International Labour
Standards
Globalization - the
interlinking of national economies - has been intensifying in the last few
decades and affecting almost everybody in the world. While it has provided opportunities for some
regions it has also led to increased inequality within many countries and a
growing gap between the world's richest and poorest nations. If this pattern
continues even more poverty, social instability and conflict will develop.
Consequently there is growing recognition in the international community that
to ensure fair treatment and increased prosperity for everybody basic global
rules are needed.
Establishing
global rules
The
International Labour Organization (ILO) is the global body concerned with all
matters connected to work in the world. It is a specialized agency of the
United Nations. Since 1919 it has been setting rules about employment in order
to ensure that social justice, prosperity and peace for all develop along with
economic progress.
These rules - called international labour
standards - are legal instruments which define basic minimum standards in the
world of work. They are drawn up by representatives of governments, employers
and workers in a tripartite fashion and so represent the work-related
principles of the major actors in the global economy. As instruments of law
which can be ratified [ILO1] by governments the
standards are part of the legal framework the international community is
developing as it confronts the effects of globalization. But they also serve as
guide posts for organizations, companies and individuals concerned with basic
principles and rights at work.
There are two kinds of international labour standards: conventions and recommendations. Conventions are legally
binding international treaties that may be ratified by the ILO's member
states. Recommendations are non-binding
guidelines which often provide detailed suggestions on how conventions could be
applied. Recommendations can be autonomous, in other words, not linked to any
convention.
By
the end of June 2007 the ILO had adopted 188 conventions and 199 recommendations covering a wide
range of subjects. Eight of the conventions, in four subject areas, are
considered "fundamental" because they are related to fundamental
principles and rights at work.
The ILO's Fundamental Conventions
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Freedom
of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective
bargaining
No. 87: Freedom of
Association and Protection of the Right to Organize, 1948.
No. 98: Right to Organize
and Collective Bargaining, 1949
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The
elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour
No. 29: Forced
Labour, 1930
No. 105: Abolition
of Forced Labour, 1957.
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The
effective abolition of child labour
No. 138: Minimum Age, 1973.
No 182: Worst Forms of
Child Labour, 1999.
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The
elimination of discrimination related to employment and occupation.
l
No.
100: Equal Remuneration, 1951
l
No.
111: Discrimination (Employment and
Occupation), 1958
Freedom
of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective
bargaining
The right to organise and
bargaining collectively are basic rights for all working people and employers, with the
only exception of armed forces and police.The right to
form a union and negotiate wages and working conditions are basic rights for
all working
people Yet all over the world
the application of these fundamental principles continues to be challenged. In
many countries certain categories of workers (such as public employees,
seafarers and workers in export processing zones) are denied the right of
association to form a union.
Other countries illegally suspend or interfere with labour
organizations. Some even encourage or systematically ignore the killing of
unionists. Meanwhile, there are
countries which deny the rights of association to employers so that effective
tripartite social dialogue of all the major actors - governments, employers and
workers - is inhibited.
The ILO works towards guaranteeing freedom of
association, effective collective bargaining and social dialogue. Convention
No. 87 (Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize) sets
forth the rights of workers and
employers. These include establishing and joining organizations of their own
choosing without previous authorization, organize their
administration and activities, formulate their programmes, and affiliate with
national or international organizations.
Convention No 98 (Right to Organize and Collective
Bargaining) provides that workers will be protected against acts of anti-union
discrimination, including dismissal because of union
membership or participation in union activities and free from
requirements that a worker not join a union or relinquish union membership for
employment. It also states that workers cannot be dismissed
because of union membership or participation in union activities It also
guarantees adequate protection against any acts of interference from employers’
organizations Andand it
enshrines the right to collective bargaining so workers and employers can
freely negotiate wages, benefits, working conditions and other employment
issues.
There are other ILO conventions relevant to freedom of
association and collective bargaining. For example, Convention No.
135 (Workers' Representatives) provides facilities protections for
workers’ representatives and
protection of workers from
being dismissed or otherwise punished based on their status, union membership
or activities related to their unions. Convention No.
141 (Rural Workers' Organization) describes the freedom of association and bargaining rights of rural
workers whether they are wage earners or self-employed. It also describes the obligation
for governments to facilitate the establishment and growth of labour
organizations..
