaries – at least until the domestic workforce can meet the labour needs of the sector.

With this open letter we believe that the Home Office can continue to operate a social care visa scheme that is more controlled, effective, and responsive by integrating the following elements:

  1. Continuing to allow overseas recruitment of social care workers by authorized recruiters by placing social care occupations on the Immigration Salary List and subsequently the Temporary Shortage List.
  2. Developing a robust and coordinated enforcement system by the Fair Work Agency of care providers & recruiters to limit unscrupulous actors’ ability to take advantage of the system in the future.
  3. Expanding the employer change time for workers in the care sector from 2 months (60 days) to 4 months (120 days) to support recently dismissed workers and current care providers seeking to hire care workers already in the UK.

This open letter draws upon the insights gathered through an extensive consultation process and as a preview towards a more comprehensive set of proposals that LaMP is developing in collaboration with public and private stakeholders. We welcome the opportunity to discuss this matter with you in more detail, including pathways to implementation to build a controlled and responsive social care visa scheme.

Yours sincerely,

Labor Mobility Partnerships (LaMP)

 

 

For a PDF version of this open letter, click here.

 

[i] McKinney, CJ and Melanie Gower, “Changes to the UK visa and settlement rules after the 2025 immigration white paper,” House of Commons Library, July 3, 2025,  https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-10267/.

[ii] Yeandle, Sue. “Will I care? The likelihood of being a carer in adult life.” CarersUK, November 21, 2019. https://www.carersuk.org/media/warllcph/carersrightsdaynov19final-2.pdf.

[iii] Foster, David. “Adult Social Care Workforce in England.” House of Commons Library, October 10, 2024. https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9615/#:~:text=Around%201.59%20million%20people%20worked,47%25%20of%20home%20care%20workers.

[iv] “From Crisis to Collapse: Care England Express Concern Over Sudden End to Overseas Recruitment.” Care England, May 12, 2025. https://www.careengland.org.uk/from-crisis-to-collapse-care-england-express-concern-over-sudden-end-to-overseas-recruitment/.

[v] “Over a million more health and care staff needed in the next decade to meet growing demand for care.” The Health Foundation. October 1, 2021. https://www.health.org.uk/press-office/press-releases/over-a-million-more-health-and-care-staff-needed-in-the-next-decade-to#:~:text=It%20finds%20that%20by%202030,seen%20in%20the%20last%20decade.

[vi] “The state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England 2024,” Skillsforcare, 2024. https://www.skillsforcare.org.uk/adult-social-care-workforce-data/workforce-intelligence/documents/state-of-the-adult-social-care-sector/the-state-of-the-adult-social-care-sector-and-workforce-in-england-2024.pdf.

From displaced to well-placed: labor pathways from Latin America to Spain

Posted on July 14, 2025 by - Uncategorized

A LaMP initiative designing complementary labor pathways for migrants, refugees, and displaced populations from Latin America to Spain.

 

Latin America is home to millions of refugees and displaced persons, due to a complex mix of violence, political instability, economic hardship, and climate related disasters. Many displaced persons are unable to integrate into the formal labor markets where they currently live. Meanwhile, Spain is experiencing significant gaps in their workforce, driven primarily by an aging population and declining birth rates. This is particularly the case in sectors like construction, hospitality, and elderly care. Labor migration programs between Latin America and Spain offer the opportunity to solve both challenges. 

LaMP is engaged in a new initiative to design 3-5 feasible labor mobility programs to Spain, targeting displaced and at-risk populations currently residing in four host countries – Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Guatemala. The programs designed through this initiative will develop clear and actionable roadmaps for potential implementation during future pilot phases. This includes the identification of key operational partners and the design of tailored financial solutions to facilitate sustainable labor migration pathways.  

The near term goal of this initiative is to produce a series of viable demonstration pilots to support cross-border economic opportunities for migrants and displaced people in Latin America. Our long-term vision is that these programs will evolve into large-scale labor migration pathways, helping thousands of Latin American migrants and displaced persons connect to jobs in Spain where their work experience and expertise is most needed. 

 

You can read a short description of the initiative in English and Spanish.

 

For more information, contact:

Diana Zambonino

dzambonino@lampforum.org

 

 

GuateCooks in Action: Celebrating the First Graduates of the GuateCooks Program 

Posted on January 2, 2025 by - Uncategorized

With GuateCooks, “we have the opportunity to learn, to have good experiences, to make money and then to come back [to Guatemala], to see our families again, be with them. And after a certain time to go back again. We have to take advantage of these opportunities,” stated one recent participant in LaMP’s newest project in Guatemala. 

What is GuateCooks? 

GuateCooks is a 10-month pilot program designed to enable international labor mobility opportunities for Guatemalan cooks. This initiative focuses on temporary labor migration pathways to meet the labor needs of international employers while also allowing participants the flexibility of working abroad while periodically returning to Guatemala to see their families. 

The program is designed with three primary pillars in mind. First, participants who are already trained as cooks take a short training course with local training institute partners. The training course is divided into four modules:  1) U.S.-based safety and hygiene protocols, 2) culinary English classes, 3) practical exercises in high-volume kitchens, and 4) professional development and interview preparation. Rather than a beginner-level training course, the GuateCooks modules work to reinforce participants’ already acquired culinary and English skills to accelerate their job readiness specifically for international kitchens.  

 A second program priority is the generation of employer demand to facilitate job interviews for training course graduates with international recruiters and employers. Finally, the pilot program focuses on sustainability through the exploration of financial solutions to ensure the training course’s long-term financial viability. During these 10 months, we aim to train and place at least 60 Guatemalan cooks in the culinary and hospitality sectors, primarily in the United States. However, in taking a three-part program approach, we are also ensuring the longevity and scalability of this pathway beyond the pilot program’s duration.  

Program Progress and First Successes 

Launching just four months ago, LaMP has already made significant strides in implementing the GuateCooks program objectives. In September, LaMP attended Guatemala’s National Food Fair (Feria Alimentaria), the largest culinary event in Central America. There, we strengthened relationships with local educational partners, collaborated with international recruiters to sponsor prizes for the Junior Chefs culinary competition, and promoted the program to Guatemala’s network of culinary students and professionals.  

The following month, our first group of participants began their training course hosted by INTECAP, Santa Lucia, one of LaMP’s training partners. Institute administrators were excited to collaborate on the GuateCooks project, explaining that: “the course is very positive, it really fills a need in the region. It generates job opportunities for our chefs.”  

On November 15, the first 13 Guatemalan cooks graduated from this training course. Participants described the training as very valuable. One participant explained that in GuateCooks “we gained experience. Here, they taught me a lot about improvising. We learned techniques to solve problems quickly because you have to find a way to make things come out well [in the kitchen].” 

Overall, the participants were particularly interested in the course to shore up their culinary skills, to practice English, and to be better prepared for job opportunities in the United States. One participant remarked: “Maybe there were things we already knew, but it was a great reinforcement.” In the month following their graduation, participants have had preliminary interviews with international recruiters and anticipate receiving job offers early this year. 

Path Forward and Next Steps 

These early successes are just the first steps in LaMP’s larger target to develop a sustainable and scalable training-to-jobs pipeline for the international culinary and hospitality industries. In the coming months, we will continue offering the GuateCooks training course with additional culinary training partners throughout Guatemala. The next GuateCooks training program will begin in late January 2025 in collaboration with the Las Margaritas Culinary Institute in Guatemala City.  

During the remainder of the pilot program, we will continue to advance the three core program pillars. First, we will scale up the GuateCooks training ecosystem by collaborating directly with new training partners as well as sharing course materials and bolstering the training capacity of our current training partners. We will also continue to increase labor demand through the fostering of new relationships with U.S.-based recruiters and employers. Finally, in the coming six months we will establish a financial assistance mechanism to ensure that the GuateCooks program continues to grow even after the pilot program ends.  

Stay tuned for more details about this project as well as other LaMP’s work by signing up for our newsletter and following us on Twitter, Bluesky, and LinkedIn!  

If you are interested in learning more about this work or getting involved, feel free to contact us; we’d love to hear from you! For now, thanks to our supporters, partners, and community. 

