Tripartite Meeting on Labour and Social Issues Arising from Problems of Cross-Border Mobility of International Drivers in the Road Transport Sector

Geneva, 23-26 October 2006

A Tripartite Meeting on Labour and Social Issues Arising from Problems of Cross-Border Mobility of International Drivers in the Road Transport Sector, with an HIV/AIDS component was held at the International Labour Office in Geneva, from Monday, 23 to Thursday, 26 October 2006.

The Office had prepared a report that served as a basis for the Meeting’s deliberations. The report provided the context within which to discuss the subject of, and means to address, labour and social issues which international transport carriers and drivers working in international corridors regularly encounter when physically crossing an international border. It also presented examples of what some countries were doing, or proposing, to improve the situation. In addition, the report gave special consideration to the visa issue and to the risk to drivers of HIV/AIDS.

The Meeting was attended by Government representatives from: Angola, Argentina, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Ecuador, Finland, Gabon, Georgia, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, India, Islamic Republic of Iran, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malawi, Malaysia, Mozambique, Nigeria, The Philippines, Portugal, Romania, The Russian Federation, South Africa, Spain, Thailand, Uganda, United Kingdom and Venezuela, as well as 16 Employer and 14 Worker representatives.

Observers attended the Meeting from the European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT), the European Commission, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the World Bank, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), the International Organization of Employers (IOE), the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) and the International Road Transport Union (IRU).

The Meeting was part of the ILO’s Sectoral Activities Programme, one of the purposes of which is to facilitate sectoral social dialogue and the exchange of information between constituents on labour and social developments relevant to particular economic sectors, complemented by practically oriented research on topical sectoral issues. This objective has traditionally been pursued by holding international tripartite sectoral meetings with a view to: fostering a broader understanding of sector-specific issues through social dialogue; developing an international tripartite consensus on sectoral concerns and providing guidance for national and international policies and measures to deal with related issues; promoting the harmonization of all ILO activities of a sectoral character and acting as a focal point between the Office and its constituents; and providing technical advice, practical assistance and support to the latter to facilitate the application of international labour standards.

The Meeting discussed labour and social issues arising from problems of cross-border mobility of international drivers in the road transport sector, including that of HIV/AIDS and adopted conclusions that included proposals for action by governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations and the ILO and a report of its discussion.

Within the framework of this Meeting a panel discussion also took place from 10.30 to 13.00 hours, on 26 October 2006 that was titled “Training in the road transport sector: Minimum requirements, responsibilities, opportunities and expectations”.

The Note on the proceedings provides a summary of the debates as well as the evaluation questionnaire and the list of participants.

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