NEW YORK (ILO News) – ILO Director-General, Guy Ryder, is in New York from 7 to 10 April for a series of high-level events at United Nations headquarters, including a special session of the UN General Assembly and engagement with an international gathering of youth representatives, to mark the ILO’s 100th anniversary.

During the visit, Ryder will meet with the UN leadership, including Secretary-General António Guterres and the President of the UN General Assembly, María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, who is convening the special session. The session will mark the official UN commemoration of the Centenary.

Guterres will address the session and statements will be given by UN member States and representatives of international organizations of employers and trade unions.

The session's focus will be on the future of work with decent work, and will be followed by high-level panel discussions involving a range of specialists, including tripartite constituents academic and civil society experts.

The ILO Director-General will meet and discuss the future of work with youth representatives during the ECOSOC Youth Forum,  which brings together young people to discuss key global issues, including the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

A social media campaign, #myFutureofWork, inviting young people to share their personal visions on the future of work will be launched by Ryder and the Secretary-General's Envoy on Youth, Jayathma Wickramanayake.

A highlight of the week will be the inauguration of a series of five murals by internationally-renowned artists depicting images of decent work, painted on walls in the vicinity of UN headquarters.

The celebrations at the UN take place in advance of a key date in the ILO’s anniversary year: on 11 April 1919 the ILO Constitution was adopted by the Paris Peace Conference, following the end of the First World War.

Follow live coverage of the ILO Director-General at the United Nations this week for an historic commemoration of the ILO Centenary.