ILO - INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
News: Big
industries don’t observe uniform labour standards in India: Bharatiya Mazdoor
Sangh at ILO meet
What's in the news?
● On
the second day of the Asia Pacific Regional Meeting of the International Labour
Organization (APRM of ILO), representatives of workers and employers from India
on December 6 highlighted the employment situation in the country.
Key takeaways:
● Asia and the Pacific
Regional Meeting:
○ The
17th (APRM) of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) began on December 6
in Singapore.
○ Theme
- "Integrated policy agenda for a human–centred recovery that is
inclusive, sustainable and resilient”.
ILO Reports:
● The
International Labour Organisation (ILO) recently released two reports that gave
an indication of the global employment
scenario post-pandemic.
1. Global Wage Report 2022-23:
● The
'Global Wage Report 2022- 2023: The Impact of inflation and COVID-19 on wages
and purchasing power' discuss the twin
crises, inflation and economic slowdown, which created a "striking fall" in real monthly
wages around the globe.
● The
report lists out two causes for the
twin crisis such as
○ The
war in Ukraine and
○ The
global energy crisis.
2. Asia- Pacific Employment and Social Outlook 2022:
● The
'Asia-Pacific Employment and Social Outlook 2022: Rethinking sectoral
strategies for a human-centred future of work' stated that the Asia-Pacific
region lost about 22 million jobs in 2022.
● The
report said that the decrease in wages
is placing millions of workers in a dire situation.
● The
report warned that income inequality and poverty will rise if the purchasing
power of the lowest paid is not maintained.
Other key takeaways from the report:
1. Wage - Definition:
● The
ILO report on wages looked at the real and nominal wages of employees. The word
"wage", was defined as the total gross remuneration including regular
bonuses received by employees during a specified period for time (monthly for
the report) worked as well as for time not worked, such as paid annual leave
and paid sick leave.
2. Calling for Tripartism and Social Dialogue:
● This
has called for strengthening tripartism and social dialogue to address issues
in employment in the region.
● It
also pitched for strong and effective gender-responsive
policies and institutions of work that are oriented towards a
human-centered recovery after the pandemic and the ongoing conflict between
Russia and Ukraine.
● The
report asked governments in the region to increase investments in social justice for the achievement of decent job-rich
growth, universal social protection, respect for rights at work and inclusive
social dialogue.
3. Rising Poverty:
● The
report noted that poverty in general, as well as working poverty, increased for
the first time after having trended downwards for decades in the Asia and the Pacific regions as well as in
the Arab States.
● The
report added that in the absence of effective institutionalized support,
households relied on limited savings to meet basic needs or went into debt.
● According
to ILO estimates, the number of working women and men living in extreme poverty
[below US$1.90 a day] increased by 2.1 million people in Asia and the Pacific
in 2020, bringing the total to 64.5 million [3.5% of total employment].
● The
number of employed persons living in extreme or moderate poverty [below US$3.20
a day] increased by 3.7 million to reach 304 million [15.8% of total
employment] as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.
4. Suggested Solutions:
● To
tackle the root causes of inequalities and socio-economic insecurities, the
report suggested that ILO must take action towards making progress on universal social protection, youth employment, gender
equality, just transitions towards digital and environmentally sustainable
economies, formalization, fair labor migration, building labor market
resilience in fragile settings and decent work in supply chains.
Go back to basics:
ILO:
● It
is a UN agency established in 1919
as an agency of the League of Nations.
● It
is the only tripartite United Nations
agency, bringing together governments, employers and workers
representatives from its 187 member states to devise international labor
standards.
● HQ: Geneva, Switzerland.
● It
deals with labor issues, particularly international labor standards, social
protection, and work opportunities for all.
● India is a founder member
of ILO.
● The
ILO registers complaints against entities that are violating international
rules; however, it does not impose sanctions on governments.
Members:
● The
ILO has 187 member states: 186 of
the 193 UN member states plus the Cook Islands are members of the ILO.
● In
1969, the organization received the Nobel
Peace Prize for improving peace among classes, pursuing decent work and
justice for workers, and providing technical assistance to other developing
nations.
Reports:
● World
Employment and Social Outlook
● Global
Wage Report
● World
Social Protection Report.
● World
of Work Report
● Social
Dialogue Report
Eight core conventions of the ILO:
● Forced
Labour Convention (No. 29)
● Abolition
of Forced Labour Convention (No.105)
● Equal
Remuneration Convention (No.100)
● Discrimination
(Employment Occupation) Convention (No.111)
● Minimum
Age Convention (No.138)
● Worst
forms of Child Labour Convention (No.182)
● Freedom
of Association and Protection of Right to Organized Convention (No.87)
● Right
to Organize and Collective Bargaining Convention (No.98).
International Labour Conference:
● It
sets the International labour standards and the broad policies of the ILO. It
meets annually in Geneva. It is often referred to as an International
Parliament of Labour.
● It
is also a forum for discussion of key social and labour questions.
International Labour Office:
● It
is the permanent secretariat of the International Labour Organization.
● It
is the focal point for ILO’s overall activities, which it prepares under the
scrutiny of the Governing Body and under the leadership of the
Director-General.