Feature articles

2007

1. Peace, security and work in Timor-Leste

   02 August 2007

   By Jose Assalino, Chief Technical Advisor, Timor-Leste. As a newly independent country with a fledgling economy, Timor-Leste faces many social and economic challenges. To help the Timorese people find decent work the ILO started three new initiatives, each designed to address a different aspect of the labour market while complementing each other and promoting employment, income generation and decent work.

2. Helping former Afghan fighters reintegrate

   01 August 2007

   By Ingrid Christensen, Officer-in-Charge, Jacqueline Paul and Ram Gopal Parajuli, ILO Kabul. Former fighters and their families are now getting help to resume normal lives, thanks to the Afghan Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled (MoLSAMD), ILO, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) which operates the Reintegration Support Project for Ex-combatants (RSPE).

3. Opinion article: Realising ASEAN's potential

   30 May 2007

   As the 40th anniversary of its creation approaches ASEAN is entitled to feel well-placed to meet its target of full integration by 2015.

4. 

   Equality at work - Tackling the challenges: Underpaid, Overworked and Overlooked: the plight of young foreign migrant workers in Thailand

   07 May 2007

   Migrant workers are often subject to discrimination because of their colour, race or religion, or simply because of their migrant status, says the ILO's new global report on discrimination worldwide.

5. Simple steps for a safer, healthier workplace

   24 April 2007

   ILO Expert in Occupational Safety and Health describes simple steps for a safer, healthier workplace on World Day for Safety and Health at Work.

6. 

   The spicy taste of entrepreneurship: street food sellers and economic development

   09 February 2007

   In Bangkok, food sold by street vendors provides more than just a cheap and healthy meal. For tens of thousands of people it is a vital source of income and a recipe for reducing poverty. According to a study recently published by the International Labour Organization (ILO), street vendors shouldn't be seen as a nuisance and a traffic obstruction but as entrepreneurs who generate "cultural capital" while building a healthier future for themselves and their families. The study says the right policies and positive social attitudes can benefit not just the vendors and their customers but entire economies as well. ILO Online reports.

2006

1. International Migrants Day (18 December 2006) Reversing the brain drain in China: the return of the 'sea turtles'

   11 December 2006

   As China's economy continues to grow exponentially, the country faces a shortage of locally educated managers with international experience. But more and more Chinese who previously left the country to study abroad are heading back to the land of opportunities, according to a recent article in the ILO's International Labour Review ( Note 1).

2. Realizing decent work in Asia: lessons from the Republic of Korea

   01 September 2006

   14th Asian Regional Meeting, Busan, Republic of Korea, 29 August – 1 September 2006. Globalization and flexible working practices are changing the way people work in Asia. They bring opportunities but leave social and political consequences that matter to employers, workers and governments. As all three ‘social partners’ come to grips with these challenges, the example of the Republic of Korea shows how a rapidly growing economy can manage the transformation.

3. Sharing profit, knowledge and power: Worker-owned businesses

   01 July 2006

   An ILO study suggests that employee-owned businesses are both successful in business terms and more widely applicable.

4. A new "bill of rights" for the maritime sector: a model for fair globalization

   17 May 2006

   The ILO Director-General decribes the new features and benefits of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006.

5. Managing labor migration in Southeast Asia

   24 March 2006

   The movement of people over national borders is a global issue often spotlighted by tragedies, as when a ship overloaded with migrants sinks. The number of migrants worldwide has doubled in the past 25 years, reaching 200 million in 2005. Half these migrants are workers.

2005

1. The global jobs crisis: what’s at stake in Singapore

   01 September 2005

   Financial leaders gather in Singapore to discuss what some of the major policy avenues are to address the global jobs imbalance.

2. After the tsunami In Thailand, the tourist industry fights back

   11 April 2005

   The December tsunami hit Thailand's tourist resorts and beaches hard, both in human terms as well as in lost incomes and livelihoods. Now, the tourist industry is making a comeback. Journalist Clifford Coonan looks at how the job situation is faring, and what the ILO and Thai authorities are doing to boost reconstruction.

2004

1. Delivering treatment for HIV/AIDS in the workplace: the ILO role An interview with Franklyn Lisk, Director, ILO/AIDS

   13 July 2004

   At the XVth International AIDS Conference (Bangkok 11-16 July), the AIDS programme of the International Labour Office (ILO) is launching a new report on "HIV/AIDS and work: global estimates, impact and response". Franklyn Lisk, Director of the ILO Global Programme on HIV/AIDS and the World of Work talks about the ILO report and the expanded response of the ILO to AIDS in the workplace.

2. Campaign against human trafficking in Japan

   01 April 2004

   A campaign for stronger measures to combat human trafficking is gaining attention in Japan, a country which has long been reluctant to acknowledge that any problem existed. Mieko Takenobu of the Asahi Shimbun newspaper reports.

3. Dealing with the global jobs crisis

   21 February 2004

   The global jobs crisis isn’t going unnoticed on the streets of rich and poor countries alike. Increasingly, political leaders are hearing the voices of people demanding a fair chance at a decent job and new opportunities to find and keep work.