ParaEmpleo

In 2010, the job search services of Dirección General de Empleo de Paraguay (General Directorate for Employment) operated only in one office in Asunción. To search for a job, applicants handed in their resumes at the office, and an employee manually consulted the vacancy file. The process was so slow that only 562 people received individual job counseling in 2010. At the same time, companies were not registering vacancies, evidencing few options available for applicants.

Problem to be solved:

Matching labor supply and demand efficiently, accurately, cutting the red tape, and offering an added value to job seekers and employing companies.

Populations that are affected by the problem

Job seekers in Paraguay who attend fairs or offices or self-manage on the job search platform.

The current response to this problem, using AI

A labor intermediation system with an ontology and semantics-based engine that makes matches based on multiple dimensions, other than just word matching. It matches several dimensions including labor supply and demand based on hard skills, soft skills, geography and proximity, schedules, experience, certifications, and languages, generating multiple matches allowing parties to manage the employment supply and demand. Based on this information, job counselors ask candidates questions to adjust information if relevant experience has not been entered and propose alternatives to each job seeker.

What security considerations, national laws, or standards should be considered to use each source of information?

The AI system is GDPR (General Data protection regulation) certified and separates sensitive user profile data from non-sensitive data on the site. Users, job seekers, or employers upload personal data such as gender, name, age, nationality, etc., which are not included in any matching to avoid bias. On the other hand, employability data such as skills, abilities, experience, location, schedule, and others remain unnamed. The system meets the requirements established by MITIC for developing and implementing information systems in terms of information security and infrastructure. The system is in line with Law No. 6562 on the reduction of paper use in public administration and its replacement by digital format and with Paraguay's electronic government provisions.

Main AI challenges identified

Although a useful tool, AI requires human participation to assist job seekers in understanding their results and help companies to record vacancies and upload information. It is also necessary to have upload support options by specialized personnel (facilitators) to guide job seekers with limited digital skills to ensure broad access to the services.