Balancing Financial Risk in International Labor Mobility Programs

Posted on November 26, 2024 by - Uncategorized

As high-income nations face critical labor shortages, and low-income nations encounter growing youth populations, international labor mobility programs can offer a win-win solution. These programs can raise incomes for workers by 6-15x and fill employment gaps in crucial sectors.  However, participation in cross-border livelihoods programs introduces financial risks for the workers, employers, and intermediaries involved, slowing the adoption of this high-potential opportunity. LaMP aims to reduce these risks by embedding ethical recruitment practices into the private sector1 and developing financial tools to balance risks across stakeholders. 

The timeline of international labor recruitment can be swift or sluggish, depending on the visa and corridor in question.  Some programs (e.g. seasonal agricultural workers in the H2A program of the United States) have a timeline of a few months, while others (e.g. nurses migrating from India to Germany) require a year or more of investment in instruction, exams, job matching, and visa processing.  Numerous recruits may drop out of this process along the way or fail to meet language certification standards at their first examination. Even after migrating for a new job, some new workers may leave the employers who paid their way, opting to work in a different institution. This operational uncertainty in these systems translates into financial risk by introducing the potential for losses at each stage of the process.   

For these reasons, most employers, even those willing to eventually cover all skilling and recruitment costs, are hesitant to advance the full value of the recruitment process at its inception.  Like employers, recruiters and skilling institutions are also generally hesitant to front the full expenses of recruitment and training for aspiring migrants.  Workers, even with a provisional job offer and a promise of reimbursement for all skilling and recruitment costs, generally find these expenses to be out of reach, and migration-oriented credit is not generally available to them from reputable sources. (Taking on ill-suited or informal loans can push workers into crippling cycles of debt.) 

In a future where mobility programs have reached scale, success metrics (e.g. employment and retention rates) will become more readily available, and the cost of dropouts and failures can be incorporated more predictably into recruitment pricing.  However, with or without this data gap, these multi-nation, multi-step processes will always contain some level of uncertainty, and approaches to mitigating risks across our spectrum of actors vary widely.  In some cases, we see workers’ rights oriented programs invest heavily in protecting workers from risk by ensuring that workers neither pay nor deposit any funds for skilling and recruitment processes. However, it is uncommon for these programs to reach scale due to either cash flow constraints, market conditions, or a lack of commitment from recruited workers. On the other side of the spectrum, we see predatory models that insulate employers from risk but offer no protection to workers.   

At LaMP, we believe that balancing this financial risk across actors is at the very heart of effective mobility program design and delivery. Over the next half decade, deploying risk mitigation strategies will be a key factor in accelerating win-win global mobility. As a guiding activity in many of our engagements, we kick off our work with a risk mapping exercise.  Looking at the skilling and recruitment process in context, we assess which actors take on or introduce risk at every stage and attempt to translate these risks into monetary terms. The factors that frequently determine risk are 1) the efficacy of skill training and job matching efforts; 2) expectation alignment and transparency between parties, 3) predictability of visa processing timelines; 4) stability of industry or market conditions, and 5) how successfully employers and host communities integrate hires from abroad.  

In projects or contexts that have stalled or failed to scale, we often find financial risks distributed unevenly across stakeholders or concentrated within specific steps of the process. For example, recruiters that require employers to commit full advances (thus transferring all the risk to their clients) before workers have been trained in key skills (e.g. language or technical training) may find fewer willing corporate partners, leading to demand-side bottlenecks. Such skilling programs, in which there are low or no barriers to entry for aspiring trainees, may experience higher attrition rates, compounding the problem of uncertain or delayed results for employers.  On the other side of the equation, programs that are fully worker-paid (transferring all the risk to the worker) can present prospective migrants with financial hurdles that make migration inaccessible or push them into crippling debt. This not only hurts workers but adds to the global perception that mobility is an inherently abusive industry. In our own research, we have found some evidence to suggest that workers who are overburdened with debt may be more likely to abscond or overstay their visas to recuperate their outsized migration investment. These risk factors may lead receiving country governments and employers to shy away from participation – despite these countries experiencing profound and economically devastating labor shortages. 

