Panel
From Risk to Opportunity: How Can We Unlock the Potential of Labour Migration for Workers, Businesses and Labour Markets?
ORGANIZED BY
International Organization for Migration
17-Sep
11:00-12:00
Meeting Room H
Beyond addressing risks and vulnerabilities, this session explores how labour migration can strengthen resilience, skills development and economic inclusion. Join governments, businesses and civil society representatives to discuss practical solutions for building rights-based labour pathways that benefit workers, employers and labour markets.
Overview
Labour migration is increasingly shaping the future of work, driven by demographic change, ageing populations, technological advancement and growing skills shortages across many sectors. At the same time, it remains a critical pathway for employment, skills development, income generation and social mobility for millions of workers and their families. As governments and businesses respond to evolving labour market demands, there is growing recognition that labour mobility should be viewed not only as a migration issue, but also as a workforce development and human capital priority.
Within business and human rights discussions, labour migration has often been framed primarily through risks and vulnerabilities. While addressing exploitation and adverse human rights impacts remains essential, there is increasing interest in how responsible business conduct and effective labour mobility systems can also contribute to positive outcomes for migrant workers, businesses and labour markets. This includes supporting skills recognition and development, improving workforce resilience, promoting inclusion, and enabling workers to fully utilize their skills and experience.
Aligned with the Forum theme, Building Resilience, Advancing Rights, and building on the partnership between the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the World Employment Confederation (WEC), this session will explore how governments, businesses, employment service providers, civil society and international organizations can work together to strengthen rights-based, skills-responsive labour mobility pathways. The discussion will examine the role of enabling policy frameworks, responsible business practices and public-private collaboration in supporting skills matching, access to training, social inclusion and decent work for migrant workers. It will also identify practical approaches to building labour mobility systems that respond to labour market needs while delivering benefits for workers, employers and communities alike.
Why it matters
This conversation is important because migrant workers are frequently viewed through a protection lens, while their contributions to workforce resilience, skills development and economic growth receive less attention. The session will explore how rights-based labour mobility systems can better recognize and leverage migrant workers' skills and experience while advancing inclusion and meeting evolving labour market needs.
Key questions
The discussion will explore the following questions:
How can labour mobility systems be designed and implemented to generate positive outcomes for migrant workers while contributing to workforce resilience and economic inclusion?
How can businesses apply responsible business conduct to respect human rights in ways that not only prevent harm, but also promote migrant worker inclusion, participation, skills development and career progression throughout the employment lifecycle?
What practical examples demonstrate that inclusive labour mobility and skills development can contribute both to worker empowerment and workforce resilience, and what changes are needed to scale these approaches across labour mobility systems and workplaces?
What forms of public-private collaboration are needed to promote migrant worker inclusion, strengthen decent work practices and skills recognition, and build more resilient labour mobility pathways?
Who should attend?
This session is intended for governments, businesses, employment service providers, migrant worker advocates, representatives and civil society organizations, as well as international organizations, researchers and practitioners working on migration, business and human rights.
What participants will gain
Expected Outcomes
Promote a balanced narrative on labour migration that recognizes both protection needs and positive development outcomes.
Highlight concrete examples of how businesses can contribute to migrant worker empowerment and inclusion through responsible business conduct and Quality Standards, including approaches to skills development and migrant inclusion
Strengthen dialogue between business, government, employment service providers, and international organizations on rights-based and skills-responsive labour mobility pathways.
Atty. Paul E. Listones
Overseas Employment Adjudicator, OIC Director IV of the Land-based Accreditation Bureau, Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Philippines
Atty. Paul E. Listones currently serves as the Officer-in-Charge of the Office of the Director IV, Land-based Accreditation Bureau of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), overseeing the accreditation and registration of foreign principals. He previously served as an Adjudicator handling cases involving overseas Filipino workers, recruitment agencies, and foreign principals. He held the same position at the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) from 2017 until POEA became DMW in 2022. Before joining POEA, he served as Attorney III in the Department of Labor and Employment.
Siriwan Romchatthong
Secretary General, Employers' Confederation of Thailand (ECOT) / Labour Migration Focal Point for the ASEAN Confederation of Employers (ACE)
Ms. Siriwan Romchatthong is Secretary-General of the Employers’ Confederation of Thailand (ECOT), an Employer Representative on Thailand’s Social Security Committee, and the Labour Migration Focal Point for the ASEAN Confederation of Employers (ACE). A former Employer Member of the ILO Governing Body, she has extensive experience in labour relations, social protection, labour migration, and employer advocacy. Through close engagement with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the ILO, and regional partners, she has advanced responsible business practices, fair recruitment, decent work, and inclusive labour market governance, while promoting sustainable business competitiveness and economic growth.
Bettina Schaller
President, World Employment Confederation
Bettina joined Swiss-based 25 Bio CHF Adecco Group, the world’s leading Talent & Tech company, and the 600 Bio U$ Private Employment Services Industry in March 2010. Prior to that, Bettina was active in the Financial Services and Sports Industry and served as a Diplomat in the Swiss Foreign Service. At the Adecco Group, Bettina heads the Group Public Affairs Function and chairs the
Responsible AI Committee.
After holding multiple roles in the industry, Bettina is also since 2020 President of the World Employment
Confederation (WEC), the voice of the private employment services industry. Since 2025, Bettina is also Chair of the Business@OECD Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Committee, since 2020 Co-Chair of the B20 Future of Work and Education Task Force, a Member of the B20 International Business Advocacy Caucus as well as since 2018 a Steering Group Member on the World Economic Forum (WEF) “Center for New Economy and Society” and since 2020 a Steering Group Member of the Global Apprenticeship Network (GAN). In 2026, Bettina co-founded the Swiss Education Systems Reform Lab Foundation CEMETS where she sits on the Advisory Board.
In 2026, Bettina was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the “Staffing 100 Europe Influencer” list, after being
featured on it from 2017-2025. Since 2017 Bettina is also listed in the International 50 of the “Global Power
100 – Women in Staffing”. In 2022, 2023, 2025 and 2026 Bettina was recognized as a Latin America 25 Top
Leader in Staffing. In 2025, Bettina received a Special Recognition Award from the Irish Recruitment and
Employment Confederation for her contribution to the Growth of the Industry in Ireland and around the
World. In March 2025, Bettina was awarded the ‘Global Champion of Workforce Excellence’ Recognition at the
Annual WEC Conference hosted by the South African Association of Personnel Service Organisations.
Tanja Pacifico
Chief of Mission, International Organization for Migration (IOM) Country Office with Coordinating Functions - Thailand and Lao People's Democratic Republic
Ms. Tanja Pacifico is the Chief of Mission of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Country Office with Coordinating Functions (COCF) for Thailand and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.
Ms. Pacifico is an Italian national with an academic background in advanced management, communication and psychology. Ms. Pacifico joined IOM in 2009 and has since covered several thematic areas, including Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration, Immigration and Border Management, Labour Migration, Migration and Development, Migration and Environment, Public Information, Civil-Military Coordination and Migration Governance.
Previously, Ms. Pacifico worked at IOM in Djibouti and Uruguay as Chief of Mission, as Chief of Mission a.i. in Niger and Paraguay, and at IOM in Egypt as Deputy Chief of Mission and Head of Policy, Governance and Liaison Unit. She has also held positions at IOM in the Netherlands, where she was Head of
the Training, Resettlement and Integration of Migrants Unit, covering various national and regional initiatives.
A graduate of the Università degli Studi di Torino, before joining IOM, Ms. Pacifico worked on migration in Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain