News

May 2008

1. Juan Somavia highlights ASEAN charter as foundation for helping "Marginalized Majority"

   08 May 2008

   In an address to the 20th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Labour Ministers’ Meeting in Bangkok, the Director-General of the ILO, highlighted the ASEAN Charter signed late last year as a “fundamental political commitment” to honour “the dignity of work and respond to the legitimate aspirations of people and families for a better life.”

April 2008

1. 

   ILO Director-General calls for strong support for social dialogue in Africa

   24 April 2008

   In an address at the headquarters of the African Union, the Director-General of the International Labour Organization, Mr. Juan Somavia, called for a stronger commitment to reinforce “African tripartism” and social dialogue throughout the continent.

2. 

   ILO and US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health agree to cooperate on expanding safety and health at work

   23 April 2008

   The Programme on Safety and Health at Work and the Environment (SafeWork) of the International Labour Office (ILO) and the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) today signed an agreement aimed at expanding safety and health in the workplace.

3. 

   28 April 2008: World Day for Safety and Health at Work ─ Worldwide events to mobilize workers, employers and governments on managing risks at work

   23 April 2008

   The world of work is to mark the World Day for Safety and Health at Work this year on 28 April, amid a new call by the International Labour Office (ILO) for managing risks in the work environment to reduce both the human and the economic burdens of work-related accidents and ill health.

4. 

   ILO Conference on Green Jobs held in Japan

   20 April 2008

   The impact of environmental change on jobs, sustainable economic growth and poverty is discussed at an International Labour Organization research conference in Niigata, Japan on 21-22 April.

5. 

   UNCTAD XII: The opportunities and challenges of globalization

   18 April 2008

   In a statement to the Twelfth United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in Accra, Ghana (21-25 April), the ILO calls on the international community to grasp the opportunities offered by globalization by creating an environment conducive to full and productive employment and decent work for all. It focuses on the synergies between the work of UNCTAD and the ILO, with particular emphasis on building an international response to the risks of a marked slowdown in global growth following the financial turmoil sparked by the US financial situation and the sharp rise in food prices worldwide.

6. 

   ILO sees a significant improvement in Workplace attitudes to HIV/AIDS

   14 April 2008

   New report says some 1 million workers in 24 countries are now benefiting from the HIV/AIDS strategic responses in Enterprises (SHARE) project.

7. ILO announces availability of microinsurance grants

   10 April 2008

   he International Labour Office (ILO) has announced the availability of grants from its new “Microinsurance Innovation Facility” aimed at producing new ideas and innovative approaches for insurance products for low-income people.

8. 

   ILO Director-General calls for new multilateral consensus to head off global slowdown and recession

   09 April 2008

   Citing threats to stability and progress in the world of work due to instability in the world of finance, International Labour Office Director-General Juan Somavia has called for a new multilateral “consensus” to head off a global slowdown and recession.

9. 

   Luxembourg ratifies 20 ILO Instruments including 15 in the field of occupational safety and health

   08 April 2008

   The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg has ratified 20 Instruments of the International Labour Organization – 18 conventions and 2 protocols, most of which are related to occupational safety and health. A combined ratification of such magnitude is relatively rare in the history of the ILO. As a result, Luxembourg has now ratified a hundred ILO Instruments.