95th International Labour Conference A new international standard on safety and health, changing patterns in the world of work

GENEVA - At this year's 95th International Labour Conference, the watchwords were "relevance" and "renewal". Speaking at the conclusion of the Conference, ILO Director-General Juan Somavia said it had "set standards for the 21st century which are relevant and applicable for countries all over the world and at all stages of development" and provided "a strong mandate to engage fully in the process of renewing our multilateral system, confident in the recognition we have as 'the decent work agency'."

Indeed, the concept of decent work was very much on the minds of the delegates to the ILC, which gathers government, worker and employer representatives from the ILO 178 member States. That included decent work in terms of occupational safety and health, decent work in terms of the relations between employees and employers, and decent work to ease concerns and uncertainty over rapid changes.

For example, the new ILO report Changing patterns in the world of work had produced "extremely thoughtful and interesting contributions" to help "inform and shape" the ILO's future work, Mr. Somavia said. These changes were contributing to a sense of unease among workers, and the discussion on the findings of the changing patterns report - a year in the making and an unprecedented overview of nearly every aspect of the working world - was destined to launch an ongoing discussion of future ILO actions.

A working agenda

Delegates adopted new standards and measures addressing health and safety issues, giving overwhelming approval to a new Promotional Framework Convention on Occupational Safety and Health and an accompanying Recommendation addressing the development of a "preventative safety and health culture" through national occupational safety and health programmes.

Faced with a daily death toll of some 6,000 workers owing to work-related accidents or illness, the new measures will promote development of a "preventative safety and health culture" through the elevation of occupational safety and health high on national agendas by launching national occupational safety and health programmes, as well as the promotion of safer and healthier working environments through preventive measures.

The Convention passed by a vote of 455 for and 2 against, with 5 abstentions. The accompanying Recommendation was adopted by a vote of 458 for and 3 against and 6 abstentions. The measures are based on the ILO's Global Strategy on Occupational Safety and Health adopted by the 2003 International Labour Conference which emphasized the importance of building and maintenance of a national preventative safety and health culture, and a systems approach to safety and health.

A majority of delegates also adopted a Resolution concerning exposure to asbestos, which causes some 100,000 deaths worldwide per year. The Resolution declares that the elimination of the future use of asbestos and the identification and proper management of asbestos currently in place are the most effective means to protect workers from asbestos exposure and to prevent future asbestos-related diseases and deaths. It also resolves that the ILO's Asbestos Convention, 1986 (No. 162) should not be used to provide a justification for, or endorsement of, the continued use of asbestos.

Many delegates also supported a new Recommendation on the "Employment Relationship", proposing to member States the formulation and adoption, in consultation with workers and employers, of national policies on effectively establishing the existence of an employment relationship and on the distinction between employed and self-employed workers; combating disguised employment relationships and ensuring standards applicable to all forms of contractual arrangements.

Delegates also reviewed the ILO's technical cooperation programme, taking account of significant changes that have taken place in the approach and modalities of ILO programmes and activities since the last time the issue was discussed at the Conference in 1999, including Decent Work Country Programmes and partnerships within the United Nations system and elsewhere. They emphasized the importance of strengthening the tripartite constituents of the ILO and their participation in technical cooperation.

Noting that "full and productive employment and decent work are a central driver of development and therefore a priority objective of international cooperation", the Committee reviewed all aspects of technical cooperation extensively. The Committee's work will usefully feed into the forthcoming High-Level Segment of ECOSOC, which will debate Decent Work and Sustainable Development as its special theme this year.

The Conference also discussed the ILO's annual report on the situation of workers in the occupied Arab territories saying that poverty and unemployment continue to worsen despite a moderate economic upturn last year. While the economy rebounded moderately in 2005 following a very sharp dip, four out of every ten Palestinians in the territories were living under the official poverty line of less than US$2.10 a day, while the absolute number of the poor rose from 600,000 in 1999 to 1.6 million in 2005, the new report says.

Standards issues

The situation of forced labour in Myanmar and rights at work in other countries were also discussed. The Conference noted that progress could be made on the issue of forced labour in Myanmar only if there was a real commitment from the Government. The Conference set out two areas that required "tangible and verifiable" action: the release of any person who had been imprisoned following contacts with the ILO and stopping prosecutions that were currently underway, by the end of July, and agreement between Myanmar and the ILO by the end of October on a credible mechanism for dealing with complaints of forced labour with all necessary guarantees for the protection of complainants.

At its November 2006 session, the ILO Governing Body would examine whether this action had been taken and would have full authority to decide on the most appropriate course of action. During the Conference, Myanmar had expressed a willingness to cooperate with the ILO and had released Su Su Nwe from detention. Her release had been called for by the ILO since her imprisonment last year, a few months after she had successfully brought a case against government officials for imposing forced labour.

The Conference adopted a report by Committee on the Application of Standards, which covered 25 individual cases on the way ILO member States have applied Conventions on freedom of association, forced and child labour, discrimination, employment policy, labour inspection, wages, etc. (For more details see the relevant ILO press releases).

The Committee also recorded a historic tripartite agreement by the government, employers and workers of Colombia. The agreement foresees a permanent representation of the ILO in the country to provide technical assistance in the framework of a National Decent Work Country Programme. This programme will include the defence and promotion of fundamental workers' rights, in particular freedom of association and expression, collective bargaining rights, and the freedom of enterprise for employers.

The annual General Survey discussed by the Committee was on labour inspection. The Committee highlighted the crucial importance of labour inspection for ensuring the protection of workers and compliance at national level of labour laws, and its key role for good governance in the world of work.