ILO celebrates 90th anniversary with global dialogue
Amid the worst financial and jobs crisis since the Great Depression,
the International Labour Organization (ILO) will celebrate its 90th
anniversary in the week of 21-28 April.
During this period, there will be a global convergence on the common
theme of social dialogue on decent work for a fair globalization in
commemorative events in more than 100 countries across the world. This
launches a global dialogue aimed at fostering hope and action for an
embattled world of work
Local events will take many forms, from dialogues involving labour,
employers and governments to heads of state, parliamentarians,
academics, and civil society. These will include ratification of
international labour standards, the launch of Decent Work Country
Programs, and technical workshops exploring solutions to the financial
crisis, to job fairs and the award of government decent work prizes.
A new volume entitled "The ILO and the Quest for Social Justice,
1919-2009" will also be launched on this occasion.
The events are being held against what ILO Director-General, Juan
Somavia, in a statement issued for the anniversary, describes as "a
backdrop of rising unemployment and underemployment, business closures,
deteriorating conditions of work and the undermining of respect for
rights at work, along with growing inequality, poverty and insecurity."
"We celebrate this anniversary at a time of profound economic and
social upheaval," Somavia said, adding that "the universal message, the
mandate and the method of the ILO will be expressed locally."
Change
For the ILO, crisis has always announced change. The Organization was
founded in the aftermath of World War I on the principle that "universal
and lasting peace can be established only if it is based on social
justice", as expressed in its Constitution.
In the nine decades since then, ILO has responded to many crises
through the world of work with timeless values, consistent policy
messages and practical action aimed at the pursuit of social justice.The
instruments developed within the tripartite ILO - with the direct
representation of governments, employers and workers - have been the
basis for much of the world's labour legislation and have guided key
developments in the world of work.
They cover conditions of work, occupational safety and health, social
security, employment promotion, human resource development and the
fundamental goals of freedom of association and collective bargaining,
abolition of forced and child labour and non discrimination, The ILO's
instruments have also focused on specific groups including indigenous
peoples, migrant workers and disabled workers. The ILO engages with
constituents in its 182 member States in diverse activities covering
normative activities, research, policy advisory services, information
sharing and technical cooperation.
Decent Work
The contemporary expression of the ILO's historic mission is embodied
in the concept of Decent Work, defined as opportunities for all women
and men to obtain productive work in conditions of freedom, equity,
security and human dignity. The ILO's Decent Work Agenda has been
strongly endorsed at global, regional and national levels.
It is centred on employment and enterprise, rights at work, social
protection and social dialogue.
This is the basis for a balanced approach to action that responds
both to people's enduring need for decent work and to the imperative of
productive growth and sustainable development,
War and peace
"Through war and peace, depression and economic growth, governments,
workers and employers have continued to come together in dialogue around
our table of shared values: that work must be a source of dignity; that
labour is not a commodity; and that poverty anywhere is a threat to
prosperity everywhere", the ILO Director-General underlined. "These
values and actions were recognized by the Nobel Peace Prize in 1969.
Those values continue to guide and define our work today."
In 2004, the World Commission on the Social Dimension of
Globalization set up by the ILO anticipated many dimensions of the
current crisis, given the trajectory of the prevailing model of
globalization which produced global imbalances characterized by the
Commission as being "morally unacceptable and politically
unsustainable."Noting that the celebration was an opportunity to
reaffirm the ILO's fundamental values and take action to confront the
uncertainties working families and enterprises are facing today, Somavia
added, "Together, let us make the policy choices that sustain the goal
of decent work; and together, let us advance the cause of decent work
for social justice and a fair globalization. That's our mission, our
mandate and our responsibility."
The ILO has advocated a decent work approach to the crisis based on a
productive recovery. It has proposed a number of measures that bring
together employment creation, including green jobs, sustainable
enterprises; increased social protection; and upholding standards and
fundamental principles and rights at work in integrated approaches while
harnessing the creative power of dialogue to find inclusive responses.
As a concrete and practical initiative, Somavia proposes that the annual
International Labour Conference to be held in Geneva in June agree to a
Global Jobs Pact that would boost economic recovery and the construction
of a new pattern of fairer and more inclusive globalization, focusing on
the Decent Work Agenda. |
