The ILO and the right to strike

The author argues that the June 2012 challenge by the ILO Employers' group to the hitherto generally accepted view regarding the right to strike under the Freedom of Association Convention, No. 87, is at odds with the historical understanding of the framework in which the Convention is embedded. She demonstrates how the ILO constituents have consistently recognized that there is a positive right to strike, which is inextricably linked to – and an inevitable corollary of – the right to freedom of association. The article also analyses the relative roles of the ILO supervisory bodies in this regard.     

On the International Labour Organization and prison labour: An invitation to recalibrate

This article re-examines the ILO's normative outlook on prison labour, arguing that it is out of touch with the realities on the ground, where public/private hybrid forms of prison labour are proliferating. The authors bring to light the controversy surrounding the position taken by the ILO, as member States repeatedly demand that it relax, and increasingly defy, its dichotomous stance. They illustrate the heavy price to be paid if the ILO stays on its current course, but also if it adopts the position favoured by some of these member States. Instead, they point to two alternatives that go beyond these conflicting positions.     

Introduction: Transnational futures of international labour law

This Special Issue on transnational labour law is placed in the context of the ILO centenary and the challenge of achieving the objective of decent work in a new century, under distinct transnational pressures. The author argues that international labour law, as the normative core of transnational labour law, can play a crucial role – in conjunction with a wide range of actors and the ILO in its standard-setting and convenor capacities – in addressing this challenge and in reshaping the transnational legal architecture.     

Engagement with sustainability at the International Labour Organization and wider implications for collective worker voice

Sustainability objectives have been recognized by the ILO primarily in terms of the impact of environmental protection in the form of “just transition” and “green job” initiatives. Arguably, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) now offer richer scope for ILO engagement with social sustainability. This can be attributed to the prominent recognition of “decent work” in SDG 8 and the need for “responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels” in SDG target 16.7. This article examines how the ILO could further promote collective worker voice in the context of debates over a sustainable “future of work”, particularly considering to whom voice is given and how it is exercised.     

Labour provisions in preferential trade agreements: Current practice and outlook

While the WTO and Doha Development Round do not deal with labour issues – they leave this to the ILO – the main countries that conclude free trade agreements incorporate labour provisions, which vary in terms of stringency. Sanctions are rarely used, and fears that “social clauses” would serve protectionist purposes have proved to be unfounded. Labour provisions are designed to meet a variety of sometimes conflicting goals, by means of different mechanisms aimed at improving labour practices and promoting Decent Work; the author makes a number of suggestions in this regard.     

Back to the future: A continuity of dialogue on work and technology at the ILO

Concerns about technological unemployment are not new. Specifically, policy debates surrounding automation processes in the 1960s reflected both optimism and concerns about the job-destroying potential of technology. Studying the archives, and in particular the information collected by the Bureau of Automation, shows that many of today's policy proposals were originally raised at the ILO during that period, even though they were never translated into regulatory policy. This article thus suggests that reopening this past dialogue may reveal useful insights for addressing current challenges, and enable us to achieve the world of work we wish to see in the future.     

International labour standards: Recent developments in complementarity between the international and national supervisory systems

Far from competing against one another, the national and international systems of labour regulation are interlocked. ILO standards have been used in recent rulings by the highest jurisdictions of some countries. Examining two decisions by the Supreme Court of Canada and another by the Paris Court of Appeal, the authors clarify the circumstances in which national courts make use of these international sources of law and consequent legal implications. The cases involve proceedings before national courts and ILO bodies, and France and Canada also have different legal cultures, enabling a discussion of how national jurisdictions actually appropriate international labour standards.     

