Features

2012

1. 

   From Pakistan

   All aboard the women’s rights bus

   24 September 2012

   For working women in Pakistan, the bus ride to work can be particularly uncomfortable. The country’s National Highways and Motorway Police (NH&MP) has been trying to change that, with a bit of help from the ILO.

2. 

   European labour migration

   From public sector worker in Portugal to cleaner in Switzerland

   20 September 2012

   As protests spread in southern Europe – especially in Greece, Spain and Portugal – against austerity measures, more and more people hit by the crisis are moving to northern countries in search of decent jobs. Public sector workers are not an exception.

3. 

   Article

   Turning waste fruit into a profitable business

   05 July 2012

   Cooperatives have played an important role in Indonesia by helping to boost growth, reduce poverty and promote social cohesion. As the world celebrates the UN International Day of Cooperatives, Gita Lingga reports on a successful project involving rural women in the Maluku islands.

4. 

   Feature

   How the ILO supports change in the Arab world

   17 January 2012

   The world has been transfixed in admiration at the courage of the women and men who have taken to the streets across the Arab States over the past year. Farah Dakhlallah, ILO Regional Outreach and Advocacy Officer in Beirut, reports from Yemen and Lebanon where the ILO assists in preparing a better future for workers in the region.

2011

1. 

   Article

   The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire and International Women’s Day: 100 years on

   08 March 2011

   The first International Women’s Day commemorated a demonstration by women workers in New York in 1857. But what established the modern celebration of International Women’s Day in history, was the fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York on 25 March 1911 that killed 146 young women workers, most of whom were immigrants. From the ashes of that tragic event, the pursuit of social justice for women and men ignited that day continues be felt around the world 100 years on. From New York, ILO On-line reports on the fire that changed everything.

2008

1. 

   Migration and development

   Women migrant workers: seizing opportunities, upholding rights

   24 September 2008

   Nearly half of the world’s migrants are women. Increasingly, migration provides them with opportunities to find better jobs. However, many still accept lower skilled jobs for higher pay and some may even become victims of exploitation and abuse. In partnership with the ILO, UN agencies and NGOs, the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women is holding the International Conference on Gender, Migration and Development in Manila on 25-26 September to focus on the issue. ILO migration specialist Gloria Moreno-Fontes Chammartin speaks about the link between migration, gender equality and development.

2007

1. 

   Article

   Women entrepreneurship: a road to decent work and MDGs in Africa

   04 May 2007

   In Africa the equal rights of women and their equal participation in the social, cultural, economic and political life have remained illusive. Women are still the main victims of poverty, social prejudice, lack of access to health services and education.

2006

1. Article

   95th session of the International Labour Conference, 2006
   Breaking out of informality: Amina, the Queen of Oranges

   02 June 2006

   With between a half and two-thirds of the world's working women and men outside the formal economy, breaking out of informality is the single biggest challenge for labour market governance worldwide.

2. 

   Article

   Extending social protection to women in the informal economy

   21 April 2006

   More than half of the world's population has no social protection. Only one out of five enjoys adequate coverage. The ILO-STEP programme aims at fighting social exclusion and poverty and promoting social protection worldwide. ILO Online reports from the Philippines where STEP helps informal sector workers and their families which are generally excluded from the national social security system.

3. 

   Article

   In the heart of the sierra: local talent at the service of the global economy

   07 April 2006

   In Peru, a group of female embroiderers has allied itself with the Converse shoe brand to put their ancestral knowledge at the service of a global company. It is a prime example of what the ILO considers the bright face of globalization: creating jobs locally that contribute to international commerce. ILO Online reports from the Ayacucho region in Peru.