The
right to form unions and bargain collectively is not only a question of
workers' rights. It is also related to the sustainable development of
countries. It has been recognized that countries with highly coordinated
collective bargaining systems tend to have less inequality in wages, lower and
less persistent unemployment, and fewer and shorter strikes than countries
where collective bargaining is less established.
Forced Labour
The ILO estimates that currently
at
least 12.3 million women, men and children across the world are victims of forced
labour. They are trapped in exploitative work which they
are unable to leave and are suffering at the hands of
unscrupulous employers, labour contractors or agents. They may be victims of
trafficking into commercial sexual exploitation but, more often, they are
working in economic sectors like agriculture, construction or informal
manufacturing, frequently labouring under the burden of a debt which they can
never repay. Many, especially women and girls, are trapped in forced domestic
service in private households, well beyond the reach of the protections
afforded by labour law. Irregular migrant workers are highly vulnerable to
forced labour exploitation, living and working in constant fear of being turned
over to the authorities in their host country. Indigenous peoples are also
among the most vulnerable, for whom forced labour is another facet of the
discrimination they face in all aspects of their lives. A minority – but still
a significant number of people – suffer forced labour imposed directly by the state or by
its representatives. Everywhere, in rich and poor countries alike, forced
labour affects the poorest and the most socially marginalized groups in the
population.
Forced labour, wherever it occurs, represents a
brake on social and economic development and a violation of human rights. The
ILO’s clear message is that it can be and must be stopped. The numbers
of people affected are large, but not so large that abolition appears an
unattainable goal.
The Forced Labour Convention (No. 29) demands
suppression
of the use of forced or compulsory labour in all
its forms within the shortest possible period. Forced labour is defined
as any work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any
penalty and for which the person has not offered him or herself voluntarily.
However, work or services exacted in virtue of compulsory military service
laws, as a consequence of a conviction in a court of law[1],
in cases of emergency, which forms part of normal civic obligations, and minor
community services are not considered forced labour. The Abolition of Forced
Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105), that supplements Convention No 29, asks to
suppress and not to make use of any form of forced or compulsory labour as a
means of political coercion, education or punishment. It also
prohibits using forced labour as a method of mobilising and using labour for
purposes of economic development, as a means of labour discipline, or as a
penalty for having participated in strikes, or still as a means of racial,
social, national, or religious discrimination.
Forced or compulsory labour is
also covered by the ILO's Convention on the worst forms of child labour, 1999
(No. 182).
Child Labour
According to ILO estimates[2]
there are some 317.4 million children aged 5 to 17 engaged in some form of
economic activity in the world (2004), including 190.7 million in the age group
from 5 to 14 years. “Economic activity” encompasses most productive activities
of children: it includes both work that is permissible under the ILO Child
Labour Conventions and work that is not
permissible. “Child labour”, however, is a narrower concept: it
excludes the activities of children 12 years and older who are working only a
few hours a week in permitted light work and those of children 15 years and
above whose work is not classified as “hazardous”. ILO action targets the
elimination of child labour as defined in the ILO Minimum Age Convention, 1973
(No. 138) and the ILO Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182)
and not all economic activities of children. The ILO research
mentioned above also identified an estimated 217.7 million children in
child labour aged 5 to 17 years (of which 165.8 million were
below the age of 15), 107.6 million below the age of 12, and 126.3
million child labourers working in hazardous situations or conditions (of which
74.3 million children were below 15 years of age).
Child labour is a violation of fundamental human rights.
It has been shown to perpetuate poverty across generations as children grow up
without access to education or decent health care.
ILO standards on child labour are
primary international tools for addressing the problem. The Minimum Age
Convention, 1973 (No. 138) sets a general minimum age for admission to
employment or work that shall not be less than the age of completion of
compulsory schooling and, in any case, shall not be less than 15 years, 13 years for light labour. For hazardous
work the minimum age is 18 (or 16 under strict conditions). The Worst Forms of
Child Labour Convention (No. 182) was adopted by the ILO in 1999, and
supplements Convention No. 138. It requires member states of
the ILO to
eliminate all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery (such as the
sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom, forced or compulsory labour,
and the forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed
conflict); the use, procuring or offering of children for prostitution and pornography; the use, procuring or offering
or children for illicit activities such
as the production and trafficking of drugs; and work which, by its
nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the
health, safety or morals of children.
