ILO Centenary Ratification Campaign

What does “One for All” mean?

“One for All” may be understood in different ways –

• an invitation to all 187 ILO member States to ratify at least one international labour Convention in the course of 2019
• a commitment to apply a set of standards governing one aspect of decent work to all men and women
• one political commitment supporting sustainable development for all.

What is the "One for All" campaign about?

The campaign invites governments, trade unions and employers’ organizations in all 187 member States of the Organization to take action to ensure that their State ratifies at least one international labour Convention or Protocol in the course of 2019.

Some member States have taken early action, ratifying a Convention or Protocol in the course of 2018. These instruments enter into force in the course of 2019 and are also acknowledged as “One for All” ratifications.

Why ratify in 2019?

In 2019, the ILO celebrates its centenary. One hundred years ago, the ILO was set up to promote social justice.

The founders of the ILO chose setting and supervising the application of international labour standards as a key strategy to advance social justice as the foundation of lasting peace and security

Throughout the last century, international labour standards have guided countries, in the words of the 1919 ILO Constitution, “to adopt humane conditions of labour” with the understanding that a failure to do so would becoming “an obstacle in the way of other nations which desire to improve the conditions in their own countries”.

That work is not completed – it has only become more urgent with the pursuit of sustainable development.

Cooperation between countries to pursue social justice remains a pillar of the multilateral system. Ratification is a political act, as well as of course a legal act, in support of such cooperation.

What is ratification?

Ratification is a sovereign act of a member State of the ILO expressing the State’s intention to give effect to the standards specified in an international labour Convention adopted by the ILO. Ratified standards are to be applied in law and in practice.

Protocols can be ratified together with the Convention with which they are associated or after the ratification of that Convention.

Ratification is an act by an ILO member State, so does it matter to me?

Are you an employer? A freelancer? A domestic worker? A migrant worker? Member of a trade union? Experiencing a disability? Do you work in the informal economy?

Depending on who you are and what you do, a ratification may have a more or less direct impact on your life, but it will certainly impact positively on society at large.

Social justice affects each and every one directly. Whether you can choose the economic activity you will prepare for, whether you have a job, whether you enjoy income security, whether you feel fairly treated in the work you do, whether you have a voice at work – all these aspects of social justice, and many more, are embodied and brought to life in international labour standards.

Every ratification represents a different set of commitments which your government undertakes in support of the social justice you should benefit from.


More information (Letter of the ILO Director-General)

Contact us

1. [email protected]
2. If you are a Worker contact: [email protected]
3. If you are an Employer contact: [email protected]

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