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Outcome 10 independent evaluation: Workers have strong, independent and representative organizations - Trade unions for social justice

eval_number:

1931

eval_url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/eval/1931

lessons_learned:

themes:

theme:

Trade Union - capacity building

category:

Constituents

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comments:

Targetted beneficiaries: Workers and their representative organizations, particularly from the countries of Armenia, Cambodia, India, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Moldova, Nepal, Swaziland. Regional activities also aim to target beneficiaries in Latin America, Southern and Eastern Africa, Asia, Eastern and Central Europe and the Caucasus.

challenges:

Due to the fact that both the Norwegian and Swedish programmes operated on a global scale, it was not possible for the evaluator to make field visits to every country, in order to collect data. Instead A short mission was made to India and Nepal. The evaluation report therefore adopts a sampling approach and relies on evidence from those two countries.

success:

Support for Outcome 10 - “workers have strong, independent and representative organizations” - in the biennium 2012-2013 was provided by Norway and Sweden. This “lightly earmarked” funding promoted “One ACTRAV” programming and contributed towards the achievement of several global, regional and country level outcomes. Importantly, many thousands of workers have been organized, helped in the transition to formality and now enjoy improved wages or conditions. Increased capacity of trade unions to address socio-economic issues in-depth, and their growing involvement in Decent Work Country Programmes (DWCPs), underpinned by international labour standards, gender equality and other elements of the ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization and the Global Jobs Pact (GJP), have helped unions achieve respect for fundamental rights.

In particular, the project has led to three successful changes: 1) Many more workers now enjoy the benefits of being organized. 2) Trade unions are more efficient and professional, and they can play their part, not only in tripartite decisions that directly affect them, but on a broader range of issues - migration say. 3) This has contributed to stronger social dialogue, and strengthened the ILO.

context:

ILO's Outcome 10 aims at promoting strong, independent and representative workers¿ organizations. In addition, the outcome strategy was designed to be a stepping stone towards integrating workers¿ organizations¿ priorities into the other ILO Outcomes. Moreover, the Outcome strategy was to work closely with the labour movement in order to align the implementation of the Outcome with the agendas of trade unions across the world.

During the biennium for 2012-13, the capacity building for trade unions was carried out along the above-mentioned three interrelated tracks. Work on international labour standards remain the core area of the work under outcome 10, with a particular focus on the promotion of ratification and effective implementation of fundamental Conventions No. 87 and 98 related to Freedom of Association and the right to organise and collective bargaining respectively.

ACTRAV received funding from both the Swedish donor (SP) and the Norwegian donor (NP) to support the implementation of the Outcome 10 goals and strategy. Operationally, the funding was used to support Country Programme Outcomes (CPOs) identified in the Decent Work Country Programmes in which the ILO works and to support the development or further refinement of Outcome 10 Global Products (GPs). Support was also given at the regional and sub-regional levels, not directly linked to one specific CPO.

description:

1. Lesson learned on cooperation between the two projects (Norwegian and Sweden): The two projects under evaluation were implemented in practice as one Project: Trade Unions for Social Justice" and were in turn integrated into ACTRAV's wider operations. This was done without any elaborate bureaucracy, but through effective programming by ACTRAV and project management.
2. Triangular cooperation: There was effective triangular cooperation involving tripartite visits to Norway and South Africa, which had a clear objective - demonstrating that permitting trade unions in the police service in Kenya would not result in any loss of effectiveness. Such triangular cooperation can be useful if it has a clear objective.
3. Unity in Action: Promoting unity in action, through Joint Action Forums or similar bodies, should be a primary focus for ACTRAV in countries where the trade union movement is divided. This is not to promote organizational unification, although if WOs wish this, the ILO should offer assistance. The ILO can play a unique role in creating a common platform.
4. Unionisation in EPZs is possible: Even in difficult situations, such as export processing zones (EPZS) where organising trade unions may seem impossible, the programme has shown that through persistence and the use of innovative approaches, EPZ workers can be helped and unionized.
5. Developing knowledge and research capacity in workers' organizations: Support to the Global Labour University helped to spread advanced knowledge and research in the TU movement. The use of social media, the internet and email have made the latest research more available to trade unionists.

administrative_issues:

N/A

url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/lessons/193627

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location:

country:

Inter-Regional

region:

Inter-Regional

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eval_title:

Outcome 10 independent evaluation: Workers have strong, independent and representative organizations - Trade unions for social justice