The convention requires ratifying states to provide the
means to remove children from the worst forms of child labour and for their
rehabilitation and social integration. It also requires states to ensure access
to free basic education and, wherever possible or appropriate, provide
vocational training for children removed from the worst forms of child labour.
The elimination of all forms
of forced or compulsory labour
Even as the world heads into the
21st century there are still millions of people around the world subjected to
forced labour. Slavery and coercive recruitment are still present. In numerous
countries domestic workers are trapped in situations of forced labour and in
many cases not allowed to leave the employer's home through threats or
violence. Bonded labour, where millions of men, women and children are tied to
their work through a vicious cycle of debt, still persists. An increasing
number of women and children are victims of traffickers who sell them into
forced prostitution or sweatshops. And many people are punished with forced
labour for expressing their political views.
Convention 29 (Forced Labour)
prohibits all forms of forced or compulsory labour. This is defined as any work or service
which is involuntarily exacted from a person by threat of a penalty. Some
exemptions, such as military service, minor community services and emergencies
are allowed. But any compulsory labour forced as a means of political coercion,
education or punishment is prohibited. Also prohibited is using forced labour
as a means of labour discipline or as a penalty for having participated in
strikes.
Forced or compulsory labour is also
covered by the ILO's convention on the worst forms of child labour.
Child Labour
In 2005 the ILO estimated that there
were 245 million children in the world engaged in child labour. An estimated
8.4 million were trapped in one or more of the worst forms: forced or bonded
labour, prostitution and pornography, trafficking, and forced recruitment for
armed conflict.
Child labour is a violation of
fundamental human rights. It has been shown to perpetuate poverty across
generations as children grow up without access to education or decent health
care. ILO standards on child labour
are primary international tools for addressing the problem. The Worst Forms of
Child Labour convention (No. 182) was adopted by the ILO in 1999. It requires
members states to eliminate all forms of slavery or practices similar to
slavery such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom.
Banned practices include: forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use
in armed conflict, child prostitution and pornography, using children for
illicit activities such as the production and trafficking of drugs, and work
which is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children. The convention requires states which ratify
the convention to provide the means to remove children from the worst forms of
child labour and for their rehabilitation and social integration. It also
requires states to ensure access to free basic education and, wherever possible
or appropriate, provide vocational training for children removed from the worst
forms of child labour. A
related ILO convention is the one on Minimum Age (No. 138). It sets the general
minimum age for admission to employment or work at 15 years (13 years for light
labour). For hazardous work the minimum age is 18 (or 16 under strict
conditions).Equality
of opportunity and treatment
Millions
of men and women around the world are denied access to jobs and training,
receive low wages, or are restricted to certain occupations simply on the basis
of their sex, skin colour, ethinicity or beliefs without regard for
their skills and capabilities.
Freedom
from discrimination is a fundamental human right which is essential for workers and job
seekers to choose their employment freely, to develop their
potential to the full, and reap economic rewards on the basis of merit.
One
of the ILO's fundamental conventions is No. 100 on: Equal Remuneration between men and women.
The convention requires countries that have ratified it to ensure the
application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers
for work of equal value. The term "remuneration" is broadly defined
to include the ordinary, basic or minimum wage or salary and any other compensation
payable directly or indirectly, whether in cash or kind, by the employer to the
worker and arising out of the workers' employment. The term equal value
means that men and
women who have different positions should be
paid equally if the content of their job is objectively of equal
value. According to this concept, Convention No. 100 requires
member states to evaluate the respective value of different jobs in order to
end the under evaluation of jobs mostly performed by women.
The second fundamental convention related to equality is
No. 111: Discrimination (Employment and Occupation). It defines discrimination as any distinction,
exclusion or preference made on the basis
of race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social
origin which has the effect of nullifying or impairing equality of opportunity
or treatment in employment or occupation. The convention requires nationscountries
which ratify it to implement
policies designed to promote, by methods appropriate to national conditions and
practice, equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation with a view
to eliminating any discrimination in this area. As a first step, the state is
expected to repeal any statutory provisions and modify any
administrative instructions or practices which are inconsistent with the policy.. It is
important to notice that prohibition of discrimination
should cover not only the conditions of employment
but also recruitment and access to vocational training and
guidance.
A
related convention is No. 156: Workers with Family Responsibilities. This
convention requires states to make it a national goal to enable people with
family responsibilities who are engaged, or wish to engage, in employment to
exercise their right without discrimination.