The financial solutions in LaMP’s risk mitigation toolkit can serve multiple stakeholders, and are selected for a corridor or scenario based on our assessment of which nudge might be required to balance risk across that system. Ultimately, serving even one stakeholder in a given context might be just the nudge that the system needed to get unstuck.  The solutions we consider in this process include: 

1.Migrant–focused finance as a necessary tool when employers cover recruitment or skilling costs only after workers begin employment. It also supports migrants who wish to invest in their own skills before engaging a recruiter, or in cases where skilling costs are not reimbursed by employers. The financial products relevant to these circumstances include:

    • Migration-specific loan offerings that consider repayment moratoriums, demographics of the market segment (e.g. low-income or rural families without formal jobs or collateral), and provisional job offers abroad as design factors. Examples include BRAC Bank’s migrant microcredit loans in Bangladesh and LaMP’s work on foreign language debt financing for aspiring migrants in India.
    • Income Share Agreements (ISAs) that provide the upfront capital needed and then align worker repayments to earnings proportionally (thus allowing workers who fail to migrate to pay lower installments and net amounts than those who succeed). Examples might include pre-migration skilling or education from organizations like Lumni, Malengo, or other members of the Global ISA Alliance.

2. Insurance products for both workers and employers can help those who wish to mitigate their own risks for any specific areas of concern.  Types of insurance can include:

    • Health, life, and repatriation insurance for workers – especially relevant for those in riskier jobs or in less regulated labor markets.  Examples include Pravasi Bharatiya Bima Yojana (PBBY), an insurance scheme for Indian migrant workers in certain countries, offering life and disability coverage and repatriation assistance, and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) fund of the Philippines, which provides insurance, healthcare, and emergency support for Filipino workers abroad.
    • Recruitment insurance for employers, refunding recruitment fees or replacing one worker with another in cases where workers abscond or break contracts. (To date we have not found scaled examples of this product; we are starting to design our own.)
    • Surety bonds to refund workers for lost wages in cases of employer contract noncompliance. For example, the H-2A Farm Labor Contractor Bond, is guarantee to the U.S. Department of Labor that the employers of contracted workers will abide by the regulations required; contract term violations require bond payouts to affected workers.

3.Worker payment funds can incentivize desirable behaviors and practices within a labor mobility system.

    • Structured incentive and bonus payments can incentivize worker behaviors like retention and home-country return.  Japan’s Technical Intern Training Program (TITP) aims to retain skilled foreign interns in industries like manufacturing and caregiving. (Japanese companies frequently provide an annual contract renewal bonus ranging from $500 to $1,500 for interns who agree to stay beyond their initial year.) The OFW Reintegration Program of the Philippines provides financial literacy training and access to microloans for business startups for returned migrants. This initiative helps returning workers manage their finances effectively, reducing dependency on future overseas employment.
    • Remediation bonds can repay workers for any illegal or unethical fees charged by recruiters.  For example, Impactt’s remediation bond, enables employers to repay illegal or unethical worker fees rapidly, releasing workers from debt bondage or enabling them to recover valuable capital erroneously invested

Strategically placed within the labor mobility process, these instruments can unblock mismatches between supply and demand and lead to greater earnings across stakeholder groups.  However, lowering risk does not always mean lowering cost. In fact, inclusion of the instruments included above can increase net costs by 5-25% (e.g. through premiums, interest, or fees). (Setting the prices for these instruments can be done through a probabilities-based assessment of the various ‘what if’ scenarios of failure and a financial valuation of those failures – much like an insurance underwriting analysis.) Given that these additional costs are specifically designed to reduce uncertainty, avoid catastrophic failures, and unlock access to greater earnings, many actors will consider the price of risk mitigation instruments well worth it. 

In a context dominated by legal and regulatory barriers, it is easy to believe that financial risks for participating actors have already been mitigated.  The reality is that regulation can only take us so far – and that effective scaling of mobility programs requires thoughtful balancing of risks and incentives at the operational level.  In real terms, risk mitigation often just boils down to taking greater care in determining who pays for each expense, at what point in time, and through which mechanism.   

The team at LaMP is happy to share the lessons we have learned from our own mobility work across global visa pathways and is interested in learning from the experiences of others.  We encourage our peers to reach out to engage in this learning process together. 

 

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1The most glaring and well-known risks related to labor mobility are those workers face in differentiating between reputable programs and scams or trafficking schemes. LaMP is collaborating with several actors in different corridors to reduce these risks.  (See our work with the association of Responsible Recruiters in Guatemala, or GAREX, as an example.) However, even reputable and well-run programs experience their share of risks across stakeholders, and this article examines the nature of those risks, how they translate to financial terms, and some potential mechanisms to mitigate them and encourage scale.

