More children, less teachers:
Classrooms get increasingly swamped

A new study says a looming shortage of teachers worldwide puts educational quality at risk. Despite moves in many developing countries to increase the number of teachers, population growth means teacher-pupil ratios often remain stubbornly high.

Cambodian clothes plants:
Working conditions improve

ILO to Summit: Sustainable development
begins in the workplace

Tripartite conference in Tallinn

The implications of information and communication technology (ICT) for work and employment were under discussion in April, when government, employers' and workers' representatives from Central and Eastern European countries met in Tallinn, Estonia, for a two-day conference organized by the ILO and the Estonian Government.

TALLINN, Estonia - The conference, which was supported by the Estonian Ministry of Social Affairs and the Finnish Ministry of Labour, provided an opportunity to assess issues raised in the ILO World Employment Report 2001, "Life at Work in the Information Economy" - particularly in the context of European Union expansion.

While delegates concluded that Central and Eastern European countries are generally well-equipped for the information society, some warned that securing the benefits depends on ensuring an appropriate policy environment and efficient social dialogue.

Amid fears that the expansion of the European Union could potentially see a "brain drain" to Western Europe, the conference urged governments and social partners to combine incentives for qualified professionals to remain in their home countries, with similar incentives to woo back those who had already left. Also highlighted was the need for the continuous training of young people - and indeed older workers.

According to some at the conference, new forms of work organization - which are emerging through the use of ICT - could potentially lead to more job satisfaction and a more balanced work and family life. However, both employers' and workers' organizations were told that such new types of work could require them to find innovative ways to organize their members and would-be members, and to deliver services to them.

The conference agreed that collective bargaining and national, sectoral, and local-level agreements were a useful tool when new work practices are being implemented. Specifically on telework, the conference drew up a good-practice list, which included a recommendation that telework should be voluntary, with the right for individuals to return to company offices. The need to protect teleworkers' employment and representational rights was stressed.

Also explored were the occupational safety and health implications of new technology at work, with delegates calling for better professional advice on acceptable working environments and conditions of work.

With all the European Union candidate countries from Central and Eastern Europe represented, the ILO conference provided an opportunity for delegates to take stock of the potential which ICT offers for employment creation and decent work.

Telework agreement

European employers' representatives and trade unions have negotiated a new European Union-wide framework agreement on teleworking. The agreement, signed at a ceremony in Brussels in July, marks the culmination of almost a decade of debate at the European level, about how to regularize conditions for those working in new ways with information and communication technologies (ICTs).

BRUSSELS, Belgium - Telework, which historically has proved a difficult term to define, is used in the agreement to mean work which makes use of ICT and is carried out away from the employers' premises on a regular basis. Potentially, therefore, the new framework covers many mobile workers as well as those who are home-based.

The agreement was negotiated between three European employers' bodies and the European Trade Union Confederation, and is the first time that employers' and workers' representatives in Europe have established an agreement which they themselves undertake to implement, without recourse to European legislation.

The agreement covers a number of points. The first establishes that telework should be voluntary with an explicit "right to return" to conventional working at a worker's or employer's request (except in cases where the initial job description specifies that the post is a teleworking one). Teleworkers are to benefit from the same employment rights and conditions as their colleagues who are working conventionally, and employers are generally expected to provide the equipment used by teleworkers and to take responsibility for data protection safeguards.

Employers remain responsible for the health and safety of teleworking employees, in line with standard legislation. Among other things, the agreement also covers privacy rights and issues.

The agreement builds on numerous collective telework agreements within individual companies (particularly those in the information technology and telecom sectors), and on national and sectoral telework agreements and codes of practice established in several EU member states. More recent antecedents are the two EU-wide sectoral agreements on telework, negotiated for the telecom and commerce sectors between employers and UNI-Europa.

In the context of European social partnership, it is the voluntary nature of the framework agreement which has received particular attention. It makes use for the first time of the "voluntary route" established in Article 139 of the EU Treaty, and is seen as a model for future social partnership agreements.

European Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou, in welcoming the agreement as a landmark deal, called it a sign of the "coming of age" of European social dialogue. Monitoring of the agreement is to be undertaken by an ad hoc group made up of the signatory parties, with a joint report on the process of implementation required within four years.

Tripartite labour agenda adopted
in Santo Domingo

SANTO DOMINGO, Costa Rica - Tripartite delegations from Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and the Dominican Republic, have adopted a new labour agenda for the subregion following a meeting in Santo Domingo in May 2002. The discussions were organized by the ILO Office in San José, with support from two technical cooperation projects promoting social dialogue in the subregion (PRODIAC, funded by the Government of Norway, and RELACENTRO, funded by the US Department of Labor).

The underlying theme of the meeting was the link between labour relations, social dialogue, and democratic governance. The agenda which was adopted identifies 11 priority areas for action and follow-up, including: compliance with the ILO fundamental Conventions, policies and strategies to address the informal economy; strengthening the capacity of employers' and workers' organizations; promoting productivity and competitiveness, particularly in micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises; promoting gender equality; modernizing social security systems; and developing programmes on migration of labour in the subregion.

In spite of the extremely difficult economic and social environment in most of the countries, participants expressed real interest in adopting a new approach to industrial relations in the subregion, one based on respect for the principle of freedom of association and the right to bargain collectively, and building a consensus on economic and social development.

