ILO Centenary
Call for papers: conference «Labour is not a commodity. The value of work and its rules between innovation and tradition»
Conference organized by ADAPT (Association for international and comparative studies in the field of labour law and industrial relations) in partnership with the ILO.
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The world of work is undergoing disruptive change. The values underpinning work and the consideration that work is itself rewarding are issues which still play a central role. The 100th anniversary of the ILO brings to mind this critical dimension, with the principle that ‘labour is not a commodity’ that is brought to the fore again, as it has inspired labour legislation in all countries. While pointing out the centrality and relevance of this principle, the ILO’s centenary also prompts us to go back to the discussion about what is work today.
An awareness arises of the global challenges resulting from economic, demographic, ecological changes has led to evaluate the advisability to create new work identities, adopting the perspective which is based on social justice and sustainability. It is therefore important is to examine the ways and the means through which the principle “labour is not a commodity” has been developed and their practical implications, to understand the ongoing socio-economic changes and their impact on such policy, and to analyze the role of public institutions and private stakeholders operating in the context where this principle is implemented.
Drawing on the report by the ILO’s Global Commission on the Future of Work Work for a brighter future, this conference organized by ADAPT in partnership with the ILO aims to deal with the topics discussed above, focusing on the aspects examined in the report.
The ILO and ADAPT’s International School of Higher Education in Labour Law and Industrial Relations invite professors, researchers, graduate students, professionals and all those who have an interest in the conference topics, from diverse backgrounds and disciplines, to present their contributions on the following issues. They will help to examine from an international and comparative perspective, the practical implication that the principle “labour is not a commodity” has had, or will have, on their work.
1 – Worker Status, Work Classification, Organisational Flexibility Emphasis will be given to new forms of work organization (e.g., autonomous/salaried work, working without a contract), new contractual arrangements and new protections against unfair dismissal. This theme will thus focus on the analysis of patterns of work organization, with particular reference to new forms of on-demand work and digital platforms, employees’ grading systems, working time flexibility, jus variandi and to the exertion of employers’ organizational and managing power.
2 – Economic Value of Work
This conference topic is devoted to the examination of remuneration and rewarding systems, with particular attention that will be paid to the links between pay, productivity, and performance and remuneration differences arising among industries and workers’ categories. Besides looking at the mechanisms determining compensation, their sources and arrangements, the aim here is to explore new dimensions and to find links between the redistributive, the social and the macro-economic functions related to remuneration dynamics. Economic value of work will be also investigated in the perspective of looking beyond the GDP as a parameter to measure socio-economic development in favour of new indicators capable to capture more adequately quality of life as well as social and environmental sustainability of productions.3 – Welfare, Work Settings, Health and Safety
In the context of this theme, attention will be given to the institutions and the provisions regulating occupational protection, with particular reference to work-life balance and measures promoting people’s well-being. Emphasis will be also given to social security systems and models governing workers’ health and safety, stressing the relevance of new risks emerging from technological changes (also unknown ones), environmental changes (natural disasters, digitalisation of work, the end of the ‘workstation’) and demographic changes (ageing of the working population).4 – Actors and Tools Governing Occupational Transitions
Here the focus is on the institutions governing the labour market, active and passive labour market policies and the role of public and private stakeholders, who are tasked with promoting and managing occupational transitions. Emphasis will be given to the evolution of agency work, which is widely referred to in discussions concerning the commodification of labour, and to research and prejudiced views which are still in place nowadays. Examples include Guy Caire’s well-known definition of ‘merchandise d’hommes’, the new ways employment agencies have been portrayed, and the fact that they have been recently rebranded as “enabling actors for the labour market and professionality”.5 – Occupational Training and Development
This topic encompasses the links between training and employment in one’s life, including career paths in which skills development might enable people. Special attention will be given to tools and strategies prompting systemic changes in organizations, professional categories, industries, specific areas, among which are school-to-work alternate programmes, training and retraining schemes, lifelong skills certification.6 – Representation, Participation and Collective Bargaining
This topic is concerned with the analysis of employee representation at the company level, the different dimensions of participation and the structure and content of collective bargaining. The role of the State and legislation in the context of industrial relations will also be touched upon, as will the possibility to internationalize or to decentralize their powers. Special attention will be paid to alternative forms of organisation due to increasing precariousness and new forms of work.7 – Protection against Poverty and Social Exclusion
The focus here is on the tools helping to tackle inequality, poverty and social exclusion, with particular reference to the strategies examining the relationship between need and work, considering the nature, functions and characteristics of such a link. Taking the idea of work as a starting point, an attempt will be also made to examine this aspect against the background of the reflections on the relationship between the individual, work and society and the delicate balance between the qualitative and quantitative dimension of work, which has been given momentum in discussions taking place at the European level.Scientific committee
Members of the ADAPT International Scientific Committee and ILO’s officialsAbstract submission
Abstracts shall be sent to [email protected], indicating Abstract Bergamo in the subject line.Deadlines
- Submission of abstracts: 13 September 2019
- Notification of selection: 4 October 2019
- Confirmation of participation: 8 November 2019
- Submission of final papers: 22 November 2019