Leading by example: How Germany’s migration strategy sets the stage for scalable and unified solutions 

Posted on November 4, 2024 by - Uncategorized

Germany has taken decisive steps to address its acute skilled labor shortage through innovative policies and by supporting the development of financing solutions to streamline labor migration pathways. These efforts began in 2022 with a targeted worker strategy that acknowledged the country’s need for skilled labor, followed by legal reforms in 2024 that opened the German labor market to a wider group of mid-skilled workers from around the globe. The latest initiative, ‘Skilled Labor Strategy: India – A strong Partner for Germany,’ by the ministries for labor and social Affairs (BMAS) and foreign affairs (AA), focuses on building a robust migration pathway between India and Germany. Key priorities include improved cooperation on migration, labor policies, qualification recognition, and skills training – areas where government cooperation is vital.  The skilled worker strategy also provides an overview of pilot projects and initiatives that are taking the first step in translating these ambitions into actionable outcomes. These include projects like Triple Win in Kerala, which explore best practices and processes for hiring nurses, and Hand in Hand for International Talents, which aims to improve conditions and develop processes for self-managed recruitment for workers in the trades sector. 

The German Development Ministry (BMZ) has also been at the forefront of exploring the use of innovative financing models in labor mobility to achieve financial sustainability, by funding programs such as the THAMM Plus Program partnership with Labor Mobility Partnerships (LaMP) and Roots of Impact. Together, we have been working on designing sustainable financing models and funding instruments that need less public capital and can attract private investment in the future.  

These initiatives demonstrate  the German government’s commitment to addressing Germany’s acute shortage of skilled workers. To further operationalize and sustainably scale these ambitions beyond strategy and pilot, the government could consider: 

  • Merging funding streams across ministries to support a holistic and streamlined vision on labor migration 
  • Structurally and financially supporting the expansion of a responsible private sector  
  • Adopting and funding innovative financing methods focusing on commercial sustainability and scalability 
  • Utilizing blended finance to attract private capital into nascent labor mobility markets.  

From Pilots to Scaled and Cross-Sectoral Ecosystems 

Working independently, various German ministries have invested in labor migration pilots across different industries and pathways, using their pilots as learning opportunities to identify best practices and bottlenecks in processes. The lessons learned through these pilots can be used to inform a broader, holistic strategy that focuses funding on scaling effective practices in labor migration. A multi-ministerial collaborative effort could also pool greater resources and funding to build sustainable and well-functioning migration ecosystem capable of training and scaling labor supply to the German labor market.  

Beyond government collaboration, private sector support is essential to building scalable migration systems. Ministries increasingly recognize that pilot programs are important for learning but cannot scale to meet labor market demands alone. Instead, the focus must shift to creating robust ecosystems in source countries, including accessible language and vocational training, as well as incentivizing fair recruitment practices by private-sector actors. Recruiters play a vital role in this ecosystem, selecting qualified candidates for German employers, guiding them to quality training, and supporting their journey from selection to integration in Germany. Ensuring that recruiters operate responsibly–providing fair and transparent hiring processes that protect workers’ rights–is key to achieving sustainable and equitable scaling of labor migration.  

However, responsible recruiters in the private sector of many labor-sending countries are currently early-stage or informal and face significant barriers, including: 

  • Complicated German bureaucratic processes. Obtaining visas and challenges with recognition of qualifications and labor market permits can result in delays and financial strain on recruiters. 
  • Limited access to affordable working capital loans. The liquidity gap between upfront investments (e.g. language training) and payments from employers for successfully deployed workers limits scale. (In some cases, this problem is transferred from the recruiter to the worker, who assumes the upfront costs required for migration.) There are few financing options available to recruiters that need to bridge this gap. 
  • Challenges in building trust with German employers. Small recruiters often lack a track record or a sizeable pipeline of ready workers for quick deployment. Lack of trust in the quality of a recruiter’s service delivery decreases the willingness of employers to provide upfront payments and consequently creates a greater liquidity gap for the recruiter. 

