ILO is a specialized agency of the United Nations
ILO-en-strap
International Labour Conference

86th Session
Geneva, June 1998

Report I

Report of the Director-General:
Activities of the ILO, 1996-97

1

Promoting democracy and human rights

The unique feature of the ILO is its tripartism. When the ILO was first established in 1919, in the aftermath of the First World War, its founders determined that it should be tripartite in the belief that social justice, and with it universal and lasting peace, could only be achieved with the involvement of the social partners at all stages. Ever since, it has been the fundamental role of the ILO to promote and facilitate social dialogue and negotiation at all levels. In this way, the ILO makes an important contribution to promoting democracy, which is also strengthened by its action to secure the wider observance of work-related rights, especially those concerning freedom of association.

Although the promotion of democracy and human rights is integral to all the ILO's activities, this chapter singles out the work during the biennium that was of most immediate relevance to the achievement of these important objectives. These include the activities most directly related to improving the implementation of international labour standards in national law and practice and promoting tripartite processes and institutions. The chapter also covers activities to strengthen labour administration systems, through which labour law and policies are implemented. It reports on the assistance provided to develop and strengthen representative organizations of employers and workers, and to maintain close relations with them.

Finally, it describes the activities of the ILO to promote social dialogue at the international level on the problems and trends in specific sectors, particularly through the organization of sectoral meetings.

International labour standards and human rights

As the only international organization that is tripartite in structure, the ILO places dialogue between representatives of governments, employers and workers at the centre of all its activities. This is nowhere more evident than in the adoption of the international labour standards which form the backbone of the Organization's work. Developed through a process of consultation and debate between the ILO's tripartite constituents, these standards cover a broad spectrum of work-related issues, ranging from social security and occupational health and safety to basic workers' rights, such as the abolition of forced and child labour, equality and freedom of association. During the biennium, 222 new ratifications of Conventions were registered, bringing the total number of ratifications to 6,477 by 31 December 1997. This number gives some indication of the extent to which the rights embodied in these standards are reflected in national law and practice.

The ILO's fundamental Conventions

The basic human rights for which the ILO is competent are set out in seven fundamental Conventions covering the abolition of forced and child labour, equality of rights and freedom of association. With the exception of the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), these fundamental instruments are amongst the most highly ratified of all ILO Conventions.

New standards adopted during the biennium:

As stated in the previous activities report,(1) following the World Summit for Social Development in March 1995, and in response to the 1994 Conference resolution concerning the 75th anniversary of the ILO and its future orientation, the Director-General launched a campaign for the further ratification of these important instruments. Letters were dispatched to member States for this purpose and a series of tripartite national seminars on the ratification of the fundamental Conventions were held in various countries, including China, Mauritius, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Viet Nam.

The campaign has so far met with significant success, with the registration of 77 additional ratifications of these instruments by the end of 1997. By 31 December 1997, the ILO had registered a combined total of 853 ratifications of its seven fundamental Conventions. To arrive at universal ratification of these Conventions, another 356 ratifications would still need to be registered. As of 31 December 1997, a total of 116 member States had ratified five or more of these Conventions, and 34 countries had ratified them all. In contrast, 22 countries had ratified two or fewer of the fundamental Conventions, while only five member States still had not ratified any of them.
 

Since the beginning of the Director-General's campaign in 1995, the following ratifications (or confirmations of previous obligations) of the ILO's seven fundamental Conventions have been registered:

  • forced labour : Convention No. 29 : Botswana, El Salvador, Estonia, Georgia, South Africa, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uruguay and Uzbekistan; Convention No. 105 : Albania, Belarus, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Mauritania, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan;
  • freedom of association : Convention No. 87 : Botswana, Republic of Moldova, Mozambique, South Africa, Sri Lanka, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan and Zambia; Convention No. 98 : Botswana, Georgia, Republic of Moldova, Mozambique, Nepal, South Africa, Suriname, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam and Zambia;
  • equality of opportunity and treatment : Convention No. 100 : Botswana, Estonia, Georgia, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Viet Nam; Convention No. 111 : Albania, Botswana, El Salvador, Georgia, Republic of Moldova, South Africa, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Viet Nam;
  • minimum age : Convention No. 138 : Argentina, Bolivia, Botswana, Cyprus, Denmark, El Salvador, Georgia, Malaysia, Nepal, Slovakia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Tunisia.

The Office has also been informed that the procedures for the ratification of these Conventions have been initiated or are near completion in a number of other member States.

In November 1997, the Governing Body decided to place on the agenda of the International Labour Conference in 1998 an item relating to the consideration of a possible ILO Declaration on workers' fundamental rights.

Human rights

The ILO also works towards the improved observance of the basic human rights for which it has special competence by encouraging other agencies in the United Nations system, as well as the international financial institutions, to promote the ILO's principles and values in their own work. This objective is pursued through high-level contacts with the organizations concerned, the participation of the ILO in the human rights work of the United Nations and other organizations, and the provision of information and advice on ILO standards and the results of ILO tripartite discussions.

As part of this work, in September 1996, the ILO held consultations with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) concerning the repatriation of large numbers of refugees to a situation of forced labour in Myanmar. In February 1997, a briefing was organized for the representatives of Geneva missions who would be attending the next session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. The briefing drew the attention of representatives from over 80 national missions to the cases before the Commission which related to the human rights for which the ILO is especially competent, such as freedom of association, forced and child labour, discrimination and the rights of migrant workers and indigenous and tribal peoples. This kind of briefing will be repeated.
 

Indications during the biennium of a more coordinated approach among United Nations agencies and international financial institutions for the promotion of ILO principles and values included:

  • the growing importance attached by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to human rights questions and social issues, as reflected, for example, in the policy on child labour adopted by the World Bank and the recognition by the World Bank President in his address to the International Labour Conference in 1997 that sound social policies are integral to sound economic policies;
  • the reaffirmation in the Ministerial Declaration of the World Trade Organization adopted in Singapore in 1996 of the commitment to observe core labour standards, and recognition of the ILO as the competent body to set and deal with these standards; and
  • the agreement between the Director-General of the ILO and the new United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to increase cooperation between the two agencies in areas of mutual concern, including training on human rights issues at the national level and greater exchange of information between their supervisory and other bodies.

Revision of existing standards

Recognizing that some of the ILO's earlier instruments are no longer adapted to the requirements of a rapidly changing world, a Governing Body Working Party on Policy regarding the Revision of Standards has undertaken a systematic examination of the standards adopted before 1985. The aim of this process is to modernize and strengthen the standard-setting system, without reducing the protection afforded to workers through ratified Conventions.

The recommendations of the Working Party, which have been accepted by the Governing Body, include the revision of over ten Conventions, activities to promote the ratification of revised Conventions and the "shelving" of over 25 Conventions. Moreover, on the recommendation of the Working Party the 85th Session of the International Labour Conference in 1997 adopted an amendment to the ILO Constitution allowing for the abrogation of a Convention "if it appears that the Convention has lost its purpose or that it no longer makes a useful contribution to attaining the objectives of the Organization". This constitutional amendment has been submitted for ratification to the competent authorities of member States. The amendment will come into force when it has been ratified or accepted by two-thirds of the Members of the Organization.

In this context, the term " shelving " means:

This focus on the revision of existing standards was complemented by an initiative to improve the preparation of future international labour standards. In particular, the Office formally consulted constituents concerning the issues that they wished to see discussed by the Conference in coming years with a view to the adoption of new standards. In November 1997, the Governing Body considered the suggestions made by ILO constituents and prepared a shortlist of possible agenda items for the Conference in the year 2000.

The supervisory system

The ILO's supervisory system is an important aspect of its activities to achieve broader acceptance and observance of its principles and standards. This system centres around a continuing dialogue with member States, based on the work of the independent Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, the discussions of the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards and the cases brought before the Governing Body Committee on Freedom of Association.

There are good indications that progress is being made in the observance of ILO principles and standards by many countries throughout the world. In its two sessions during the biennium, the Committee of Experts expressed satisfaction at the measures taken in 57 cases to make the necessary changes in national law or practice, in accordance with its comments. It also noted many cases in which progress had been achieved towards a fuller application of ratified Conventions and the considerable efforts made by several governments to submit the instruments adopted by the Conference to the competent national authorities for ratification.

Cases of progress are, of course, only one aspect of the situation. Many problems are also brought to light by the Committee of Experts in relation to the application of ratified Conventions. Some of the most serious cases are examined each year by the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards. In particular, during the biennium, the Conference Committee expressed great concern that there had been continued failure over several years to eliminate serious discrepancies in the application of the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), by Myanmar and Sudan, and of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), by Myanmar and Nigeria.

Cases in respect of which the Committee of Experts was able to express satisfaction during the biennium included:

The case of the observance of Convention No. 29 by Myanmar was also raised in a complaint submitted under article 26 of the Constitution by 25 Worker delegates to the Conference in 1996. The Governing Body established a Commission of Inquiry, which met in June and November 1997 to examine the case, reach conclusions and make the appropriate recommendations. During the biennium, the representatives of employers and workers continued to make use of the procedure envisaged under article 24 of the Constitution to submit cases of alleged non-observance of ratified Conventions for examination by the Governing Body. A further 11 representations were made under this procedure during the course of 1996-97, with conclusions and recommendations being approved by the Governing Body in a total of 17 such cases.

In its General Survey, the Committee of Experts focuses its attention on the difficulties experienced in the implementation of specific standards and the prospects for their further ratification. The first General Survey in the biennium was on labour administration.(2) In its survey, the Committee of Experts noted that the Labour Administration Convention, 1978 (No. 150), had only been ratified by 39 member States, the most recent being the United States in 1995 and Namibia in 1996. However, several governments informed the Committee that they envisaged ratifying the Convention. In this respect, the Committee noted that a number of issues raised by member States in relation to the ratification of the Convention did not seem to constitute impediments to ratification. Rather than imposing an obligation on ratifying States to produce a specific result, the Convention required them to use their best endeavours to improve labour administration, taking into account national conditions. The Committee emphasized that the flexibility of the Convention allowed it to take into account a broad spectrum of national situations and conditions. It also drew attention to its value in providing guidance for the preparation of national social and labour policies. The survey centred around the common theme that best practice in labour administration is based on dialogue and cooperation, particularly with the social partners.

Forced labour

In November 1995, the Governing Body decided that the special procedure set out in article 19 of the Constitution for reporting by member States on unratified Conventions should be used regularly for all seven fundamental Conventions. This extended procedure was first applied in 1997 for Conventions Nos. 29 and 105 on the elimination of forced labour, which are among the most widely ratified of the ILO's Conventions. By 31 December 1997, Convention No. 29 had been ratified by 143 and Convention No. 105 by 129 member States. Moreover, four additional ratifications for each Convention are expected soon, while preparations for ratification are under way in several other countries.

The Committee of Experts pointed to one particular difficulty that has arisen in the application of Convention No. 29 in recent years. Under the terms of Article 2(2)(c) of the Convention, the term "forced or compulsory labour" does not include "any work or service exacted from any person as a consequence of a conviction in a court of law, provided that the said work or service is carried out under the supervision and control of a public authority and that the said person is not hired to or placed at the disposal of private individuals, companies or associations". The difficulty arises in view of both the increase in the number of private firms using prison labour in public prisons and the performance of work in prisons in which the administration has been contracted to private firms. In accordance with the Convention, work or service exacted from any person as a consequence of a conviction in a court of law is exempted from the scope of the Convention only if two conditions are met. These are that "the said work or service is carried out under the supervision and control of a public authority and that the said person is not hired to or placed at the disposal of private individuals, companies or associations". In this respect, the Committee reaffirmed its position that "only when performed in conditions approximating a free employment relationship can work by prisoners for private companies be held compatible with the explicit prohibition in Article 2(2)(c); this necessarily requires the formal consent of the person concerned". The Committee pointed out that "a necessary part of consent is that there must be further guarantees and safeguards covering the essential elements of a free labour relationship, if the employment is to be removed from the scope of Article 2(2)(c)". It also noted that "in some countries the governments are making progress towards full compliance with the Convention in their administration of privatized prisons by taking measures so that conditions in privatized prisons progressively approach those of free workers".(3)

Freedom of association

The Governing Body Committee on Freedom of Association is the centrepiece of a specialized mechanism through which the tripartite constituents can bring to light cases in which the ILO's principles on freedom of association are not fully observed.

The number of cases brought before the Committee during the biennium gives some indication of the progress that still needs to be made in the application of these crucial basic rights. During the biennium, the Committee arrived at conclusions in around 153 cases concerning 53 countries in all the regions of the world. However, the measures taken by governments in a number of these cases provide an indication of the effectiveness of the system in securing fuller observance of the right to freedom of association.

Figure 1 . Number of cases examined by the Committee on Freedom of Association (1986-97)

Advisory services and legal information

The role of the supervisory system in achieving fuller implementation of ILO principles and standards is closely supported by the provision of practical assistance to constituents, in the form of advisory services, technical assistance and training. To familiarize constituents with the content of ILO standards and the role of the supervisory system in reinforcing their impact, tripartite subregional seminars on international labour standards were held in South America, Central and Eastern Europe and the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). A two-week training course, based on new course material, was held in the International Training Centre of the ILO in Turin (Turin Centre) immediately prior to the Conference in 1997 for government officials responsible for reporting on international labour standards, as well as for employers' representatives. Around 20 national and subregional seminars were also held in all regions of the world on standards and procedures relating to freedom of association. Further support at the national level was provided through missions to individual countries and the provision of comments on draft legislation.

During the biennium, the measures noted by the Committee to give effect to the principles of freedom of association included the following:

An important service provided by the ILO to assist member States and in support of the work of its supervisory bodies is the provision of information on international labour standards and developments in national legislation. Access to this information offers important guidance to member States which are drawing up or revising labour legislation. Two major tools are being constantly developed and updated for this purpose. The first is ILOLEX, the database of international labour standards. The second is the NATLEX database, covering national legislation, which is constantly being expanded and contains over 45,000 entries, including many full texts of basic labour and social security legislation. These databases are available on CD-ROM and, since March 1997, have been accessible on-line through the International labour standards page on the ILO Web site on the Internet.

Through the ILOLEX database , ILO constituents have on-line access to the full texts of:

The potential of these new information tools to provide guidance to constituents in their work on national labour standards and practices was emphasized in a training programme which familiarized officials in ministries of labour and in employers' and workers' organizations with their use. The training programme included seminars in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Turin Centre, as well as the provision of assistance and information during missions to various countries.

These information activities were supplemented by a number of publications during the biennium. A new compilation of international labour Conventions and Recommendations was published in English, and includes the revised Handbook of procedures relating to international labour Conventions and Recommendations, which was also published separately and widely circulated in the ILO's seven official and working languages. The fourth (revised) edition of the Digest of decisions and principles of the Freedom of Association Committee(4) was published in English, French and Spanish, and prepared for publication in Arabic, Portuguese and Russian. ILO law on freedom of association,(5) first published in Spanish and English in 1995, was issued in French in 1996, with versions also being prepared in Arabic, Chinese, German, Portuguese and Russian.

Labour law and labour relations

In response to the harsh competition in today's globalized markets, many decision-makers are seeking to introduce greater flexibility into economic organization and the utilization of labour. An increasing number of countries are therefore deregulating economic activity and making protective labour legislation more flexible. These developments are taking place against a background of high rates of unemployment in many countries and a profound change in the nature of employment, with full-time stable employment becoming less predominant, as part-time work and more precarious types of employment, including temporary and contract work, become increasingly widespread.

Against this background, the objective of the ILO is the development of labour legislation that is adapted to the new environment by both safeguarding social protection and being conducive to economic efficiency. Assistance in the achievement of this objective was provided to over 35 countries during the biennium in response to requests from governments for help in the revision of legislation or the development of new laws. In most cases, over the years this assistance leads up to the adoption of new or revised legislation.