Other ILO Conventions
The
eight conventions discussed above have been declared as fundamental. In
addition to these conventions four others have been declared as priority:
l
No.
81: Labour Inspection, 1947
l
No.
144: Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards), 1976
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No.
122: Employment Policy
Of
course there are many other conventions. For example, there are conventions on:
l
Employment
policy
l
Employment
promotion
l
Vocational
training
l
Employment
security
l
Social
policy
l
Wages
l
Working
time
l
Occupational
health and safety
l
Social
security
l
Maternity
protection
l
Migrant
workers
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Seafarers
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Fishers
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Dockworkers
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Indigenous
and tribal peoples
RatificationSubmission of Conventions and Recommendations
Within a
period not exceeding 18 months, mMember states of
the ILO are required to submit any convention or recommendation
which has been adopted at the
organization's annual International Labour Conference to their national
"competent authority" (for examplethe national parliamentnational legislative
body). This is in order to havecreate a
national debate on the newly adopted standard and to give the national
authority the possibility to the national authority consider
the enactment of relevant legislation or other action, including
ratification (in the case of of the
conventions).
Ratification of conventions
Ratification
is a formal procedure whereby a state accepts the convention as a legally
binding instrument. Once it has ratified a convention, a country is subject to
the ILO's supervisory system which is responsible for ensuring that the
convention is applied.
Countries
often go through a period of examining and, if necessary, revising their
existing legislation and policies in order to achieve compliance with a
convention they want to ratify in the future. Some countries decide not to
ratify a convention but bring their legislation into line with it anyway. Still
others ratify ILO conventions fairly quickly and then work to bring their
national law and practice into compliance. In many ways, even if conventions
are not immediately ratified, they serve as targets for national law and
practice in a particular subject area. [ILO3] For example, non ratified
conventions as well as recommendations are used are referred to during the
negotiation of collective agreements.
An
up-to-date list of the conventions which have been ratified by countries is
available on the ILO website at: www.ilo.org/ilolex/
The ILO's Supervisory System
Once
a country has ratified an ILO convention it is obliged to report regularly on
the measures it has taken to implement it. Every two years governments must
submit reports detailing the steps they have taken in law and practice to apply
any of the eight fundamental and four priority conventions that they have
ratified. For all other conventions reports must be submitted every five years.
Governments are required to submit copies of their reports to employers' and
workers' organizations. [ILO4]These organizations may
comment on the governments' reports. They may also send comments on the
applications of conventions directly to the ILO. If Convention 144 (Tripartite
consultation) has been ratified the government is obliged to consult with
workers’ and employers organizations.
To
monitor the application of ratified conventions the ILO has established a
Committee of Experts which consists of 20 eminent jurists appointed by the
organization's Governing Body (after being proposed
by the ILO’s Director General). The Committee's role is to provide an
impartial and technical evaluation of the state of application of international
labour standards. The Committee can address individual comments to
the member states, either by written observations
or direct requests. The reports of the Committee of Experts
are submitted to the ILO's annual International Labour Conference where a
special
tripartite committee reviews them and discusses them with
representatives of the governments involved. In many cases the process has
resulted in governments improving their application of particular conventions.
Workers'
and employers' organizations can are also participate
inof
the monitoring system through other means of action. Firstly, tThey
can present what is called a "representation" to the ILO's Governing
Body against any member state which they consider "has failed to secure in
any respect the effective observance within its jurisdiction of any Convention
to which it is a party" (articles 24 and 25 of the ILO Constitution). A three-member tripartite committee of the
Governing Body may be set up to examine the representation, and assess the casediscuss it
with the
involved government and the complaining organization involved
and
issue some recommendations.. If the committee is not satisfied
with the government's response the Governing Body may publish the
representation and the response.
Representations
concerning the application of Conventions 87 and 98dealing with
(freedom of
association and collective bargaining) are usually
referred to the Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA)LIBSYND. Theis committeeCFA was established by the ILO to examine complaints about violations of
freedom of association and collective bargaining principles
whether or not the country concerned had ratified the relevant conventions. The CFA is [ILO5]a creation of the ILO
Governing Body composed of three workers representatives, three
employers representatives and three government
representatives. It is chaired by an independent president.