Innovative financing to support the Private Sector 

To overcome the barriers faced by private recruiters, the German government could consider implementing a cross-ministerial funding mechanism to support private sector recruitment and the broader labor migration ecosystem. Blended finance can be utilized by the government to reduce risks for private investors while accelerating sustainable practices and supporting the development of innovative financial solutions to scale and sustain labor mobility responsibly. 

Blended finance combines public or philanthropic funds with commercial investments to de-risk early-stage markets, making them more attractive to private investors. For labor migration, potential solutions include: 

  • Guarantee Facilities: Absorbing initial losses to unlock commercial investment in migration ecosystems. 
  • Credit Funds: Providing affordable working capital for recruiters and other ecosystem actors. 
  • Innovation Funds: Testing financial tools such as income share agreements and surety bonds to address migration-related challenges. 

These publicly supported mechanisms can help the recruitment sector grow until it becomes attractive to commercial lenders and can sustain itself without subsidy. 

 

Case Study: Guarantee-backed language-skilling loan for aspiring migrant workers in India 

An example of a blended finance solution is Western Union Foundation’s funding partnership with LaMP to create a language-skilling loan product for prospective Indian migrants. Many migrants struggle to finance language costs for German classes and examination, a critical requirement from German employers.  To address this challenge, the pioneering initiative seeks to use a first-loss default guarantee (FLDG) to mitigate risks in this untested market.  

LaMP is currently fundraising for public or philanthropic entities to provide funding to execute this guarantee program, which will enable commercial financial institutions to provide loans to this segment of aspiring migrant workers. This solution bridges the gap between migrant workers and financial institutions, enabling access to affordable loans for language training. The program aims to unlock broader commercial investment in migration-related financing as lenders gain experience in this segment. 

 

Conclusion: Scaling Mobility through Partnerships and Innovation 

Germany’s commitment to addressing its skilled labor shortage is commendable. The country’s next steps could involve enhancing collaboration across ministries and the private sector to translate high-level strategies into coordinated action. By shifting from isolated pilot projects to a more holistic approach, Germany can support fair recruitment practices, strengthen quality language and training providers, and leverage blended finance to attract commercial investment and scale this emerging market. 

LaMP has worked with German ministries to explore innovative financing solutions and streamline migration processes by hosting ministerial roundtables to align on key objectives and develop actionable strategies. We believe the need to move from design to implementation of these solutions is urgent and will only be made possible through collaboration between the public and quasi-public sector, including the involvement of development banks (like KfW), and the private sector. This collaboration can be fostered by deploying win-win blended finance solutions within the context of ecosystem-building efforts.  

Germany is well-positioned to lead the global labor mobility landscape. By further developing innovative financing solutions and multi-ministerial collaborations, Germany can serve as a global blueprint for scalable and sustainable labor migration pathways. 

 

Finance Glossary 

  • Blended Finance: Blended finance refers to the strategic use of public or philanthropic capital to attract private investment for projects that address social or environmental challenges. By mitigating risk and providing initial funding, it creates a financial ecosystem where private investors are incentivized to support initiatives that may not otherwise be commercially viable but deliver broader societal benefits. 
  • Guarantee Facility: A Guarantee Facility is a financial mechanism where a third party (in this case, as a government or development institution) provides a guarantee to cover potential losses or risks associated with commercial investments. This safety net encourages commercial investors to fund projects that have a positive social or environmental impact but may be considered too risky under normal circumstances. 
  • Fund: A Fund is a pool of capital raised from multiple investors, which is then managed and allocated by professionals to finance a portfolio of projects or assets. These investments are typically focused on specific goals, such as supporting sustainable development or innovation, and the pooled resources allow for risk diversification and more significant impact than individual investments might achieve alone. 

Glossary definitions are derived from sources such as the OECD library, and Roots of Impact. 

 

Photo: LaMP’s Sophia Wolpers discussing innovative financing mechanisms and migration ecosystem solutions with Development Minister Svenja Schulze at the 6. Economic Policy Forum of BMZ on 21 May 2024.

Copyright: Kira Hofmann/photothek.de 

From left to right: Carsten Schmitz-Hoffmann (GIZ), Sophia Wolpers (LaMP), Development Minister Svenja Schulze (BMZ), Dr. Friederike Köhler-Geib (KfW) 

Okolabor: Bridging the gap between workers in low-income countries and global labor markets

Posted on October 17, 2024 by - Uncategorized

Employers and recruitment companies face big challenges when sourcing blue-collar workers from abroad. Locating workers with the right skills is both costly and labor intensive, usually done by using field agents in lower-income countries or recommendations from current workers or worksite supervisors. In both cases, the high value of job placements means job offers can become a valuable commodity, creating significant risk for employers, recruiters and workers themselves.   