Employment and basic needs: lessons of a mission to Portugal

The task of the International Labour Organization (ILO) mission that visited Portugal in 1977 differed in several respects from that of earlier missions undertaken in the framework of the World Employment Programme: 1) with a per capita consumption of U.S. $1000 a year, Portugal is far better off than the other countries to which ILO missions were sent; 2) following the Revolution of April 25, 1974, Portugal had already adopted many of the recommendations such as those concerning income redistribution and land reform contained in the reports of earlier ILO missions; and 3) as a consequence of the above, the ILO mission to Portugal was not asked to produce a report and make recommendations, but to participate directly in the drafting of the 1977-80 Plan through a joint Portuguese-ILO Working Group. The present article draws both on the report of the Working Group and on subsequent research. Open unemployment is a recent phenomenon in Portugal, and the objective of the Medium-Term Plan is to improve basic-needs satisfaction and reduce unemployment. It can be reasonably assumed that the increased activity of the agricultural sector, together with continued north-south migration, will absorb much of the existing underemployment. Concerning industry, the reorientation of industrial growth towards the requirements of a basic-needs strategy and more employment-intensive production represents a considerable change from past strategies and policies. Concerning the basic-needs approach as a development strategy, it is useful to show that such a strategy remains compatible with the pursuit of more traditional objectives, such as sustained growth, full employment, balance-of-payments equilibrium, equitable income distribution, and harmonious regional development.     

New labour rights indicators: Method and trends for 2000–15

This article describes a new method for constructing indicators of freedom of association and collective bargaining (FACB) rights based on the coding of violations in nine textual sources, including six from the ILO, and texts from national legislation. The indicators were constructed for 185 ILO member States for five years between 2000 and 2015 and launched in 2015 by the Center for Global Workers’ Rights at Penn State University, together with the Global Labour University. Following a Resolution by the International Conference of Labour Statisticians in October 2018, the method provides the basis for Sustainable Development Goal indicator 8.8.2 on labour rights.     

‘A load too heavy’: Critical reflections on the child labor problem in Africa's small-scale mining sector

This paper provides an extended analysis of the child labor problem in the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector, focusing specifically on the situation in sub-Saharan Africa. In recent years, the issue of child labor in ASM has garnered significant attention from the International Labor Organization (ILO), which has been particularly active in raising public awareness of the problem; and, has proceeded to implement policies and collaborative project work aimed at curtailing children's participation in ASM activities in a number of African countries. The analysis concludes with a critical appraisal of an ILO project recently launched in the Talensi–Nabdam District in the Upper East Region of Ghana, which sheds light on how the child labor problem is being tackled in practice in ASM communities in sub-Saharan Africa.     

Bringing about social justice through feminist research for monitoring,evaluation, and learning? A conversation from Oxfam GB

ABSTRACT

At Oxfam, we have spent much of the last two years talking about feminist principles. In the context of the #Metoo and #Aidtoo movements, the presence (or absence) of these feminist values and principles is increasingly – and rightly – under the spotlight. In this article, we reflect on what it takes to embed these values in our research practice within the monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) function of an international non-government organisation such as Oxfam. These values shape our understanding of the purpose of carrying out MEL activities as a tool for bringing about social justice, through examining gender and power relations, why they exist and how they change. We reflect on the successes and challenges we have faced while utilising evaluation for greater gender equality. By doing so, we aim to start shedding light on the structural changes needed to bring about social changes through MEL, and research more broadly.     

Who will give effect to the ILO's Maritime Labour Convention, 2006?

The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, which takes effect on 20 August 2013, consolidates dozens of ILO standards adopted since the 1920s. It has been described as the “fourth pillar” of the international maritime regulatory regime, alongside three major IMO Conventions on safety at sea and marine pollution control. The challenge, the authors argue, will be to enforce it within the existing inspection frameworks of flag State implementation and “port State control”. Technically, the responsibility rests on the former, but the proliferation of flags of convenience suggests that the latter will have a crucial part to play too, as will, in either case, inspector training.     

Labour and international accounting standards: A question of social justice

As the international guardian of social justice, the ILO is witnessing a global revolution in accounting, which has culminated in international accounting standards (IAS-IFRS). Previously, accounting measured the economy in relation to the capacities and responsibilities of workers and their employers. Today, the exact opposite is the case: the IAS-IFRS no longer measure work and enterprises, referring instead to the abstract concept of a cybernetic entity capable of constant restructuring, at the cost of unprecedented inequality. The author points to the incoherence of this system and to the need to restore the full carrying value of labour.     

From Geneva to San José: The ILO standards and the Inter-American System for the protection of human rights

This article analyses how the Inter-American System for the protection of human rights has used ILO standards as a reference on matters relating to freedom of association and the rights of indigenous peoples. Having established the limits to their use, the authors also analyse how these standards have influenced recent Inter-American jurisprudence in relation to certain economic, social and cultural rights. They argue that such cross-referencing is both desirable and useful, since it allows the Inter-American bodies to base their arguments on the interpretation of specialized authorities, thereby reinforcing the credibility, normative legitimacy and universality of their decisions.     

