Feature articles

June 2005 

• 93rd International Labour Conference Azerbaijan: Leading the way to decent work for youth
  21 June 2005 - Delegates to the International Labour Conference discussed youth unemployment which has reached record levels in recent years. In Azerbaijan, young people account for 69 per cent of the country's unemployment. Olga Bogdanova from the ILO Office, Moscow, reports from Baku.
• 93rd International Labour Conference ILO Knowledge Fair: Uniting workers and employers to address the challenges of the informal economy
  17 June 2005 - As recent campaigns to end poverty have shown, a common cause links people worldwide: at the International Labour Organization's annual conference, a Knowledge Fair on the informal economy sponsored by the ILO secretariat with financial support from UK Department for International Development (DFID), has seen some interesting encounters. ...
• 93rd International Labour Conference Forced labour in the Russian Federation: building dachas in Stavropol
  16 June 2005 - Delegates to the International Labour Conference also discussed the ILO's global report on forced labour ( Note 1) during a special sitting last week. According to the report, no country is exempted from forced labour. ...
• WORLD DAY AGAINST CHILD LABOUR 2005 "Kopankas" in Ukraine: Sending children to the "family mine"
  14 June 2005 - This year's World Day Against Child Labour focused attention on the plight of child labourers in mines and quarries. The ILO estimates that about a tenth of the 13 million workers engaged in small-scale mining and quarrying activities worldwide are aged 5 to 17. In Ukraine there are more than 800 illegal coal mines where children are often required to do the same work as adult workers. ...
• 93rd International Labour Conference Working hours around the world: balancing flexibility and protection
  13 June 2005 - In today's fast-moving world of virtual offices, home work and globalized commerce, are international labour standards on working time still needed? Yes, according to a study prepared by an ILO Commission of experts and delegates at the Organization's annual Conference. ...
• WORLD DAY AGAINST CHILD LABOUR 2005 Digging for survival: The harsh reality of child mining worldwide
  09 June 2005 - Of the estimated 250 million child labourers worldwide, the ILO believes more than one million work in mines and quarries. Under ILO Convention No. 182, working in mines and quarries can be defined as one of the worst forms of child labour - exposing children to severe occupational hazards and often depriving them of basic freedoms. ...
• 93rd International Labour Conference Promoting Youth Employment: The road to decent and productive jobs
  01 June 2005 - In 2015, 660 million young people will either be working or looking for work - an increase of 7.5 per cent over the number of youth in the labour force in 2003 - and decent employment opportunities for young people will need to grow substantially to meet this challenge. ...

May 2005 

• Global Report on Forced Labour In Asia: debt bondage, trafficking and state-imposed forced labour
  18 May 2005 - With an estimated 9.5 million, the Asia and Pacific region claims the highest number of people among the estimated 12.3 million victims of forced labour in the world today. The region is struggling against both traditional and newer forms of forced labour. An 8.1 million people are trapped in forced labour by means other than trafficking, primarily through debt bondage. ...
• Fighting forced labour in Latin America
  18 May 2005 - The ILO estimate of the number of victims of forced labour in Latin America and the Caribbean is 1.3 million. Brazil has taken the lead in addressing the problem through its 2003 National Action Plan for the Eradication of Slavery, including the liberation of workers and measures to fight impunity. ...
• Forced labour in Africa: between poverty and tradition
  13 May 2005 - The ILO estimate of the number of victims of forced labour in sub-Saharan Africa is 660,000. In this region, the figure reflects the stubborn survival of traditional forms of servitude, but also relates to extreme poverty, a high incidence of child labour, and a context of severe political violence. ...