ILO LIAISON OFFICE – BRUSSELS
NEWSLETTER NO. 3/2005
The ILO at the European Parliament
The ILO participated in two European Parliament hearings in March. The first hearing on 15 March addressed the social aspects of migration and how
they relate to employment. The ILO explained how its international standards, guidelines and studies outline the approach to be taken in fighting
discrimination and providing support for the integration of migrants. Two examples of cooperation between the ILO and the European Union were discussed.
The first was a project aiming to use migration of workers as an instrument for development in the Euromed-North Africa cooperation zone and in Eastern
and Western Africa. The second example was a project seeking to combat discrimination against migrants in the European Union (EU) through cooperation
between social partners and by raising the profile of successful cases of integration. Click
here for the ILO presentation at this event.
The ILO contributed to a second hearing on 17 March on child labour as part of preparations for a new European Parliament report on policies and EU
action programmes on this subject. The ILO gave an overview of the current situation of child labour and also explained that combating this type of
exploitation requires both action to combat poverty and action to support education for all. Click
here for the ILO presentation.
More "integrated" labour inspection
Conclusions drawn at the international conference on labour inspection held in Mondorf-les-Bains between 9 and 11 March (see February newsletter)
which was organised by the ILO and the Inspection du travail et des mines (the organisation responsible for inspecting the workplace and mines
in Luxembourg) can now be accessed on the ILO website by
clicking here. Participants at the conference stressed that
globalisation requires more and more creative holistic approaches to labour inspection, taking into account the changes in the world of work and the
advent of new risks. They also stressed the importance of strengthening the integrated labour inspection system throughout the world, particularly in
transition countries in Europe. The conference, organised as part of the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the European Union, proposed setting
up a joint ILO-EU programme financed by the EU to reinforce labour inspection and prevention in these countries. The participants also called on the
ILO to create an internet-based service for labour inspection to support ILO constituents. This site should comprise a labour inspection training
system and include policy tools and strategies for labour inspection, and the sharing of best practices.
An article published on the ILO website also focuses on the murder of two French and two Brazilian labour inspectors in 2004. The ILO believes that
these two extreme examples only represent the tip of the iceberg and highlight the need for new prevention measures. The article is available
here.
Slight decline in global unemployment
The latest ILO annual report on Global Employment Trends (available
here) reveals that despite robust economic growth, the global employment
situation improved only slightly in 2004. Employment increased and unemployment fell only slightly from 6.3% to 6.1% or from 185.2 million in 2003 to
184.7 million in 2004. The unemployment rate in the European Union fell from 9.1% to 9%. The global decline in unemployment, though slight, marked the
first time since the year 2000 that year-over-year unemployment decreased and was only the second decrease since 1994. The report said that a robust
global economic growth rate of 5% in 2004 played a large role in these developments. However, the growth in global employment of 47.7 million, an
increase of only 1.7% in the total number of jobs worldwide, remained disappointing bearing in mind the level of economic growth.
The report said that in addition to creating new jobs, other key challenges facing policy-makers today included eliminating decent work "deficits":
declines in unemployment rates do not in themselves indicate improvements in decent work "deficits". The focus of policy should therefore not be on
unemployment alone, but also on the conditions of work of those who are employed.
Better management of HIV/AIDS and the impact on health care workers
A tripartite meeting of experts will take place between 19 and 21 April 2005 in Geneva in order to adopt the Joint ILO/WHO (World Health Organisation)
guidelines on health services and HIV/AIDS. According to the WHO, HIV/AIDS generally strikes hardest in areas where health services are the weakest.
Moreover, these already fragile services are further weakened by the loss of staff also affected by the virus. The joint guidelines by the two United
Nations agencies will allow HIV/AIDS prevention among health care workers to be better coordinated and for the monitoring of health care workers that
have contracted the virus to be improved. Click
here for a draft version of the guidelines. Once the
guidelines have been adopted, they will be translated into several languages and distributed by the ILO and the WHO.
A better social agenda for countries in Europe and Central Asia
The Seventh ILO European Regional Meeting concluded on 18 February 2005 in Budapest with the adoption of conclusions published on the ILO website (available
here). The conclusions note in particular that globalisation and the
speed of economic integration means that companies and workers in Europe and Central Asia face the same challenges. Representatives asked countries to
agree on the need for greater policy coherence at home, regionally and globally, between, on the one hand, economic, social, financial and trade policies
and, on the other hand, policies aimed at promoting decent work. These policies must be based on the fundamental rights at work, employment, social
protection and social dialogue.
Representatives also appealed to the ILO to strengthen its partnerships with donor countries and the European Commission with regard to technical
cooperation for the development of legislation on decent work. They also called upon governments to take into account the needs of young workers in
their national employment strategies.
Working and employment conditions in an enlarged Europe
An international conference on working and employment conditions in an enlarged European Union (EU) is due to be held by the ILO in cooperation with
the European Commission, on 14-15 April 2005 in Brussels. This conference will examine, in particular, research undertaken by the ILO and a group of
experts during more than a year into the changes in working and employment conditions in the EU. The study focused in particular on changes in the new
Member States and the impact of these changes on workers and their family life. Several practical examples in companies will also be presented.
Samoa becomes the 178th member of the ILO
The Independent State of Samoa (Oceania) has become the 178th Member State of the International Labour Organization following receipt in Geneva of a
letter from the Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, stating on behalf of the Government that Samoa formally accepts the obligations under
the ILO Constitution.
New publications
The following recent ILO publication may be of special interest to our readers:
Safety and Health in Ports. Code of practice
2005, xxxii+496 pp.; ISBN 92-2-115287-1; €26
Despite sophisticated innovations, port work is still an occupation with very high accident rates. Every port needs to develop working practices that
safeguard the safety and health of port workers. This essential code, offering many detailed technical illustrations and examples of good practice,
provides valuable advice and assistance. The code covers all aspects of port work from the handling of goods to the management of passengers and applies
to both sea ports and ports on inland waterways. The code can be ordered
here.
Schedule of meetings
The list of ILO meetings scheduled for 2005 is available by clicking
here.