For what reason was the International Labour Organization (ILO) formed?

The International Labor Organization (ILO) is a part of the United Nations (U.N.). By setting international norms for work, the ILO works to improve social and economic justice. The ILO is made up of 187 member states and has 40 field offices all over the world. Its main office is in Geneva, Switzerland. The ILO’s standards ensure everyone can find, do, and keep productive and long-lasting work in an environment of freedom, equality, safety, and respect.

How to Understand the International Labor Organization

The League of Nations created the International Labour Organization (ILO) in 1919. In 1946, it became a specialized body of the United Nations. Since its founding, the International Labor Organization has been a part of the United Nations. The group aims to bring together governments, companies, and workers. It makes a point of saying that workers should be able to enjoy freedom, fairness, safety, and human respect at work.

The ILO has field offices in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and Central Asia, and Asia and the Pacific. These offices work to promote international labor standards. The group teaches people about fair employment standards, helps with technical aspects of projects in partner countries, looks at labor statistics publications, researches the topic, and holds regular meetings and events to discuss essential labor and social problems. In 1969, the Nobel Peace Prize was given to the ILO. The group was praised for promoting friendship and peace between countries, fighting for fair pay and working conditions, and helping poor countries with technical issues.

The ILO’s rules on work have been written down in 190 agreements and six protocols. In these standards, the right to collective bargaining is recognized. They also try to get rid of forced or compulsory labor, child labor, and acts of discrimination in work and occupation. Because of this, the ILO’s protocols and agreements play a significant role in international labor law.

The group comprises three levels: governments, companies, and workers. The ILO’s three main groups are the International Labour Office, the Governing Body, and the International Labour Conference. Every year, the International Labour Conference comes together to set international standards for work. The Governing Body meets annually to decide on the agency’s policy and budget. The International Labour Office runs the organization and makes sure that activities happen.

List of international labor standards from the International Labor Organization

Workers, companies, and governments have created these pieces of legislation that spell out fundamental rights and principles at work. They come in two forms: conventions and protocols, which are international deals that all member states must follow, and recommendations, which are just suggestions. The first are made and agreed upon at the annual International Labour Conference. Then, the parliaments or congresses of member states must approve them. In general, there are eight rules:

The 1948 (No. 87) Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention says that people can join together and hold meetings.

The Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

This is the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) and its 2014 Protocol.

• Confession Against Forced Labor, 1957 (No. 105)
• Convention on the Minimum Age, 1973 (No. 138)
• Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labor, 1999 (No. 182)
• The Equal Pay Convention of 1951 (No. 100)

Convention Against Discrimination in Employment and Occupation, 1958 (No. 111)

Other than that, four governance agreements are essential for “the functioning of the international labor standards system”:

• Convention on the Inspection of Work, 1947 (No. 81)
• Convention on Employment Policy, 1964 (No. 122)
• Convention on Labor Inspection in Agriculture, 1969 (No. 129)
• The International Labour Standards Tripartite Consultation Convention of 1976 (No. 144)

International Labor Organization Projects

The ILO has put all of its current technical projects into five “flagship programs” meant to make its development cooperation with people worldwide more effective and have a more significant impact. These are the programs:

Work Better

This program is run in partnership with the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group. Its goal is to improve working conditions in companies that make clothes and shoes. “Lasting improvements rather than quick fixes” are the focus. Eight countries on three continents work with more than 1.5 million workers in more than 1,250 factories. The program aims to “prove that safe, respectful work leads to more productive factories and a more profitable business model that helps workers, managers, countries, and customers worldwide.”

There is a global program to build particular protection floors (SPFs) for everyone.

The program began in 2016, and its long-term goal is “to extend social protection to the five billion people who are partially covered or living without social protection and the dignity it affords.”

The ILO says that 73% of the world’s population does not have access to social safety and that 5 billion people live with daily anxiety. To change this, the ILO wants to set up “nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors.” It will “work with other U.N. agencies to support governments, workers’ and employers’ confederations, and civil society groups in 21 countries.”

The Global Flagship Program’s first goal was to “change 130 million lives by 2020 by putting in place comprehensive social protection systems in 21 countries and running a global campaign to develop knowledge and educate people.”The page doesn’t say whether or not that goal was met as of April 2021.

With the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting workers by considering how different countries are dealing with it has also become more challenging.

The IPEC+ program aims to end child labor and forced labor around the world.

The ILO says that 152 million children work, 40 million men, women, and children are in “modern slavery,” 24.9 million people are forced to work, and 15.4 million people are forced to get married. The goal of this program is to end these terrible things. It’s a relatively new show combining two older stories about child labor and forced labor. IPEC+ works with companies, governments, and workers to:

• Build up people’s technical and leadership skills to make significant changes in all levels of government structures, laws, and practices.
• Encourage constituents and other partners to work together and be involved well.
• Obtain a lot more information and advice about strategy and knowledge

The U.N.’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, which was approved in 2015, says that the goals are to end child labor by 2025 and forced labor and human trafficking by 2030.

Everyone’s Safety and Health

This program, which used to be called GAP-OSH, was meant to “improve the health and safety of workers in small and medium-sized enterprises through fostering a global culture of prevention.” It was started in 2016 and has worked in 15 countries worldwide.

The ILO says that every year, 2.78 million workers die from sickness and injuries at work, and 374 million more get hurt or sick but don’t die. It’s estimated that the lost workdays cost the world about 4% of its yearly GDP. These are its specific goals:

Dangerous areas, like farming and building

Young workers (15–24 years old), women, and migrant workers are more likely to get accidents and illnesses at work.

For small and medium-sized businesses

Huge networks of supply

Its new purpose is to provide “a tailored set of interventions to address the immediate and longer-term safety and health needs of constituents related to COVID-19.”

Jobs for Peace and Strength

This program’s primary goal is to create jobs in countries going through disasters or conflicts, focusing on giving young people and women work. Its primary goals are to build institutions, encourage social discussion, and set basic rules and rights at work to reach these goals:

• Giving people direct job growth and income security
• Improving skills to get a job
• Providing help for self-employment, businesses, and groups
• Connecting the supply and demand of workers
• 24 million dollars
• The number of new jobs could be increased by switching to a green economy worldwide.

What will happen to the International Labour Organization (ILO)?

The ILO created the Global Commission on the Future of Work in 2019. A total of 110 countries took part in regional and national dialogues to get ready for the meeting. The study that came after told governments how to best deal with the problems of working in the 21st century. These suggestions included a promise of work for everyone, social security from birth to old age, and the right to keep learning throughout life.

The ILO also looked at how a green economy would affect jobs. If the proper rules are implemented, the ILO says switching to a cleaner economy could create 24 million jobs worldwide by 2030.

Conclusion

• The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a part of the United Nations (U.N.).
• By setting international standards for work, the International Labour Organization (ILO) works to improve social and economic justice.
• A big part of international labor law comprises the agreements and protocols of the International Labour Organization (ILO).