  

Secure, Transparent Recruitment 

Okolabor is a digital recruitment platform designed to give employers and recruiters direct access to the right workers at the right time. Workers create detailed profiles showcasing their skills, availability, and work history, making it easy to filter and select the best candidates based on employer needs.  

This direct connection reduces costs, improves hiring accuracy, and minimizes business risk: 

  • Connecting directly with workers reduces costs as recruitment partners no longer need to go out into the field for recruitment drives.  
  • Using a large database with tens of thousands of worker profiles improves hiring accuracy as employers & their professional recruitment partners can more easily find workers with the right skills and experience. 
  • Risk is minimized bypassing the need for unverified local agents or referrals from current workers or supervisors who may charge illegal recruitment fees to workers without employers or recruiters’ knowledge. 

 

With support from the Walmart Foundation, LaMP is launching Okolabor within the context of the U.S. H-2A visa program, that grants temporary entry to over 300,000 migrant agricultural workers annually, mostly from Mexico. We are partnered with large industry players, moving over 30,000 workers annually, which helps ensure rapid scaling.  

Beyond H-2A, the widespread adoption of internet enabled phones among lower-income populations in developing countries and migrants in particular makes tech-based recruitment solutions more viable than in previous decades. Our long-term plan is to scale from proof-of-concept to broad application within existing international recruitment systems for blue-collar workers. Our vision is that Okolabor will eventually become a global marketplace where workers can accurately and effectively market their skills across borders and connect with employers through a safe and extortion-free channel.  

This initiative is supported through funding by the Walmart Foundation. The findings, conclusions and recommendations presented here are those of LaMP alone, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Walmart Foundation.

GuateCooks on the Move: Job-readiness training for the international tourism industry 

Posted on September 9, 2024 by - Uncategorized

Labor Mobility Partnerships (LaMP) has initiated a proof-of-concept project that seeks to bolster orderly and effective labor migration pathways for Guatemalan cooks in the tourism and hospitality sectors.  

The initial 10-month pilot will support over 60 talented Guatemalan cooks, equipping them with specialized job-readiness training for international kitchens and direct access to recruitment channels for overseas job opportunities. 

This initiative provides a tailored solution to the growing demand in the international tourism industry for seasonal cooks with the necessary technical and language skills. It also presents Guatemalan cooks with the opportunity to advance their careers and personal development. By participating, Guatemalan cooks will not only showcase Guatemala’s rich culinary talent on a global scale but also gain new skills and experiences. Upon returning home, these cooks will bring back invaluable international insights, fostering the growth and prestige of Guatemala’s culinary industry. 

The vision is for this project to mark the beginning of a sustainable, large-scale labor migration pathway, creating opportunities for thousands of Guatemalans to thrive in the global culinary arena in the long term. 

 

 

You can also read a short description of the program in English and Spanish, and find more on the early successes here.

For more information, contact:

Diana Zambonino

dzambonino@lampforum.org

 

 

Mobility Finance Network

Posted on September 5, 2024 by - Uncategorized

The Mobility Finance Network is a community of practice that promotes financial solutions to unlock rights-respecting cross-border labor mobility worldwide.  

We seek to: 

  • seed new ideas and collaborations by bringing together specialists in migration policy & practice, finance & investment, skilling, and workers’ rights  
  • encourage financial innovation by curating insights and learning spaces, promoting relevant convenings, cultivating working groups, and sharing funding opportunities among members 
  • establish new financial instruments for scaled labor migration (e.g.  guarantee funds and credit offerings) and accelerate mobility businesses and technologies (e.g. via equity and debt offerings), to provide greater agency and choice to millions of labor migrants worldwide 

Vision 

The Mobility Finance Network envisions a future where aspiring labor migrants and the businesses that support them benefit from the financial tools and instruments required to support a robust, professional, and rights-respecting labor mobility industry. We work towards expanding cross-border job opportunities and eradicating global debt bondage linked to labor migration by deploying ethical financial products designed for the unique needs of aspiring migrant workers and their ecosystems.