Safety and health at work as fundamental rights: A comparative-historical study of the ILO's strategy of realistic vigilance

This article is a comparative-historical study of ILO action on occupational safety and health (OSH) as fundamental rights. In the two decades following the adoption of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the ILO used a realist lens and prioritized the idea that OSH were dependent upon economic preconditions for their protection. This history is revisited in the light of the new complex of global health uncertainty and the addition of OSH to the framework of fundamental principles and rights at work. The analysis highlights the applicability of a realistic vigilance approach to the ILO's current work on OSH.     

Translating from multiple sources: Labour legislation reform in Turkey

Building upon the recent scholarship on “travelling ideas” and “translation”, the author discusses how ILO and EU labour standards were conveyed to Turkey's political landscape by domestic actors and how those standards were adjusted. The study first analyses the motivations of the Commission that drafted the 2003 Labour Act, and of employer and labour organizations, for choosing to draw on those international standards during the legislative reform process. It then focuses on the institutional outcomes of the reform by examining how domestic actors modified the international standards, while also preserving components of the old labour legislation, as on severance pay.     

Employment and labour productivity in high unemployment countries

Contemporary development strategies emphasize labour productivity growth because it has historically underpinned rising living standards. Today, however, poverty reduction and inclusive development in those developing countries with high unemployment require increasing the employment rate even if this means lower average labour productivity. We critique the International Labour Organization (ILO) for its overly universalizing advocacy of high‐productivity growth strategies and for failing to confront the trade‐off between more and better‐quality jobs. This is particularly problematic in high unemployment contexts in Southern Africa, where labour productivity growth between 2000 and 2013 came at the cost of a falling employment rate.     

BOOKS

Reviews: Kaul, Inge; Grunberg, Isabelle; Stern, Marc A. (eds.). Global public goods: International cooperation in the 21st century Reviews: Tucker, James. The therapeutic corporation. Recent books: Anker, Richard; Barge, Sandhya; Rajogopal, S.; Joseph, M. P. (eds.). Economics of child labour in hazardous industries of India. Baroda, Centre for Operations Research and Training, 1998 Recent books: Bauer, Gretchen. Labor and democracy in Namibia, 1971–1996. Athens, OH, Ohio University Press/London, James Currey, 1998 Recent books: Beresford, Peter; Green, David; Lister, Ruth; Woodard, Kirsty. Poverty first hand: Poor people speak for themselves Recent books: Clerc, Denis. Condamnés au chômage? Travail et emploi: faux débats et vraies questions Recent books: Derickson, Alan. Black lung: Anatomy of a public health disaster. Recent books: Fisher, Peter S.; Peters, Alan H. Industrial incentives: Competition among American states and cities. Recent books: Marzal, Antonio (ed.); Borrego, Javier; Aparicio, Rosa; Ben Achour, Rafâa; Losada, Teresa; Carrillo Salcedo, Juan Antonio; Sagarra, Eduard; Ruiz‐Jarabo, Dámaso; Correa Guimerá, Bernardino; Rodríguez‐Piñero, Miguel. Derechos humanos del migrante, de la mujer en el Islam, de injerencia internacional y complejidad del sujeto Recent books: Miguélez, Faustino; Prieto, Carlos (eds.). Las relaciones de empleo en España. Madrid, Siglo Veintiuno de España Editores, 1999 Recent books: Pan American Health Organization (ed.) Health in the Americas: 1998 edition. Recent books: Song, Miri. Helping out: Children's labor in ethnic business New ILO publications: International Labour Conference, 88th Session, 2000, Report IV (1): Maternity protection at work. Revision of the Maternity Protection Convention (Revised), 1952 (No. 103), and Recommendation, 1952 (No. 95) New ILO publications: International Labour Conference, 89th Session, 2001, Report V (1): Promotion of cooperatives. New ILO publications: International Labour Conference, 88th Session, 2000, Report VI (2): Safety and health in agriculture New ILO publications: Employment and labour in South Asia. By T. Anant, K. Sundaram and S. Tendulkar New ILO publications: Employment‐intensive infrastructure programmes: Labour policies and practices. By David Tajgman and Jan de Veen New ILO publications: Employment revival in Europe: Labour market success in Austria, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands. By Peter Auer New ILO publications: Firms of the future: Economic efficiency and social performance. By Maryse Gaudier New ILO publications: Flexibilización en el margen: La reforma del mercado de trabajo. Edited by Víctor E. Tokman and Daniel Martínez New ILO publications: Freedom of association: A user's guide—Standards, principles and procedures of the International Labour Organization. By David Tajgman and Karen Curtis. Geneva, 2000 New ILO publications: ILO principles concerning the right to strike. By Bernard Gernigon, Alberto Odero and Horacio Guido New ILO publications: IMO/ILO Guidelines for the Development of Seafarers' Shipboard Working Arrangements and Formats of Records of Seafarers' Hours of Work or Hours of Rest New ILO publications: Labour issues in the context of economic integration and free trade: A Caribbean perspective. Edited by Willi Momm New ILO publications: Managing vocational training systems: A handbook for senior administrators. By Vladimir Gasskov New ILO publications: Reestructuración, integración y mercado laboral. Crecimiento y calidad del empleo en economías abiertas. By Ciro Biderman, Nadya Araújo Castro, José Paulo Zeetano Chahad, ATlvaro Augusto Comin, William Díaz, Michel Fouquin, Regina Maciel A. A. Galhardi, Lucio Geller, María Carolina da Silva Leme, Chris Parsley, Gerhard Reinecke, Gerry Rodgers, Armindo Silva, Jane Slaughter and Ricardo J. Soifer New ILO publications: Sexual harassment: An ILO survey of company practice. By Ariane Reinhart     