Cases in which new or revised labour legislation was adopted following the provision of technical assistance by the Office include:

To provide constituents with comparative information on one important aspect of labour legislation in a wide range of countries, the Office prepared a compilation of legislation respecting termination of employment at the initiative of the employer.(6) In the form of a digest, it contains comparative tables of legislative provisions in almost 70 member States. It covers sources of law, the scope of the legislation, types of contracts of employment, valid and invalid reasons for dismissal, procedural safeguards, notice requirements, avenues for redress, remedies and, where available, provisions governing collective dismissals.

A regional tripartite seminar on labour law reform was held in Abidjan in June-July 1997, in collaboration with the World Bank, for 12 French-speaking African countries. This meeting, which examined a range of topics, including labour relations, recruitment, dismissal, child labour and maternity protection, provided an opportunity for an exchange of views between the ILO, the World Bank and the social partners in the participating countries. It improved understanding between the ILO and the World Bank on possible areas of convergence and remaining differences of approach. The conclusions and recommendations of the meeting emphasize that labour legislation can have a positive impact on economic efficiency by contributing to an improvement in the quality of jobs. The participants added that labour law can provide adequate protection for workers while at the same time taking into account economic performance and enterprise productivity. By creating a balance between the interests of workers and employers, it can promote a climate of trust when applied in a transparent manner. The deliberations of the meeting should help constituents challenge criticisms of labour law and labour market regulation in general, as well as enhancing their understanding of where reforms are justified.(7)

Social dialogue

There is growing recognition that the changes introduced to equip national economies for the new competitive globalized markets can only be successful if they are backed by consensus support, particularly from the social partners. As a result, a growing number of countries in all regions of the world have been experimenting with different mechanisms for negotiations and consultation on socio-economic policy between the government and employers' and workers' organizations. In countries in transition, tripartite consultation is being adopted as a desirable alternative to the previous authoritarian processes of policy-making. In Latin America, the process has recently acquired a new vigour and has become a prominent feature of labour relations.

The objectives of ILO action in this field are the promotion of social dialogue and the maintenance and enhanced vitality of collective bargaining in globalized economies. This objective is achieved by responding to requests for assistance from constituents and the organization of tripartite seminars to provide information and training in the basic principles of social dialogue. Many of the activities focused on transition countries. During the biennium, tripartite seminars were held in Azerbaijan, Hungary, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. In some of these countries, these events were among the first tripartite activities at the national level. In the case of Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan, for example, the seminars ended with the signature of a resolution by the parties recognizing and undertaking to promote the principle of tripartism. In the case of the latter two countries and Uzbekistan, these activities were followed up by a tripartite course at the ILO's Turin Centre and study tours. Two regional seminars on social dialogue were also held in Cyprus for Central and Eastern European countries. Technical support was provided to initiate and develop processes of social dialogue in El Salvador and five Andean countries. In many cases, this assistance has led to the establishment of new or revitalized tripartite consultation machinery and the conclusion of tripartite agreements on social and economic policy issues.

The biennium saw significant progress in social dialogue in a number of Latin American countries . The roots of this progress lie variously in the follow-up to structural adjustment programmes, the need for worker support to increase competitivity in a context of regional integration and the tripartite consultations initiated by the ILO for the preparation of Country Objectives Statements. Illustrations of improved social dialogue include:

Support for this work was provided in the form of a research project on negotiations covering the introduction of labour market flexibility measures. Based on an examination of experience in this respect in a good number of industrialized and developing countries, an assessment was made of the respective importance, for the introduction of labour flexibility, of legislation, collective bargaining, work rules, individual contracts and unilateral action by employers. Recent experience in the "negotiated" introduction of flexibility was reviewed and factors were identified which enhance the role of collective bargaining in the adoption of flexibility measures that are beneficial to both enterprises and their employees.

One of the fundamental concerns of the social partners, particularly in collective bargaining processes, is remuneration. The debate on the relative advantages and disadvantages of minimum wage fixing continues, as illustrated by the renewed consideration in several countries of statutory minimum wages to protect the lowest paid. Member States continue to experiment with different types of pay systems in an effort to achieve the desired flexibility and linkages with performance, without damaging the fabric of basic protection for workers' income.
 

  Promoting social dialogue in Africa

In their concern to respond effectively to the devaluation of their currency, African countries in the CFA franc zone recognized the need for national tripartite cooperation to reach consensus on important economic and social issues, including the implementation of structural adjustment programmes. A pilot project was therefore carried out during the biennium in several French-speaking African countries on the formulation and implementation of national economic and social policy through social dialogue.

Based on studies and meetings in each country, assessments were made of national experience and problems in the field of tripartite dialogue. In the case of Burkina Faso , the recommendations made included extending the competence of the Consultative Labour Commission, setting up a permanent secretariat for the Commission and strengthening the bargaining capacity of the social partners. To achieve the aim of regular and permanent tripartite consultations in Benin , it was recommended that the permanent secretariat to the National Labour Council be strengthened through the provision of an appropriate budget, regular economic and social information and the training of its members in collective bargaining. The social partners in these countries benefited from the opportunity to exchange experience with a high-level tripartite delegation from Belgium on the impact of regional integration on national-level social dialogue.

Following the implementation of the project, a Decree was adopted in Benin on the creation and scope of a financially reinforced tripartite National Labour Council. As a result, tripartite consultations and meetings are now held regularly in the Council and a permanent secretariat is being created. Work is still continuing in Burkina Faso on the strengthening of the Consultative Labour Commission and the establishment of a permanent secretariat.

In view of the success of the pilot project, similar activities are now being undertaken in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Mali, Senegal and the five Portuguese-speaking African countries . Other African countries have also expressed interest in receiving similar assistance from the Office.

The objective of ILO action in this respect is the formulation and effective application of sound wage policies and systems that are conducive to greater social equity and economic efficiency. One key concern of constituents in this connection is to strike a balance between the aspects of pay determination that are best left to employers and workers, and those that would benefit from government initiatives. The assistance provided to constituents to help them achieve this objective included training courses at the Turin Centre and the International Institute for Labour Studies, as well as activities at the national and subregional levels. Particular attention was given in this respect to endeavouring to improve pay determination and render pay systems more effective in the public sector, while applying equity principles, such as equal pay for work of equal value. Technical advice and comparative information were provided to the tripartite constituents and parliamentarians in Brazil on profit-sharing and financial participation, with particular reference to their legal regulation. In a follow-up activity covering the hotel and tourism sector in Senegal, a seminar for sectoral negotiators explored ways of revising the job, grade and pay structure set out in the collective agreement covering the sector. National tripartite meetings on minimum wage fixing were held in Nepal and Thailand. The first considered the feasibility of minimum wages for agricultural workers, while the second reviewed the current national system of minimum wage fixing. The Office also organized a meeting for member countries of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) on pay policy, which addressed minimum wage and enterprise pay policies.

Countries in which progress in the negotiation of remuneration systems occurred during the biennium included:

The structural adjustment measures that are being adopted in many countries, and particularly in countries in transition, which often involve an erosion of workers' protection and a widening of income gaps, have in many cases led to a sharp increase in the number of labour disputes, outbreaks of strikes and other forms of industrial action. The absence of adequate dispute settlement mechanisms often prevents the effective solution of these disputes and amplifies their negative effects on the national economy and social cohesion. In response to requests for technical assistance, the Office helped in the establishment of machinery for the settlement of labour disputes in several countries, including China, Venezuela and Ukraine. Following the provision of technical advice and the holding of a tripartite workshop, the Government of China is now in the early stages of preparing legislation on the settlement of labour disputes. In Venezuela, the issue has been covered by several meetings between the Ministry of Labour and the social partners.

South Africa is moving away from its tradition of adversarial labour relations towards social partnership based on tripartism, consultation, transparency and the promotion of workplace democracy. The South African Labour Relations Act of 1995, which came into force in November 1996, calls for the establishment of a Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) to prevent and settle disputes. After assisting in the development of the law, the ILO carried out a project to help launch the CCMA and undertake training and capacity-building activities for the staff of the CCMA, its part-time commissioners and the social partners.

The CCMA has been successfully installed and provides high-quality, expeditious services for the prevention and resolution of individual and collective labour disputes. From November 1996 to June 1997, for instance, it conciliated over 10,000 disputes and resolved 68 per cent of them, a rate that compares favourably with international best practice.