Join the Conversation in our LinkedIn Group 

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/13050351/ 

 

The Mobility Finance Network is being incubated inside Labor Mobility Partnerships (LaMP).

 

For more information, contact:

Elicia Carmichael

ecarmichael@lampforum.org

 

 

Prerna Choudhury

pchoudhury@lampforum.org

 

 

 

*Header Photo by AbsolutVision, used under UnSplash License

Creating Cross-Border Opportunities for Kenyan Workers in Japan 

Posted on August 29, 2024 by - Uncategorized

Japan faces growing worker shortages that will reach 3.4 million by 2030, driven primarily by an aging population and low birth rates. As one solution to this problem, the country created visa pathways for foreign workers in multiple sectors including, but not limited to, nursing, automobile repair, food service, manufacturing, accommodation, construction and agriculture.    

Kenya seeks to become a global workforce leader as part of a national strategy to address youth unemployment and increase the size and contribution of its diaspora. Kenya’s President Ruto is making substantial investments in developing the infrastructure for increased labor mobility, including signing bilateral agreements, and aims to move 250,000 workers abroad each year. Currently, Kenyan workers go primarily to the Gulf which often involves unsuitable work conditions and low pay.  

Japan provides Kenyan workers a safer, higher-paying alternative to Gulf migration and presents a new frontier for African labor migration overall. 

Through a grant from the Livelihood Impact Fund, LaMP is developing a pilot program to facilitate the movement of workers from Kenya to Japan across trade and service sectors. While the project focuses mainly on construction, manufacturing, agriculture and accommodation, there is the possibility to explore other sectors. The main objective is to demonstrate the viability of a Kenya-Japan migration corridor.  

To achieve this goal, LaMP is building the ecosystem required to support labor mobility to Japan, including partnering with a responsible recruiter in Kenya, securing partnerships with receiving side organizations and employers in Japan, designing language training programs, defining costs and processes to facilitate movement of workers, and understanding the legal requirements of Kenya-Japan migration. 

Our long-term goal is to gather insights that will inform the development of a formal migration pathway and contribute to the existing knowledge base on labor migration to Japan, an area that is not widely understood outside of Asia, where most of Japan’s migrant workers come from. 

We are also working on advocating for a bilateral agreement between the Kenyan and Japanese governments to ensure scalability and sustainability of this program beyond this pilot.  

Learn more about our work in the Kenya-Japan corridor in our recent blog here.

 

For more information, contact:

Prerna Choudhury

pchoudhury@lampforum.org

 

 

 

Financing Labor Mobility: Financial Modeling for the THAMM Plus Program 

Posted on July 4, 2024 by - Uncategorized

The THAMM Plus project (Towards a Holistic Approach to Labor Migration Governance and Labor Mobility in North Africa) operates under the EU Talent Partnership Initiative to promote sustainable development and demand-driven labor migration between North Africa and Germany. This initiative is led by the German-state development agency GIZ. 

During its initial phase, THAMM focused on enhancing the employability of individuals interested in migration, raising awareness about labor migration procedures, and fostering stronger partnerships between partner countries (Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt) and Germany. To institutionalize these processes effectively, the program recognizes the necessity of a sustainable financing model. 

LaMP has collaborated with the GIZ THAMM team since October 2023 to craft such a model for each country. The aim is to expand labor mobility and enhance private sector participation. Developing sustainable financing structures for transnational skills partnerships like THAMM represents a novel approach in development-oriented programming for labor migration. LaMP seeks to engage key stakeholders to create awareness and garner support for implementable solutions. 

Employing an impact-linked finance strategy, LaMP aims to bridge the gap between the public and private sectors to facilitate scaled labor migration. This approach leverages financial instruments to magnify the impact of public funds, driving more sustainable outcomes over the long term. 

Aligning stakeholders’ interests, understanding their constraints, and exploring innovative avenues to engage the private sector are central to integrating public and private financing. By harnessing public resources to catalyze the scaling process, both sectors can benefit from labor migration in innovative ways. 

The project is scheduled to continue until October 2024. 

 

For more information, contact:

Sophia Wolpers

swolpers@lampforum.org