All news: green jobs + cooperatives + cooperative development + multinational enterprises + small enterprises + social finance + enterprises + microenterprises + social and solidarity economy

International Year of Cooperatives

Healing pharmacies

As the International Year of Cooperatives draws to an end, ILO News looks at how cooperatives in Turkey offer customers easier and safer access to medicines.

Banking co-ops

What financial cooperatives can teach the big banks

The success of financial cooperatives during the global financial crisis shows there is a credible alternative to the investment-owned banking system.

ILO to launch campaign to improve productivity and competitiveness of small and medium-sized companies in Makassar

To assist SMEs to be more productive, competitive and sustainable, the International Labour Organization (ILO) will conduct a workshop entitled, “Effective Ways, Tips and Tricks to Achieve High-Productivity in SMEs”, on Tuesday, 6 November, at...

Gender gap

Time for women to get on board

The need to have more women in the world’s still male-dominated boardrooms has gained widespread recognition but there is also strong disagreement on how to go about it.

ILO to launch campaign to improve productivity and competitiveness of small and medium-sized Indonesian companies

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) make a major contribution to growth and job creation in Indonesia, providing 60 per cent of employment opportunities for both women and men. The key to sustainable economic development also lies in the development...

Microinsurance

The win-win potential of microinsurance for migrants

International migrants send home over US$ 400 billion a year, yet they and their families often lack basic social protection. That is where microinsurance can step in.

Going international through ILO-SCORE Programme

PT Mubarokfood Cipta Delicia in Kudus, Central Java, is one of the pilot enterprises of the ILO-SCORE programmes. After joining the ILO-SCORE programme in 2011, the company has witnessed increased productivity, better working conditions and improved...

World Food Day

ILO says cooperatives key to boosting food production

Agricultural cooperatives – the theme of the 2012 World Food Day – are a vehicle for decent lives and decent work, according to ILO Director-General Guy Ryder.

The benefits of sustainable and responsible workplace practices

The ILO believes that the results of its first public-private partnership (PPP) to train Chinese suppliers of Switzerland’s second-largest retailer will show that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can become more productive and competitive by...

Special message at the International conference on "Forging greater solidarity among cooperatives, trade unions and social enterprises"

By Mr Lawrence Jeff Johnson, Director, ILO Country Office for the Philippines at the International conference on "Forging greater solidarity among cooperatives, trade unions and social enterprises", Quezon City, Philippines, 20 September 2012

Social finance

Giving banks a good name

Is it possible for banks to devote themselves to the financial welfare of workers and still survive financial crises? The ILO looks at the Rokin Bank, a union-led cooperative in Japan.

ILO in Asia-Pacific joins forces with IGES on research, training, advocacy and policy support for green jobs

The International Labour Organization’s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to strengthen cooperation in the field of research on...

Interview with Zakari Koudougou, Regional Secretary of UNI Africa

The Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV) has been promoting several activities in support of trade union actions in trying to organize in multinational companies, using the ILO’s MNE Declaration and its standards. In September 2011 a meeting was...

Asia-Pacific countries call for intensified efforts to create green jobs initiatives - Surabaya Conference

Government, employer and worker representatives from ten countries in the Asia-Pacific region have called for intensified efforts through social dialogue to promote the creation of “green jobs” – and the greening of existing jobs – as critical steps...

Greening Haiti

Decades of environmental degradation have left Haiti on the brink, posing a serious threat to lives and livelihoods. Training programmes are helping Haitians move towards a greener, more sustainable economy.

10 Asia-Pacific countries to examine green jobs initiatives at Surabaya Conference

Government, employer and worker representatives from ten countries in the Asia-Pacific region will gather in Surabaya, Indonesia this week to examine new ways of generating green employment opportunities.

Spain to gain from growth in green jobs

An ILO-sponsored report shows that the green economy can help Spain beat the jobs crisis. The challenge is putting in place the right types of policies.

Integrated Climate Risk Financing: ILO and UNDP teaming up in the Philippines

Opening address at the green jobs mapping project sector consultation

By Ms Lourdes Kathleen Santos, delivered on behalf of Mr Lawrence Jeff Johnson, Director, ILO Country Office for the Philippines at the green jobs mapping project sector consultation, Manila, Philippines, 26 July 2012

Cooperatives: Resilient to crises, key to sustainable growth

In a message marking International Day of Cooperatives, ILO Director-General Juan Somavia salutes the approximately one billion people worldwide who are involved in cooperatives.