Workers' protection in multinational enterprises
and export processing zones (EPZs)

Guidelines concerning the observance of ILO principles by multinational enterprises are contained in the ILO Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy. The Declaration was adopted by the Governing Body in 1977 and remains the only text endorsed by an international organization concerning the labour and social aspects of the activities of multinational enterprises. Among the ILO's activities to achieve its objective of wider observance of the principles set out in the Declaration, a central role is played by its surveys on the effect given to the Declaration, the sixth of which was completed during the biennium.

The Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy , adopted by the Governing Body in 1977, is a voluntary instrument with five major sections:

Recent years have seen indications of increasingly widespread concern and acceptance that multinational enterprises should apply social policies and labour practices that are in line with the principles of the Tripartite Declaration. These include a number of voluntary codes of conduct adopted by certain governments, employers' organizations and multinational enterprises. The Governing Body Working Group which examined the findings of the survey agreed that many positive steps had been taken in setting policies that take into account the respective concerns of the tripartite partners on economic and social issues. It also found that multinational enterprises generally have a positive impact on the economies of host countries and that they play an important role in training and the introduction and use of advanced technologies and modern management practices. In general, pay, benefits, conditions of work and safety standards in multinational enterprises compare favourably with, and often exceed those of, comparable local enterprises. However, there are instances in which the activities of multinational enterprises have caused difficulties, particularly as regards job security, the right to organize, collective bargaining and labour-management consultations. Certain actions by multinational enterprises have also resulted in lay-offs and aggravated unemployment.

Promotional activities and advisory services to encourage observance of the principles contained in the Declaration included the holding of an African regional workshop in South Africa in July 1996 for trade union leaders from 14 African countries, as well as seminars on multinational enterprises for workers' representatives from Asia and the Pacific. Research in support of these activities reviewed the economic and social impact of increased levels of foreign direct investment in the Philippines(8) and Bangladesh,(9) as well as in the telecommunications sector,(10) for women workers in retailing(11) and in the courier service industry.(12)

In addition to the corporate codes adopted in recent years, a number of national codes of practice for multinational enterprises have also been developed, including:

The ILO provided support and technical advisory services leading up to the signature of the Memorandum in the Philippines, which covers all the areas dealt with by the Tripartite Declaration, as well as sexual harassment, environmental protection and child labour. Other Governments, including those of Indonesia and Viet Nam , as well as the Asian trade union movement, have since requested ILO assistance for the conclusion of similar instruments.

One of the measures adopted increasingly commonly by member States to attract foreign investment is the establishment of export processing zones (EPZs) in which special facilities are offered to inward investors. These include fiscal incentives and, in some cases, exemption from the application of protective labour legislation and the principles of labour relations. Although well-planned and efficient EPZs contribute to economic development and the creation of employment, they can give rise to labour and social problems. The objective of ILO activities in this connection is better observance of international labour standards and the development of tripartite machinery in EPZs, so as to create an industrial relations climate that attracts investment and an operational environment that is beneficial to all concerned.

An action programme on labour and social issues in EPZs was undertaken to identify factors, and particularly the role of social and labour issues, which affect the performance of these zones. Around 100 enterprises were visited for this purpose, mainly in the textile, clothing, footwear, electrical and electronics sectors. These enterprises ranged from local family-run SMEs to giant multinationals, supported by both local and foreign investment. The information obtained led to the development and publication of conclusions and recommendations on the most innovative practices adopted by government agencies, employers and workers in EPZs.(13)

The preliminary findings of the action programme , which will be discussed at an international tripartite meeting in 1998, suggest that:

Based on these findings, training materials were developed on the strengthening of labour relations and human resources management,(14) improving the situation of women workers(15) and organizing workers in EPZs.(16) The findings of the action programme were discussed at subregional tripartite meetings held in the Caribbean and Central America towards the end of 1997. The resulting compilation of information, which is one of the most comprehensive in the world on EPZs, is being made available through the Internet. The training products will be tested in early 1998, and an international tripartite meeting is scheduled for September 1998 to review the work of the action programme and, if appropriate, adopt guidelines on social and labour issues in EPZs.

Labour administration

As the administrative arm of governments for the implementation of labour policy, the labour administration systems in member States are having to respond to the many rapid changes that are taking place in the world of work, often with limited financial and human resources. In a context in which traditional systems of employment and worker protection are being eroded in many countries, they are having to cope with the rapidly changing skill requirements of employers, as well as large numbers of jobseekers who have no work experience, or who have been made redundant following restructuring measures and whose experience is not necessarily adapted to the current labour market situation. The risks faced by workers in their jobs are also changing rapidly as new technologies and substances are introduced. The task of labour administrations is particularly difficult in countries applying structural adjustment programmes and in transition countries, where labour administrations are having to adjust to the market economy and democratization.

In a number of industrialized countries, approaches are emerging which are beginning to offer effective responses to these challenges. These often involve the development of the role of the social partners with, for example, workers' representatives playing a more participative and proactive role through such bodies as occupational safety and health committees. They also bring about greater empowerment of jobseekers by fostering a more dynamic attitude to their employment situation. Rather than being directed to specific vacancies, the unemployed are encouraged to develop work, career or training plans and are given the means, such as access to computer terminals in job centres, to search for the vacancies that are of interest to them. Placing vacancies on the Internet has also proven to be an effective way of providing a wide range of geographically varied job offers. But the labour administrations in many countries are far from being in a position to adopt such innovative responses and require assistance with many of the basic functions of labour administration.

The objective of ILO activities in this respect is the strengthening of the capacity of labour administrations to design and implement effective policies for the protection of workers and the efficient functioning of labour markets. With the development of the Active Partnership Policy, there has been a trend over the past two biennia for member States to request more wide-ranging assistance, covering the whole gamut of services and activities of labour administration systems, rather than single operational services, such as labour inspection and employment services. The assistance provided to constituents included a series of "audits" of labour administration systems. These exercises were carried out in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Guinea and Zimbabwe towards the end of the biennium. The recommendations delivered as a result of the audits covered a number of aspects of labour administration systems, including:

The audits also identified areas in which the Office could provide direct assistance to strengthen the labour administrations in the five countries concerned.

The recommendations of a tripartite mission were accepted by the Government of Panama , where a Presidential Decree concerning the national labour administration system was adopted in 1996, as a result of which:

Further support was provided to member States in the form of technical advisory services in Brazil, Chile, Niger and Yemen, and national technical cooperation projects in Azerbaijan and Bulgaria. The assistance provided to the Baltic States and Slovakia during the biennium produced some encouraging results. Through national seminars, training and policy advice, the focus in these countries was widened from labour inspection and safety and health issues, for example, to broader employment policy issues. A tripartite seminar was also held in Strasbourg in November 1997 for countries of Western and Central and Eastern Europe on the subject of labour administration as a vector of development. Many Central and Eastern European countries are seeking to model their labour administration systems on those of their neighbours in the European Union. However, the seminar emphasized the differences in the various labour administration systems in European Union countries, adapted to national factors, such as the relative strength of the social partners and of tripartite consultation machinery. The attention of the participants was also drawn to the ways in which modern labour administration systems can equip the social partners and individual jobseekers to take a proactive and dynamic attitude to employment. This involves allowing sufficient space for the social partners to have a real say in the shaping of employment policy. It also means encouraging jobseekers to draw up their own employment, training and career plans, giving them access to computer terminals to allow them to undertake their own job searches and, in general, the development of a more dynamic attitude of the workforce to their employment situation.

During the biennium, with support from the ILO, encouraging steps were taken in the field of labour administration in:

A number of information materials were prepared in support of these activities. These ranged from an introductory brochure(17) to a detailed database covering the labour administration systems in 40 countries. A study was also completed on the role of consultation and cooperation bodies in labour administrations.(18) Based on a review of the role played by these bodies in seven industrialized countries, the study points to their particular importance in maintaining social dialogue during periods of high tension, when economic constraints make it necessary for the various social actors to be seen to share responsibility for the policies that are adopted. There are broad differences between the types of cooperation bodies set up in the various countries and their development is very dependent on the political orientations of governments. Major influences on the structure of cooperation machinery include decentralization, which is likely to affect the geographical level at which they operate, and the development of regional economic integration, which is opening up new horizons for supranational cooperation structures.

