Feature articles
2011
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Ray of hope – Ramayees’s story
02 December 2011
Fishing had been the mainstay of Ramayee and her husband Kandeeban of the tiny coastal hamlet of Oyalikuppam before that fateful day in December 2004 when giant waves of Tsunami washed away their home and virtually everything they owned including boats and fishing nets, leaving a trail of destruction and bleak future for survivors.
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Recognition for India’s invisible workers
30 May 2011
Domestic workers play an important role in the economy and they allow others to go out and earn money. Yet they remain invisible, unprotected and their contribution is often not recognized. At the forthcoming International Labour Conference (in Geneva, 1-17 June) the ILO and its members will debate drafts that could lead to the first international instruments specifically designed to protect domestic workers. By Neelam Agnihotri, Communication & Information Officer, ILO Country Office for India
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Bringing hope to the hopeless
05 January 2011
12 year old Murugesan from Tiruvallur District of Tamilnadu was obliged to replace his ailing father, who could no longer work at the local rice mill. His family was in debt to the mill owner and the boy had no choice but to go to work to pay back the loan...
2010
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Turning old: A domestic workers' nightmare
31 July 2010
By Sindhu Menon. Tithli Ben migrated to Delhi in 1969 at the age of 19 after marriage to Dumru Bhai, a mechanic working in a small workshop in Mehrauli in South Delhi. They settled in a small jhuggie (makeshift shelter) near the workshop. Dumru Bhai was on contract, and used to get paid based on work done. Since it was a small workshop, the orders were few and the income was low.
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A triumph of enterprise : Sitabai's story
01 March 2010
ILO's tripartite partners in India -- the Government, employers and workers -- formally adopted a Decent Work Country Programme for India. The new programme focuses on enhanced opportunities for productive work for women and men, particularly for youth and vulnerable groups. The experience of a worker in Madhya Pradesh Province illustrates what the Decent Work Agenda can mean for workers in this vast country.
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Rebuilding lives : from despair to determination
25 January 2010
By Neelam Agnihorti, Communication and Information Officer, ILO Subregional Office for South Asia Suresh’s life came to a standstill when he learnt of his HIV+ status three years back. A well educated young man in his early thirties, Suresh had a well-paying corporate job in New Delhi, India. He was married and had the dreams and aspirations of any young man his age. Life was good and he had a great future ahead--till one day when he fell ill and was diagnosed with TB. He was shocked when further investigations revealed he was HIV positive.
2009
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Climate change and jobs - dealing with the myths
08 October 2009
Asia and the Pacific are very exposed to the impact of climate change. Therefore, progress towards a global climate deal is crucial for its development and its stability. But such a global journey to a low carbon and climate resilient future will necessarily involve the world of work and those who will actually do the job, says Sachiko Yamamoto, Regional Director, ILO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.
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Power for the powerless: the woman behind India’s ‘Gentle Revolution'
03 June 2009
Nearly four decades ago Dr Bhatt, now 76, founded what has become India’s largest and most unusual trade union. The members are waste-pickers, street vendors, incense stick rollers, construction and agricultural workers, and home-based workers. They are the so-called informal economy workers - women at the bottom of the ladder who have no job security or social safety net. The organization Dr Bhatt started to help them, Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), now has more than a million members, half of them in her home state, Gujarat.
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India’s barefoot solar engineers fight climate change and poverty
03 June 2009
At the forefront of what the International Labour Organization (ILO) – the UN agency that deals with work and workplace issues – called Green Jobs; jobs are being created as a result of economies adapting to climate and environmental change.