To be officially received by the Committee on Freedom of Association complaintsrepresentations
must be:
l
Be fFiled
in writing, signed and accompanied by evidence
l
Be
filed by workers' (national or international), employers' organizations or
governments.
l
Deal with
freedom of association and collective bargaining issues
If
the Committee finds that there has been a violation of freedom of association
standards or principles it issues a report endorsed by through the Governing Body in which it and makes
recommendations on how the situation can be remedied. In cases where the
country has ratified the relevant convention the Governing Body may ask the Committee of Experts
to follow-up the refer legislative aspects of the case.
Discussion
questions
- What can unions do to support the acceptance of more international
labour standards in their countries and globally?
- How can labour organizations be encouraged to participate more
actively in the monitoring of the application of international labour
standards?
Resources
This
document has provided an informal overview of international labour standards.
For more precise information about these legal instruments the following
resource material should be consulted.
Access
to the material listed below can be found by consulting the ILO website
(www.ilo.org), regional ILO offices, the Bureau for Workers' Activities in
Geneva (www.ilo.org/actrav) or the ILO's International Training Centre in
Turin, Italy (www.itcilo.org).
Contacts
Bureau
for Workers Activities (ACTRAV). Geneva.
Email:
actrav@ilo.org
Workers'
Activities Programme (ACTRAV),
ILO
International Training Centre, Turin.
Email:
actrav@itcilo.org
ILO
International Labour Standards Department, Geneva*
Email:
norms@ilo.org
Standards
and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work Programme, ILO International
Training Centre, Turin.
Email:
normesturin@itcilo.org
* If correspondence is sent
to the Standard Department in Geneva or the Standards Programme in Turin it
should be copied to the Bureau for Workers’ Activities in Geneva.
ILO
website
Introduction to ILS
ILS Information Resource web page:
Guide to ILS, 2006
International Labour Standards - A global
approach, ILO
Geneva, 2002
Rules of the Game: a brief introduction
to International Labour Standards
Handbook of procedures relating to
international labour Conventions and Recommendations
E. Gravel and C. Charbonneau-Jobin, The Committee of Experts on the
Application of Conventions and Recommendations: Its dynamic and impact,
ILO, 2003
Discussion papers
Bob Hepple, Rights at work. International
Institute for Labour Studies Geneva
Martin Godfrey, Employment dimensions
of Decent Work: Trade-offs and complementarities, NTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE
FOR LABOUR STUDIES
http://www.ilo.ch/public/english/bureau/inst/download/dp14803.pdf
Publications
Rules of the Game A brief
introduction to international labour standards. Published by the
International Labour Organization, 2005. 96 pages. An introduction to the field
designed for non-experts.
Guide to International
Labour Standards. Published by the International Labour Standards Department of the
International Labour Organization, (second Revised Edition) 2006. 283 pages. A
detailed guide to the ILO Conventions and Recommendations
International Labour
Standards: A Trade Union Training Guide. Published by the
International Training Centre of the ILO in Turin. 1998 (under revision). 540
pages. Includes basic information on international labour standards and
teaching guides designed especially for labour educators. Also available as a
CD-ROM.
CD-ROMS
International Labour
Standards: A Trade Union Training Guide. Second Edition 1999 (under revision).
International Labour Standards E-library. Published annually. Contains numerous
publications.
International Labour Standards Electronic
Library - ILSE 2007
CD-ROM 2007
CD-ROM 2007
Online
Databases
ILOLEX -
Database on International Labour Standards. www.ilo.org/ilolex/
NATLEX - Bibliographic database
of national laws on labour, social security and related human rights. Includes
numerous laws in full text. Records and texts in NATLEX are in either English,
French or Spanish. Access at:
www.ilo.org Click on Labour Standards. Then click on NATLEX
APPLIS - Database containing
information on ratifications, comments of the Committee of Experts and
reporting obligations. Access at: www.ilo.org Click on Labour Standards. Then
click on APPLIS
MB-2007-ILS_bklt-1
[1] Provided that the said
person is convicted in a court of law, that the said work or service is carried
out under the supervision and control of a public authority and that the said
person is not hired to or placed at the disposal of private individuals,
companies or associations.
[2] Global child labour trends 2000 to 2004 (Geneva, ILO), April 2006.
[ILO1]Ratified
[ILO2]Agriculture
[ILO3]I think that it
should be stressed that non ratified conventions as well as recommendations
should also be used for the negotiation of collective agreements
[ILO4]If C144 is
ratified there is an obligation for governments to consult with workers and
employers’ organisations