With more specific reference to employment services, the central focus of the biennium was undoubtedly the adoption of the Private Employment Agencies Convention (No. 181) and Recommendation (No. 188) by the Conference in 1997 (see box). Preparatory work for the adoption of these instruments included the publication of studies on the impact of employment agencies on the functioning of the labour market in Austria, Hungary, Japan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka,(19) as well as a study on the relationship between public employment services and private employment agencies.(20)
 

New standards on private employment agencies

At its 85th Session in 1997, the Conference adopted the Private Employment Agencies Convention (No. 181) and Recommendation (No. 188). Convention No. 181 is a revision of the Fee-Charging Employment Agencies Convention (Revised), 1949 (No. 96).

Convention No. 96, which has received 41 ratifications, allows ratifying States to choose either the progressive abolition of fee-charging employment agencies or to regulate them. However, over recent decades it has become clear that Convention No. 96 fails to recognize the increasingly important role played in the labour market by new types of private employment agencies, and particularly service providers, such as staff-leasing firms, job shops and temporary work agencies. It is therefore unable to provide adequate protection to jobseekers and workers using these agencies.

The new Convention recognizes the legitimacy and efficient contribution made by bona fide private employment agencies to the functioning of the labour market, while ensuring adequate protection for the jobseekers and workers engaged by them. It is a flexible instrument that allows ratifying States the necessary freedom to respond to a variety of national and regional situations.

The principal provisions of Convention No. 181 include:

  • government responsibility for determining the conditions for the operation of private agencies through a system of licensing, certification or other form of regulation consistent with national law and practice;
  • protection for jobseekers and workers using private employment agencies (particularly vulnerable categories, such as migrant workers) in relation to fee-charging, personal data, freedom of association, collective bargaining, minimum wages and other conditions of work;
  • allocation of the respective responsibilities for terms and conditions of employment between user enterprises and private employment agencies;
  • definition of appropriate relations for cooperation between public employment services and private employment agencies; and
  • a clear signal that private employment agencies should neither use nor supply child labour.

Recommendation No. 188 provides more detailed guidelines for implementation, particularly as regards worker protection and the relationship between public employment services and private employment agencies.

Technical assistance was provided in a number of countries, including Albania, Jordan, Lebanon, South Africa and Viet Nam, as well as in the occupied Arab territories, to help in the development of employment services. In South Africa, the assistance offered consisted of advisory services on the adaptation of the employment services to the new democratic system. In the occupied Arab territories, ILO support guided the first stages of the creation of an employment service concerned with obtaining and disseminating information on job vacancies, including through media such as radio and television. Meetings were also organized to facilitate the exchange of experience on employment services. These included an interregional technical meeting held in Geneva in January 1997, in collaboration with the World Association of Public Employment Services (WAPES), on the strategies developed by public employment services in response to structural changes in the labour market.(21) The meeting examined practices of cooperation between public employment services and private employment agencies in Australia, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland. These included the creation in 1996 of the Public Employment Placement Enterprise in Australia, which now competes for business in a wide range of employment services against other private and community sector organizations. It also discussed the manner in which many public employment services are now adopting management by objectives and results, as well as the functional development of many services from administrative assistance to self-service, from the exchange of information across a counter to the organization of venues offering jobseekers extensive information and documentary resources.

Labour inspection

Experience in the development of labour inspection systems over the past decade has shown that a shift from a relatively rigid concept of reactive control to one of anticipatory prevention almost invariably leads to substantial progress in the results obtained. Labour inspection is one of the most important instruments available to States for the development of a culture of prevention, in terms of not only safety and health, but also with regard to industrial relations, employment and general conditions of work. However, relatively few inspectorates have successfully developed this aspect of their work, which requires a reorientation of traditional policies, methods and procedures, the willingness and capacity to influence legislative reforms and the development of new relations with employers' and workers' representatives. Indeed, the ability of many labour administrations to operate efficient and effective labour inspection services, as defined in the relevant international labour standards, is still quite limited and their scope is often confined to larger establishments in the formal sector.

During the biennium, with support from the ILO, important progress was made in the development of labour inspection services in a number of countries, including:

The objective of ILO activities in this regard is the improved capacity of labour inspection systems to fulfil their mandate in an effective and efficient manner. One tool that has been developed over the biennium to assist in the achievement of this objective is a system of audits, which will subsequently be further refined into an instrument for the self-evaluation of labour inspection systems. During the biennium, at the request of the services concerned, audits of labour inspection services were carried out in Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Romania, South Africa and Uganda. The audits are normally carried out by ILO experts in close cooperation with the staff of the labour inspection service. In each case they involve meetings with senior national officials, and often the Minister of Labour, as well as employers' and workers' representatives, and an examination of national and branch structures. The strong and weak points of the system are analysed and the conclusions and recommendations submitted to all the parties concerned. These exercises, for example in the case of South Africa, often lead to the development of proposals for technical cooperation projects to assist in the implementation of reforms and capacity-building activities.

Extensive technical support continued to be provided to countries in Central and Eastern Europe to assist in the development of modern labour inspection systems. Based on the findings of a study on the role of labour inspection in transition economies,(22) which were discussed with the directors of the labour inspectorates in the countries concerned, technical advisory services continued to be provided, technical cooperation activities undertaken and study tours arranged. It was reported at the end of the previous biennium that, with assistance from the ILO, Hungary and Poland had developed labour inspection services that were close to achieving conformity with the provisions of the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81). These countries were joined during the biennium 1996-97 by the three Baltic States and Bulgaria.

Employers' activities

The role played by employers' organizations is essentially determined by the services required of them by their members. These range from representing employers' interests in the formulation of national policy, to technical advice and capacity-building activities to enhance enterprise performance. The precise services required by employers depend on the direction in which they are likely to develop in the years to come, particularly under the impact of globalization, technological advances, the movement of transition countries towards a market economy and the need to improve performance in an increasingly competitive business environment. Employers' organizations in a number of countries have shown initiative and dynamism in adapting to this changing demand by anticipating the needs of their members. Others require assistance to be able to follow their example.

The objective of the ILO in this respect is the development of strong, independent and representative employers' organizations which can play an essential role in the formulation and implementation of labour market policies and the enhancement of enterprise competitiveness. In pursuit of this objective, and in response to requests for assistance, the Office engaged in a process of close and active partnership with its constituency of employers' organizations, designed to help them undertake a strategic assessment of their development objectives and establish action plans for their achievement. A number of regional and subregional initiatives were launched for this purpose. These included three subregional seminars and over 20 national workshops in Latin America. The principal challenges affecting 14 employers' organizations in Asia and the Pacific over the next decade were covered in a regional workshop held in Turin, which was followed up by national workshops. Regional workshops were also held in Turin and in Côte d'Ivoire, Mauritius, Tunisia and Zimbabwe for African employers' organizations, as well as a workshop in Hungary for organizations in Eastern Europe. Advisory services and consultancies were provided to help give effect to the findings of these meetings. In support of this work, publications were produced on the future role of employers' organizations in Asia(23) and French-speaking Africa.(24)

Strategic planning is by definition an ongoing process and much remains to be done to set it in motion effectively in many employers' organizations. But the approach offers a number of advantages. In several instances, it has been accompanied by an assessment of the emerging business environment and the key challenges and issues facing enterprises. It has provided the participating organizations with a clear development path, encompassing both the national and regional perspective. In some cases, it has led to the identification of ways in which the organizations' development goals can be achieved and has revealed areas in which they still need to strengthen their capacity to influence the policy environment. It has also helped to identify services to members that need to be developed or strengthened.

