The Right to Work for Older Migrants, Refugees, and Stateless Persons

On May 14th, the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) will kick off its fourth yearlong "Mainstreaming Knowledge on Ageing" virtual roundtable series with a discussion of a critical intersection: the right to work of older migrants, refugees, and stateless persons. This annual event series, and co-sponsored by HPOD as part of a broad coalition of prominent civil society and intergovernmental organizations that includes UNDESA, the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, and the World Health Organization, aims to raise awareness of how existing policies and systems may be strengthened to better protect the human rights of older persons, and hopefully, to add to growing momentum towards adoption of a new human rights treaty capable of addressing the far-reaching challenges posed by the world’s rapidly aging population.

The global number of people on the move continues to rise. Last year, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) counted 304 million migrants globally--nearly double its figure from 1990. The pressure of armed conflicts, changing climates, and instability are contributing to a rise in forced migration and displacement, while economic drivers continue to impel immigration and migration flows from less prosperous contexts.

Immigrant and displaced groups must overcome labor market regulations, work restrictions, and other barriers to securing their economic stability. Older persons among these groups also encounter systemic ageism. Too often, older individuals are perceived as less adaptable, productive, and technologically savvy, leading to economic exclusion. As a result, they face greater risks of being pushed into informal, precarious, and exploitative forms of economic activity, undermining both their rights and their well-being as they navigate the challenges inherent to migration, displacement, and statelessness.

International human rights legal standards can strengthen protections for multiply marginalized groups, though the efficacy of overlapping standards can be undermined by normative gaps. For example, despite their non-binding nature, the Global Compacts on Migration (GCM) and Refugees (GCR) signify international consensus on managing migration and refugee issues under a rights-based framework. Both compacts underline the importance of integrating migrants and refugees—including older individuals—into labor markets and ensuring non-discriminatory access to work regardless of legal status or age. But even though they were both adopted within days of one another, only the GCR specifically addresses the differential barriers faced by older persons in exercising their right to work.

Specifically, the GCR provides that states commit to "promote economic opportunities, decent work, job creation and entre-preneurship programmes for host community members and ref-ugees, including women, young adults, older persons and persons with disabilities." On the other hand, GCM Objective 6, which describes states' commitment to facilitate fair and ethical recruitment and safeguard conditions that ensure decent work, does not similarly recognize the importance of state action to address the differential barriers faced by older migrants. Although two provisions of the GCM specifically recognize the importance of state action to address the differential barriers faced by older migrants, neither addresses the right to work. Despite key contextual differences between migrants and refugees, uneven international standards for closely related groups may contribute to fragmenting human rights governance. 

An international human rights treaty for older persons can help bridge such gaps and ensure that older persons with intersectional identities, including older migrants, refugees, and stateless persons, receive adequate legal protections. Actors involved in the process to draft such a treaty would do well to pay close attention to divergences in international legal standards and seize this rare opportunity to help shore up gaps.

Addressing these challenges is not only a matter of upholding international human rights governance: it is also crucial for promoting the economic, social, and cultural inclusion of these groups. Facilitating access to fair work opportunities allows older displaced individuals to regain autonomy, contribute their skills and experience to their communities, and strengthen social cohesion. Ensuring the right to work also reduces vulnerabilities associated with poverty,  marginalization, and dependency on limited public resources, while actively combating age-related stereotypes and discrimination.

In this context, this event will highlight the need for effective promotion and protection of the right to work for older migrants, refugees, and stateless persons. It will also explore how targeted policies and inclusive labor practices can enhance economic security, preserve dignity, foster social inclusion, and recognize the valuable contributions of older people within society. In this way, participants will become better informed to work towards building more just, equitable, and resilient communities for all.

To this end, future events planned as part of UNITAR's fifth annual roundtable series will address other intersections critical for strengthening international and national laws, policies, and systems to better protect the human rights of older persons:

• June 19th - Access to Health Systems for Older Persons in Conflict Areas.
• September 11th - The Right to Science and Access to Technologies for Older Persons. 
• October 16th - Accountability and Redress in Cases of Intersectional Discrimination Against Older Persons. 
• November 13th - Increased Demographics, Urbanism and the Right to Food for Older Persons.  

Moderator

• Alex Mejía, Director, Division for People and Social Inclusion UNITAR & Head, CIFAL Global Network

Panelists

• H.E. Amb. Luis Gallegos, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Ecuador & Senior Advisor, HPOD
• Chitralekha Marie Massey, Chief of Section, Rights of Older Persons, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
• Ricardo Pla Cordero, Protection Officer - Ageing and Disability Inclusion, Division of international Protection / Community Based Protection Unit, UN High Commission on Refugees
• Alejandro Bonilla-García, Chair, NGO Committee on Ageing President of the Association of Former International Public Officials for Development (Greycells)
• Hezzy Smith, Director of Advocacy Initiatives, HPOD