All ILO Newsroom content

January 2013

1. 

   Official visit

   ILO head in Latin America: More, but also better jobs are needed

   30 January 2013

   Guy Ryder, ILO Director-General, highlighted the need to turn informal employment into decent jobs in the formal sector. He spoke during a Latin America visit that took him to Buenos Aires and Lima.

October 2012

1. Labour rights

   Domestic workers in Europe falling through the loopholes

   24 October 2012

   Many domestic workers in Europe do not enjoy as much legal protection as other workers. ILO Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers – which will come into force in a year’s time – offers a chance to improve the lives of the millions of people who work in this profession.

June 2012

1. Article

   Proposals to the 2002 International Labour Conference (90th Session) regarding informality

   07 June 2012

   It was exactly 30 years ago that the ILO first used the term “informal sector” to describe the activities of the working poor who were working very hard but who were not recognized, recorded, protected or regulated by the public authorities.

2. Article

   Delhi Group

   07 June 2012

   Set up as an international forum to exchange experience in the measurement of the informal sector, document the data-collection practices, including definitions and survey methodologies followed by member countries, and recommend measures for improving the quality and comparability of informal sector statistics.

April 2012

1. 

   Feature

   Social Protection for Thailand’s Informal Economy Workers

   05 April 2012

   People working in the informal economy are vulnerable and often lack social protection. When natural disasters such as the 2011 flood in Thailand strike, they are frequently left without adequate support. But now the International Labour Organization (ILO) and other United Nations agencies are working with the Thai Government to change this and create a suitable social protection system. Alice Molinier and Kakkanang Ghettalae, ILO Social Protection Consultants, and Poonsap Tulaphan, Foundation for Labour and Employment Promotion report.

March 2012

1. 

   Feature

   Giving an ancient craft a new shine: Training youth in the brassware sector in India

   27 March 2012

   Low levels of education, lack of skills, diplomas or certificates within a technical field severely limit the chances of gainful employment for a vast number of youth in India. A new programme of skills developing and training, however, is providing an alternative. Neelam Agnihotri, ILO communication officer in New Delhi, reports how this initiative is providing new jobs for youth in the centuries-old traditional brassware industry in Moradabad, northern India.

October 2009

1. Article

   ILO and WTO Launch Joint Study on Globalization and Informal jobs in Developing Countries

   12 October 2009

   A joint study from the International Labour Organization and the WTO has found that high incidence of informal employment in the developing world curbs countries ability to benefit from trade openings. ILO Director General, Juan Somavia, and WTO Director General, Pascal Lamy, opened a meeting in Geneva to launch the study.

June 2008

1. 

   Video

   The Dignity of Decent Work

   06 June 2008

   Daniel Funes de Rioja, Executive Vice-President of the International Organization of Employers, discusses the Decent Work agenda, informality in the Latin American economy and the relevance of the International Labour Organization to today's world.

April 2008

1. 

   Video

   Out of Informality – Ghana’s Way to Decent Work

   02 April 2008

   In Ghana, local authorities are teaming up with informal workers to find solutions for reducing poverty and bringing decent work opportunities to their communities. It’s a new initiative that has been so successful in the two areas where it’s been trialed, that it’s going to be rolled out across Ghana in the months to come. ILO TV reports.

February 2007

1. 

   Article

   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.