Through the formulation of strategic plans by employers' organizations , the ILO has been able to contribute to the attainment of their development objectives. Examples include:

The Office's programme of technical assistance and advisory services was designed to strengthen capacities in the technical areas identified by employers' organizations during this process. This programme consisted of a wide range of capacity-building activities, including seminars and participative workshops, advisory services, the organization of study tours and fellowships, as well as training for targeted individuals. These activities addressed such issues as:

These activities have resulted in an improvement in the quality of services provided by employers' organizations, making the latter more attractive to enterprises. This in turn leads to increased membership, which is the most critical measure of strengthened organizations.

The assistance provided was adapted to the specific needs of employers' organizations in their regional or national context. In Africa, for example, greater attention was given to the human resource development needs arising out of the context of structural adjustment and to support for small enterprises. The assistance provided in the Caribbean concentrated on small enterprise development and productivity improvement. In support of this work, research papers on a broad range of topics of interest to employers' organizations were produced, circulated and used in the Office's training and advisory services.(25) Several sets of training materials were also prepared, often with the assistance of national employers' organizations.(26) As described below in Chapter 3, activities were also undertaken to help employers' organizations address child labour and gender issues, including the publication of guidelines on how employers should approach equality at the workplace.(27)

In transition countries, technical cooperation activities continued to focus on: managing employers' organizations in a market economy; strengthening their policy lobbying role; developing their negotiating and bargaining skills so that they can participate more effectively in tripartite and bipartite relations; and introducing and managing the provision of services to members and the generation of income for the organizations. The assistance provided in this and previous biennia has helped employers' organizations in a number of transition countries, such as the Czech Republic and Hungary, expand their membership base, develop the services they provide to their members and play a more important advocacy role in policy-making at the national level. However, in many transition countries significant obstacles still prevent employers' organizations from achieving their development objectives. The enabling regulatory environment, which provides the checks and balances of a market economy, is not yet functioning and the private sector is still at an embryonic stage. As a result, the potential membership base of employers' organizations is still fairly narrow and it is difficult for them to respond to the pressure for change with the scarce resources available to them.

An innovation in ILO assistance to employers' organizations was the technical support provided to the Malaysian Employers' Federation (MEF) for the introduction of a diploma in industrial relations . The MEF had been offering courses in industrial relations, but identified a demand to upgrade the course, which was not provided by any other institution in the country. At the request of the MEF, the ILO therefore assisted in the design and conduct of a nine-month modular programme leading up to an examination for the diploma. During the biennium, some 50 representatives of enterprises participated in the course, which has become an annual activity of the MEF in view of the positive feedback from its member enterprises and the interest generated by the course.

Initially, employers' organizations in transition countries often find that it is through the provision of business support services that they can best serve the needs of their potential membership. The assistance provided to them by the Office therefore concentrates on building their capacity to provide these services. This was the case, for example, in Mongolia, where it was through the provision of business support services, including training, information and research in selected areas, that the employers' organization first gained credibility among its client base. It is only recently that it has been able to play a role in the development of social policy. Considerable work therefore remains to be done in this and the next decade before the organizations in many transition countries are able to assume their rightful role in national socio-economic development.

In response to the increasingly proactive approach adopted by employers and their organizations to combating child labour, the ILO played an important role in the identification of strategies and the mobilization of action by employers at the international, regional and national levels, particularly in Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, India, Kenya, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, the United Republic of Tanzania and Turkey. Support was provided to the International Organization of Employers for the preparation of a resolution on child labour, followed by the adoption of policy statements on child labour by employers' organizations in Colombia, Kenya and Peru. After participating in tripartite regional and subregional preparatory seminars, employers' representatives were active at the International Conference on Child Labour, held in Oslo in October 1997, at which they presented the action taken by employers to combat child labour. Employers' organizations have also played an important role on national steering committees set up under the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (ILO-IPEC) and in the implementation of a number of ILO-IPEC projects. These activities led up to the formulation of a programme for employers' organizations, for implementation in the biennium 1998-99, to develop their institutional capacity through the creation of child labour units, which will disseminate information and instigate direct action on child labour, particularly at the sectoral level.

Initiatives taken by employers' organizations to combat child labour , often with ILO support, include the following:

One of the priority areas identified by employers' organizations for the provision of technical assistance by the Office was to develop the services that they offer their members in the field of safety and health. Assistance was delivered to a number of employers' organizations in Asian countries, including China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Thailand, as well as in Jordan. The support provided consisted of raising the awareness of the employers' organizations as to the role that they can play in the field of safety and health and helping in the development of plans for the provision of safety and health services. Where these plans were well advanced, as in the case of Malaysia, assistance was afforded for their implementation, including the training of focal points and linking the organizations to information systems and databases.

In response to requests for assistance with environmental programmes, pilot projects have been carried out on cleaner production in China, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mauritius, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, the United Republic of Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Through a process of consultation between management and workers, the projects involve the identification and implementation of more efficient and cleaner production methods in participating enterprises. They therefore not only address environmental concerns, but make an important contribution to a better industrial relations climate in the enterprises concerned. By the end of the project in 1998, the participating organizations will be capable of offering practical new services to enterprises that wish to improve their environmental performance and save money.

With regard to the major objective of the strengthening of employers' organizations, perhaps the most significant result of the work carried out during the biennium has been the adoption by many employers' organizations of strategic planning as their principal development tool. Such planning places the organization in the context of its own market, helps to prioritize its development options and engenders a coherent and structured approach to institution building. It also emphasizes better information systems and research capacity, staff development and a more strategic perspective of industrial relations, which constitute crucial assets for the future of employers' organizations. For the ILO, it provides a sustainable basis for future cooperation.

Workers' activities

As one of the most representative institutions of civil society, trade unions are among the most relevant forces striving to achieve greater respect for human rights and social justice, promote the values of solidarity and protect the weakest members of society. Their role is particularly important at a time when workers are confronted with the complex challenges arising out of the globalization of the economy and increased worldwide competition. They therefore urgently need to develop new and effective responses to such fundamental and diverse issues as the liberalization of trade and capital markets; structural adjustment programmes and economic integration; new technologies and significant changes in the organization of work; the protection of health and safety and the environment; and the continued growth of the informal sector and non-traditional forms of employment, such as part-time work, home work, contract labour and teleworking.

Various responses are beginning to emerge to these vital challenges for the trade union movement at the national, sectoral and international levels. Some workers' organizations are concentrating on renewing and upgrading their own staff, while others have entered into innovative agreements with employers and governments in such areas as flexible working time and performance-related remuneration packages, often in exchange for commitments to recruit more and younger workers. Much has also been done to improve the international exchange of information with a view to placing trade unions in a stronger position to play their collective bargaining role in the context of a globalized economy. Other strategies that have been adopted by workers' organizations include:

However, the response has been uneven and most trade unions still require a good deal of assistance to develop an effective global strategy that addresses the major challenges confronting them.

The objective of the ILO's activities in this context is the strengthening of trade unions and the enhancement of their capacity to participate in social dialogue, with a view to promoting workers' rights and improving their working and living conditions. The assistance provided to workers' organizations continued to be delivered in the form of advisory services, the production of study materials and teaching aids, and the holding of seminars and other meetings. The administration of fellowship grants was also an important means of providing some 600 trade union leaders and educators with an opportunity to participate in international meetings and training courses, as well as in study programmes in Geneva to familiarize themselves with the ILO's functions, mandate and activities.

Priority areas for technical assistance were identified in consultation with worker constituents at the national level, international trade union organizations and the Workers' group of the Governing Body. In this connection, a large proportion of activities were focused on Africa, where, despite the hopes raised by the new era of democratization, the general decline in the economy and the worsening quality of working life have placed trade unions in a very difficult position.

Trade unions have consistently formed an important pressure group for the improved observance of international labour standards. During the biennium, almost all the programmes undertaken on behalf of workers' organizations, including a large number of national, subregional and regional seminars and workshops, included information and training activities on the ratification, application and monitoring of international labour standards. A revised workers' education manual on international labour standards was prepared(28) and special attention was devoted to the seven fundamental Conventions, in support of the Director-General's campaign for the further ratification of these Conventions. The impact of the above activities is illustrated by the rapidly increasing number of comments on the application of ratified Conventions submitted in recent years to the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations by workers' organizations.