The follow-up and implementation of this agenda will be supported by the ILO working with the relevant national and subregional bodies, such as the Council of Ministers of Labour, the Subregional Employers' Forum, and the Workers' Forum. A follow-up subregional meeting will be held to evaluate the results of this agenda and to establish future activities. (For further information, contact the ILO InFocus Programme on Social Dialogue, Labour Law and Labour Administration, by e-mail at: ifpdialogue@ilo.org)

Arab Region:
From significant historical innovations
to modest diffusion of new technologies

Will information technology widen the gap between the rich and the poor? Or will it be a significant instrument in promoting decent work for all men and women in the Arab Region? These were two of the major questions raised during a regional Forum on Technology, Employment and Poverty Alleviation in the Arab Countries, jointly held by the ILO and the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), in Beirut on 16 to 18 July 2002.

BEIRUT - In his opening speech, Mr. Juan Somavia, the ILO Director-General, said that, "we are in a region whose cultures were once technology leaders, who were great innovators, and whose ideas and inventions spread across civilization".

The Lebanese Prime Minister, Mr. Rafiq Hariri, stressed the importance of this Forum and the need to couple it with practical mechanisms for technological advancement in the Arab Region. According to Mr. Hariri, technological development can't be achieved through government initiatives alone, but rather jointly with the private sector and in partnership with European countries.

Mr. Hariri has agreed to sponsor a regional meeting of the Global Commission for the Social Dimension of Globalization, in response to an invitation by the ILO Director-General, made through his Adviser on Development Policies and Counselor on Arab Countries, Mr. Samir Radwan.

According to papers presented during the Forum, new technologies could provide opportunities for sustainable development, job creation, and poverty alleviation, if they can bridge the income divide between the haves and the have-nots, both between countries and within them.

"Information and communication technologies in their hands can inspire innovation, can create decent work, work with higher productivity and incomes, and with a higher level of participation and equity," Mr. Somavia said. He stressed that "the poor, after all, are also information poor... when technology gives them a voice, they are empowered, and thus better able to attain the security, decency, and respect to which all people aspire".

"Globalization has been an instrument for progress, for enterprise, for jobs, for wealth. For others, however, including many in this region, it has been a source of rising inequality and insecurity," he added.

The Forum focused on reviewing and generating debate on policies, strategies and initiatives aimed at employment creation, decent work, and poverty alleviation, through new technology inputs in the Arab Region and other experiences worldwide.

"The aim of the Forum is to study ways and means of making modern technology the focus of thought, planning, and implementation in Arab societies, with a view to improving the relative position of the Arab States," Ms. Mervat Tallawy, Under Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCWA said.

While referring to the low level of GDP per capita in most Arab countries - a mere US$2,800 - Ms. Tallawy stressed the importance of human endeavours over raw materials, implying that the region could rely on its human and social capital if technology is utilized. She cited different examples where modern technology was able to overcome development-related problems, including poverty, unemployment, and low levels of education.

"However, the problem is how to raise awareness of the potential of these new sciences, how to find the people who are determined to make change and exploit technology, and how to change traditional ways of thinking in respect to this knowledge," Ms. Tallawy added.

Throughout the three-day Forum, speakers and specialists indicated that market forces may be powerful motors of technological progress, if combined with the right policies and approaches, not only by governments but also by the private sector, whose commitment is essential.

Policies aimed at introducing new technologies should concentrate simultaneously on the integration of the Arab economies into the knowledge-based global economy.

The Forum was also attended by a number of well-known Arab scientists, including Professor Ahmed Zewail of Egypt, the 1999 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry.

One of the major achievements of the Forum was the establishment of a task force on information technology, employment, and poverty. The last day of the Forum was also dedicated to the inaugural meeting of the ESCWA Consultative Committee on Scientific and Technological Development, and Technological Innovation (ESTIC). ESTIC came up with recommendations on science and technology strategies for employment creation and poverty alleviation which will be presented to member countries for implementation.

ILO Director-General in Moscow

MOSCOW - The ILO Director-General met with senior officials of the Russian Federation as well as employers' and workers' representatives during a recent five-day visit here, during which he discussed the Russian Federation's accession to the World Trade Organization and other issues, such as child labour.

Included in the meeting were Alexander Pochinok, Minister of Labour and Social Development; Mikhail Shmakov, Chairman, Federation of Independent Trade Unions of the Russian Federation, leaders of affiliated trade unions, and Oleg Eremëev, Director-General, Coordinating Council of Entrepreneurs' Unions of the Russian Federation. Meetings were also held with Prime Minister Mikhail Kasianov, Vice-Premier Valentina Matvienko, the State Duma Chairman, Gennady Seleznev, and the Foreign Minister, Igor Ivanov.

At the meeting with Prime Minister Kasianov, the ILO Director-General gave top priority to the discussion of issues related to the forthcoming accession of the Russian Federation to the World Trade Organization. The Government has requested the ILO to assist in assessing the social consequences of its accession. Juan Somavia noted that everything possible needs to be done to maximize the benefits and minimize the negative impact on the population of the Russian Federation of joining the WTO.

The child labour problem was also discussed at the ILO delegation's meeting with leaders of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia. Following a meeting with the Mayor of Moscow, Mr. Somavia also visited a shelter for street children - one of many which have been opened in recent years in the city.

Director-General visits France

During an official visit to France on 19 and 20 September 2002, ILO Director-General, Juan Somavia met with President Jacques Chirac. They agreed that in order to tackle the globalizing economy, States will need to look at promoting globalization with a human face because there can be no sustainable economic development without social progress for the people. Mr. Somavia emphasized the significance of this meeting and the importance of dialogue to make progress in the new direction of globalization.