ILO and GLU building capacity of trade unions in social dialogue
The ILO and the Global Labour University have agreed to work together to build the capacity of trade unionists to effectively engage in social dialogue and to influence policy formulation.
19 August 2016
PRETORIA (ILO News) – The International Labour Organization (ILO) Director for Southern Africa, Joni Musabayana and Senior Specialist for Workers Activities, Ms Inviolata Chinyangarara, met with the Chairperson of the Global Labor University (GLU) at Wits University, Professor Michelle Williams, to sign an agreement to improve the capacity of trade unionists in social dialogue, negotiations and policy formulation.
The involvement of the ILO in the GLU initiative allows for the organization to provide a number of sholarships to students seeking to participate in the GLU annually, having provided funding to at least 4 students annually since its inception in 2007.
This, in turn, has allowed university access to labour movements’ leaders, workers and labour activists. The GLU program offers students different postgraduate programs and certificate courses, all of which have a labor focus.
The benefit for the ILO, apart from the content of these programs and the collaboration with the GLU, more importantly, is the opportunity to ensure that the graduates from the programme can play an active role in the in the countries they are coming from.
The ILO and its constituents have Decent Work Country Programs in each of the countries they work in and the capacity of the social partners in the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of these DWCPs is often a genuine concern for the ILO.
The ability to bring the intellectual capital developed by the GLU programme closer to the reality of DWCPs at country level would be largely beneficial for the ILO and its constituents.
Over the years, the ILO has worked closely with the GLU to ensure the successfully completion of postgraduate degrees and certificates of trade-unionist students. For their workshops, the ILO often brings in students from the unions that the organization has followed, in the place of consultants, and build on their capacity.
It is through these efforts that the aim of the GLU, supported by the ILO, to build the capacity among trade unionist to develop policy expertise, can be achieved.
After the signing of the agreement to build trade union capacity for social dialogue, Mr. Musabayana addressed a seminar of trade unionist students at Wits University, about the work of the ILO and the importance of capacity building for social dialogue, and the impact this can have in building the expertise of trade unionists in policy influence.
The ILO was invited to the graduation of the students, taking place on September 27th 2016.
The GLU is a network of 5 universities, which Wits University is a member of, together with international and national trade unions and union federations, civil society organizations and the ILO. The universities provide post-graduate degrees for trade unionists, labor activists and labor experts, which foster capacity and competence building to enable constructive dialogue in policy proposals that can improve the position of workers and the broader society.
The tripartism promoted by the ILO encourages that workers, employers and governments have an equal voice, ensuring that the views of the social partners are closely reflected in shaping national policies and programmes. Hence the strengthening of social dialogue is at the core of the ILO’s mandate.
The involvement of the ILO in the GLU initiative allows for the organization to provide a number of sholarships to students seeking to participate in the GLU annually, having provided funding to at least 4 students annually since its inception in 2007.
This, in turn, has allowed university access to labour movements’ leaders, workers and labour activists. The GLU program offers students different postgraduate programs and certificate courses, all of which have a labor focus.
The benefit for the ILO, apart from the content of these programs and the collaboration with the GLU, more importantly, is the opportunity to ensure that the graduates from the programme can play an active role in the in the countries they are coming from.
The ILO and its constituents have Decent Work Country Programs in each of the countries they work in and the capacity of the social partners in the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of these DWCPs is often a genuine concern for the ILO.
The ability to bring the intellectual capital developed by the GLU programme closer to the reality of DWCPs at country level would be largely beneficial for the ILO and its constituents.
Over the years, the ILO has worked closely with the GLU to ensure the successfully completion of postgraduate degrees and certificates of trade-unionist students. For their workshops, the ILO often brings in students from the unions that the organization has followed, in the place of consultants, and build on their capacity.
It is through these efforts that the aim of the GLU, supported by the ILO, to build the capacity among trade unionist to develop policy expertise, can be achieved.
After the signing of the agreement to build trade union capacity for social dialogue, Mr. Musabayana addressed a seminar of trade unionist students at Wits University, about the work of the ILO and the importance of capacity building for social dialogue, and the impact this can have in building the expertise of trade unionists in policy influence.
The ILO was invited to the graduation of the students, taking place on September 27th 2016.
Background information
The GLU is a network of 5 universities, which Wits University is a member of, together with international and national trade unions and union federations, civil society organizations and the ILO. The universities provide post-graduate degrees for trade unionists, labor activists and labor experts, which foster capacity and competence building to enable constructive dialogue in policy proposals that can improve the position of workers and the broader society.
The tripartism promoted by the ILO encourages that workers, employers and governments have an equal voice, ensuring that the views of the social partners are closely reflected in shaping national policies and programmes. Hence the strengthening of social dialogue is at the core of the ILO’s mandate.