Rural workers, and particularly rural women workers, are among the least privileged in the world. The programmes and projects undertaken to assist these workers concentrated on strengthening organizations of rural workers, promoting the role of women in these organizations and the provision of training on such key issues as workers' rights, health and safety, environmental concerns, food security and international labour standards. Technical cooperation projects for rural workers were operational in India, Ghana, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Central America. The core activities of these projects consisted of training rural workers, and particularly women, as trainers and coordinators to ensure the sustainability of the activities. The project in India concentrated on the development of a corps of trained women activists to improve women's participation in rural workers' organizations. In South Africa, with a view to strengthening the education programmes of rural workers' organizations, three national trade union coordinators and over 250 trainers were provided with training in such subjects as collective bargaining and negotiation, international labour standards and national legislation, equality and gender issues, occupational health and safety and the environment. Study circles were also organized for each participating organization. In Central America and the Dominican Republic, the assistance provided to strengthen rural workers' organizations included training in democratic structures and the functions of organizations of rural workers for 50 grass-roots leaders, as well as the training of ten negotiators and 15 instructors in subjects which included negotiation, equality issues, environment and international labour standards. Specially adapted training materials were developed for each of the above beneficiary groups and a series of training modules for women members of rural workers' organizations were developed and tested.(29)

A project for the integration of women in rural workers' organizations covered agricultural workers' unions in Ghana, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe . The beneficial effects achieved with the support of the project have included:

Another important area in which assistance was provided to workers' organizations was strengthening their capacity to play a meaningful role in the development of national policy, particularly as it relates to employment. A prominent concern was the need to adopt responses to the social and employment consequences of structural adjustment policies and to ensure that trade union views were heard and heeded by policy-makers. Training and policy advice was provided, research carried out and training(30) and information materials produced to increase knowledge of the issues involved.(31) Technical support was provided to a series of national meetings organized by the trade union movement and attended by representatives of governments and the international financial institutions. The Office provided support for meetings of this type in a number of countries, including Benin, Bulgaria, Congo, Croatia, Egypt, Guinea, the Philippines, the United Republic of Tanzania, Togo and Tunisia. These meetings responded to an increasing willingness on the part of the Bretton Woods institutions to engage in dialogue concerning their proposed reforms. The meetings undoubtedly contributed to the pressure that has led to recent generations of structural adjustment programmes endeavouring to offset their negative employment effects by placing more emphasis on social policy measures and economic growth.

Technical support was provided to trade union organizations in countries involved in regional economic integration processes, particularly in the context of the common market of the Southern Cone (MERCOSUR) in Latin America. The Trade Union Coordinating Council (Coordinadora de Centrales Sindicales del Cono Sur -- CCSCS), a subregional trade union organization covering the countries concerned, has been playing an increasingly active role in the tripartite advisory bodies set up by MERCOSUR and has made a significant contribution to the determination of social issues by the countries concerned, including the identification of a minimum set of ILO Conventions that would provide the basis for threshold labour standards in MERCOSUR countries. In addition to advisory services, seminars were organized for the member organizations of the CCSCS on labour legislation, social security, employment policy and vocational training in the context of MERCOSUR.

With a view to helping trade unions develop a coherent response to the growing importance of precarious forms of work, research was conducted in the field of contract labour. A total of 16 case-studies were carried out in Asia and the Pacific, Africa and the Americas in a range of economic sectors. Two regional seminars were held in 1997 in New Delhi(32) and Mexico City to identify the main problems associated with contract labour and develop suitable policies for the protection of the workers concerned.

The participants in the seminar in Mexico noted that:

The problems encountered in the observance of basic workers' rights in EPZs were addressed through a number of activities, including research in selected countries in Africa and Central America on employment, wages, working conditions and the application of national legislation and international labour standards in EPZs.(33) Regional seminars for workers' organizations were held in Johannesburg and San José to examine legal and practical obstacles to the exercise of workers' rights and the improvement of their working conditions in EPZs. The participants in the San José seminar outlined a number of areas in which trade unions could work to improve conditions in EPZs, including:

Trade unions combating child labour

An interregional project was set up during the biennium to strengthen the involvement of trade unions in action to combat child labour. The project concentrates on areas in which ILO-IPEC is less active, such as international trade secretariats (ITSs) and certain African countries. Activities have included:

  • training activities, including a seminar held in Geneva in April 1997 for ITSs for the development of national and international strategies to combat child labour;
  • regional activities, such as those in Africa (and particularly the United Republic of Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe), where the ILO used its tripartite structure to initiate dialogue between the social partners and governments, promoted awareness-raising activities (including theatre and songs, based on the techniques developed by an earlier project to promote the role of women in trade unions) and supported the development of farm schools by workers' organizations;
  • support for research in selected sectors, including agriculture ( Bitter harvest: Child labour in agriculture , by Alec Fyfe), brick kilns and diamond and gem processing;
  • international awareness-raising campaigns, including the campaign on child labour in the diamond and gem processing industry at the end of 1997, timed to coincide with a major industry conference held in London;
  • the development of training and information disseminated, among other media, on the Internet and a CD-ROM (which will be available in 1998);
  • support for exhibitions on the action taken by trade unions to combat child labour, such as the exhibition organized in connection with the International Conference on Child Labour, held in Oslo in October 1997; and
  • strengthening the capacity of trade unions to engage in collective bargaining on child labour and other trade union and human rights issues, particularly at the international level, through training and the provision of information, for example on international codes of conduct excluding child labour (including those adopted by the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI), the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and the Walt Disney Company).

The trade union movement has been particularly active in combating child labour during the biennium. Following consultation with international trade union organizations, the support provided by the Office in this regard took two forms: an interregional project and a strengthening of collaboration between trade unions and the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (ILO-IPEC). Since ILO-IPEC was launched in 1992, trade unions have been associated with the implementation of over 100 of its programmes. During the biennium, there has been a clear increase in the proportion of ILO-IPEC programmes involving trade union participation.

ILO-IPEC programmes implemented by trade unions include the following:

The many challenges facing trade unions do not reduce the importance of their traditional work of developing the skills of their members. Of the activities carried out by the ILO in support of trade unions, considerable emphasis continued to be laid on further developing and strengthening workers' education programmes. Assistance continued to be provided to workers' organizations in the majority of developing countries, including advice on the strategic planning and administration of workers' education services and in-service training for national counterparts. In particular, projects for the development of workers' education capacities among trade unions were carried out in Chile, Egypt, Eritrea, Haiti, India, Lebanon, Mongolia, Mozambique, the Philippines, Russian Federation, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Uganda and Viet Nam. A series of courses was also held at the Turin Centre for the various regions and linguistic groups to help trade unions develop their programmes of workers' education. In support of these activities, four issues a year of the Workers' Education journal continued to be published in English, French and Spanish, focusing on subjects such as trade unions and child labour, migrant workers, new technology and contract labour.(34) Training materials were also produced on such subjects as gender equality bargaining,(35) workers' participation in decision-making in the enterprise(36) and safety and health at work.(37)

In an increasingly globalized world, a prodigious and uninterrupted flow of data circulates through telecommunications networks and is used by enterprises to ensure that they are in a position to adapt rapidly to demand and economic developments. The same technology needs to be introduced by trade unions to help them shape their responses at the national and international levels. Indeed, a number of trade unions are already making use of modern communications systems, particularly in such fields as bargaining information services, solidarity campaigns and trade union organization and education. Advisory services were provided to trade unions to help them take advantage of the opportunities offered by new communications technology, backed up by the implementation of a series of courses. The Bureau for Workers' Activities put its homepage on the Internet in October 1996 and preparations are under way for the development of a system of "on-line tele-learning".

