Lara White, Senior Specialist for Labour Migration and Human Development, International Organization for Migration

Lara White is the Senior Specialist for Labour Migration and Human Development of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), based in its Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific where she provides technical and policy guidance related to labour migration and maximizing the benefits of migration for development. Previously in Geneva, she was the organization’s primary liaison with private sector, governmental, intergovernmental or civil society stakeholders on the protection of migrant workers’ rights throughout the labour migration process, including the promotion of ethical labour recruitment practices. In this capacity, she is one of the principle architects of the International Recruitment Integrity System (IRIS), a voluntary multi-stakeholder certification process for international labour recruiters.

Before joining IOM, Lara worked for the Government of Canada, bringing with her extensive experience in policy development and implementation of labour market programs. Most recently she was the operational policy manager of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, charged with the national implementation of federal legislation, regulations and policies. Additionally, she managed the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, a bilateral migration program facilitating the temporary movement of foreign workers from Mexico and the Caribbean to the Canadian agricultural sector.