Class matters: interviewing across social class boundaries

In this paper, we explore the methodological implications of conducting qualitative interviews when researchers and participants come from different social classes. Singling out class on its own terms, rather than considering it as an auxiliary structural factor, we examine the unique challenges that arise during cross-class interviews. Such challenges, we contend, require researcher reflexivity about how researcher–participant interactions unfold and the ways in which knowledge is generated during the interview process. In our discussion, we draw on Bourdieu’s cultural view of social class to argue that cross-class dynamics between the researcher and the participant – along with the normalization of middle-class values often inherent in interview questions – create potential obstacles to establishing rapport and facilitating fertile conversation. We use examples from our own field research in a U.S. fast-food chain to illustrate these barriers. We also provide practical recommendations to researchers regarding how they can minimize class-based biases, reduce class saliency, and gain awareness of their own class positions during cross-class interviews.     

The protection of migrant workers and international labour standards

International labor standards take the form of Conventions and Recommendations that embody the agreements reached by a 2/3 majority of the representatives of Governments, Employers, and Workers of International Labour Office (ILO) member states. Originally designed to guard against the danger that 1 country or other would keep down wages and working conditions to gain competitive advantage and thereby undermine advances elsewhere, international labor standards have also been inspired by humanitarian concerns--the visible plight of workers and the physical dangers of industrialization and by the notion of social justice, which embraces wellbeing and dignity, security, and equality as well as a measure of participation in economic and social matters. ILO standards apply to workers generally and therefore also to migrant workers, irrespective of the fact that the general standards are complemented by standards especially for migrant workers. The social security protection of migrant workers has been dealt with in ILO instruments primarily from the angle of equality of treatment but also from that of the maintenance of acquired rights and rights in course of acquisition, including the payment of benefits to entitled persons resident abroad. The ILO Conventions on migrant workers and the Recommendations which supplement them deal with practically all aspects of the work and life of non-nationals such as recruitment matters, information to be made available, contract conditions, medical examination and attention, customs, exemption for personal effects, assistance in settling into their new environment, vocational training, promotion at work, job security and alternative employment, liberty of movement, participation in the cultural life of the state as well as maintenance of their own culture, transfer of earnings and savings, family reunification and visits, appeal against unjustified termination of employment or expulsion, and return assistance. ILO's supervisory mechanism consists basically of a dialogue between the ILO and the Government that is responsible for a law, regulation, or practice alleged to be in contravention of principles it voluntarily accepted. The control machinery is often set in motion by workers' organizations. The UN General Assembly is currently elaborating a new instrument designed to cover both regular and irregular migrant workers and their families.