The Labor Human Rights of Non-Staff personnel of Pro-Migrants International Agencies acting in the Migration Crisis in the State of Roraima, Brazil

Abstract

International Organizations are protected internationally by immunities and legal privileges; in Brazil, high courts recognize that this protection is absolute, including in the jurisdictional scope. This means that they have the right not to respond to the Brazilian judicial bodies in any case, including issues related to employment contracts entered into with their employees. When carrying out their institutional missions in the territory of a country, it is quite common to hire local personnel, mainly for the performance of ordinary consultancy tasks and special services. In Roraima, since the Venezuelan migratory crisis worsened, as of mid-2016, some international agencies – IOM, UNHCR, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women and UNDP – have settled in the State, creating an entirely new job offer. Many people living in the capital of Roraima were recruited by these agencies, as they were expanded their operations, to work both in the headquarters of the offices and in shelters-camp for refugees in the cities of Boa Vista and Pacaraima. To date, the absolute majority of recruits has been admitted under contract models that do not guarantee them the status of staff members; therefore, they are not technically “staff personnel” of these agencies. The absolute immunity from jurisdiction that is guaranteed to international organizations means that respect for the labor rights of persons hired or employed depends enormously on good faith compliance with the internal principles and standards adopted by international agencies. The concern with this scenario takes on even greater relevance when it is recalled that many of the labor rights frequently covered by employment contracts, at least in Brazil, are guaranteed in international human rights instruments. The fact that work activities in Roraima are carried out in an emergency context makes the purpose of respecting fair, equitable and satisfactory working conditions even more challenging. Although no case of termination of an employment contract executed in Roraima in which a contractor was dismissed from an international organization and felt injured in his rights and guarantees has become notorious, the mere possibility that this will ever happen turns on the light for an embarrassing scenario. In contexts of migratory crises, such as that of Roraima, the concern with human rights should not be restricted only to the migrants themselves, but also to those who work daily to protect them, as they may also be in some condition of vulnerability that threatens some of their human rights.