The cases mentioned below illustrate the tangible results that can be obtained through assistance in the training of trade union members :

Sectoral activities

The ILO's programme of sectoral activities acts as an interface with its constituents in the principal economic sectors, with the objectives of promoting social dialogue at the sectoral level and facilitating the exchange of information between constituents on labour and social developments relevant to specific sectors. This objective has traditionally been pursued by holding international tripartite or, where appropriate, bipartite sectoral meetings. The biennium 1996-97 was the first in which a new system was introduced, following an evaluation of the ILO's sectoral activities undertaken by the Governing Body. The main characteristics of the new system of sectoral activities are:

The efforts made over several biennia to increase the relevance and value of the ILO's sectoral activities for constituents have clearly been bearing fruit. Sectoral meetings and the reports prepared for them received wide media coverage. This was particularly true of the Tripartite Meeting on Breaking through the Glass Ceiling: Women in Management, information on which is provided in Chapter 3. There was considerable cooperation with other major programmes and major international employers' and workers' organizations and an increase in demand for related technical advisory services. In a number of sectors, tripartite meetings or other follow-up action took place at the national level in partnership with sectoral constituents. A briefing kit was produced to raise the awareness of constituents and Office staff with regard to the sectoral work of the ILO.(38)

Industrial activities

Tripartite meetings were held during the biennium for the construction, agriculture, forestry, iron and steel, and textiles, clothing and footwear sectors. Follow-up activities in these and other sectors took a variety of forms. These included presentations in meetings organized by constituents and NGOs to promote the ratification of the Safety and Health in Mines Convention, 1995 (No. 176). An agreement was also reached with several international organizations, including the World Bank and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), on collaboration, information sharing and consultation in respect of their work on small-scale mines. In the context of the conference held in Kyoto in December 1997 on the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, a study was prepared on the impact of stricter environmental legislation on employment in coalmining.(39)

The conclusions of the Tripartite Meeting on Safety and Related Issues pertaining to Work on Offshore Petroleum Installations, held in 1993, have been widely recommended by the main employers' and workers' organizations in the sector as a basis for the regulation of safety issues. At the request of the oil industry, the ILO will cooperate in and endorse the planning and holding of a series of major international conferences on health, safety and the environment in oil and gas exploration and production. These conferences will provide a significant opportunity to promote tripartism in the industry. Following the 1996 Tripartite Meeting on the Globalization of the Footwear, Textiles and Clothing Industries: Effects on Employment and Working Conditions, considerable interest was also shown in the potential of voluntary codes of conduct, adopted by enterprises or employers' organizations, as an instrument for promoting basic human and work-related rights.(40) At the request of the Meeting, a study was published analysing some of the principal codes already in use.(41) National tripartite workshops in Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Sri Lanka responded positively to the development of voluntary national codes for the sector. Studies were also carried out on best practices in training and retraining and on labour issues related to home work in the industry.(42)

In the food, drink and tobacco industry, a series of national tripartite workshops were held on selected topics. In Indonesia, a workshop focused on occupational safety and health in the sector. In Ghana, the subject of the workshop was the impact of increased deregulation and new technologies on the employment and occupational safety and health of food, drink and tobacco workers. Preparations were made for a workshop in Thailand on women's employment and working conditions in small and medium-sized enterprises in the sector. A study was also published on the safety and health of meat, poultry and fish processing workers.(43) Advisory services were provided to the International Metalworkers' Federation for meetings on the mechanical and electrical engineering, transport equipment and shipbreaking industries. Advisory services were also provided to the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers' Associations (IFATCA) and the International Transport Workers' Federation on various labour issues and several national and subregional meetings were held on lessons from labour adjustment issues and privatization in the transport sector.

Technical cooperation activities to improve working conditions in the forestry sector were finalized during the biennium in Pakistan and Zimbabwe. In Pakistan, the project resulted in the development and introduction of tools and working methods that lead to major gains in productivity while reducing excessive workload. A reform of the pay system for daily labourers could also result in a significant increase in earnings. Major donors supporting large-scale afforestation activities in Pakistan have made the adoption of these ILO techniques and standards one of the conditions for continued funding. A work study branch for the forestry and wood industries was established in Zimbabwe with responsibility for improving efficiency and working conditions. The branch is respected throughout the industry and has been requested to participate in the planning of training and safety programmes. Several activities related to the concept of codes of practice for forestry were carried out, particularly in Chile, Fiji and Zimbabwe, resulting in new forms of cooperation with national constituents in the sector. Important progress in this respect was also made by the Meeting of Experts on Safety and Health in Forest Work in September 1997 with the adoption of an ILO code of practice on safety and health in forest work.(44) The Forestry Workforce Network, which now has a membership of nearly 300 constituents and experts from the sector, proved a useful tool for the collection and dissemination of information and for close contacts between the ILO and its constituents in the sector.(45) Finally, the ILO prepared a technical paper on the social elements of sustainable forest management for the Third Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe, to be held in June 1998, which is expected to adopt a programme of action on this subject which will have an important global impact.(46)

In accordance with the requests for action adopted by the Second Session of the Forestry and Wood Industries Committee in 1991, the ILO has been promoting codes of practice for forestry for several years. These activities have started to yield promising results in several countries, including:

Brazil and Indonesia have also expressed interest in this approach.

In response to a resolution adopted by the Tripartite Meeting on Social and Labour Issues concerning Migrant Workers in the Construction Industry, held in March 1996, the ILO initiated a dialogue with the World Bank and the World Trade Organization concerning the introduction of labour clauses in procurement which is financed or regulated by those organizations.(47) A study was also published on migrant construction labour in Singapore.(48) A number of studies were carried out in response to requests from other sectoral meetings. For the agricultural sector, these included a study on productivity and labour relations in the South Asian tea industry.(49) Studies were also prepared on working conditions in the growing international trade in cut flowers in Colombia, Ecuador and the Netherlands.(50) In the basic metals sector, studies were published on the outlook for the steel workforce beyond the year 2000 in nine countries, as well as on modernization and skills requirements in the steel industry in Mexico.(51) Another study on voluntary initiatives in the chemical industries to improve enterprise performance on health, safety and the environment was widely disseminated and used to stimulate national tripartite discussions leading up to the Tripartite Meeting on Voluntary Initiatives Affecting Training and Education on Safety, Health and Environment in the Chemical Industries, to be held in 1999.(52)

Public and private services

In view of the social and labour issues arising from multimedia convergence in the media and entertainment industries, the ILO organized a Symposium on Multimedia Convergence in January 1997, bringing together constituents in the media, culture and graphical sectors.(53) The transformation of traditional employment relations, the widening gap between "info-haves" and "have-nots", the polarization of the workforce into knowledge workers and others, and the precarious nature of the jobs that are being generated have brought the social implications of the information economy into stronger focus. Discussions at the Symposium centred on the application of the principles of freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, non-discrimination in employment and equality between men and women workers in the information age. The ILO has subsequently received several requests from constituents in the related sectors to organize regional and subregional seminars to raise the awareness of the social partners of the implications of multimedia convergence and to promote structures for dialogue within the multimedia industries.

The impact of the Symposium on Multimedia Convergence was threefold:

With regard to the impact of structural adjustment in public services, the ILO participated in the organization of several seminars to follow up the Joint Meeting on the Impact of Structural Adjustment in the Public Services (Efficiency, Quality Improvement and Working Conditions), held in May 1995. These included a subregional trade union conference on the restructuring of public services and the role of trade unions, held in Kiev in October 1996, and a workshop on employment and labour practices in health care in Central and Eastern Europe, held in Prague in May 1997.(54) At a time when the overall costs of structural adjustment programmes are acutely felt in all transition countries, these meetings provided a good opportunity to disseminate the conclusions of the Joint Meeting to a broad audience of government, trade union and employers' representatives. Several participants later indicated that the meetings had led to the commencement of tripartite dialogue at the national level to identify ways of introducing structural reforms in health care services and in public services in general, taking social concerns into account. Other follow-up meetings included a regional study meeting on productivity improvements and human resource development in the civil service, held in Kuala Lumpur in August 1997, which was organized by the Asian Productivity Organization and attended by representatives of the public administrations of most Asian countries. The ILO also organized a subregional workshop on human resource development in the public service for countries of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) to familiarize participants with the planning and implementation of social dialogue in the public sector and pave the way for ILO training activities in this area.(55)

Several subregional meetings were organized to follow up the Joint Meeting on the Impact of Structural Adjustment on Educational Personnel, held in April 1996.(56) The Joint ILO/UNESCO Symposium on Structural Adjustment Programmes and the Situation of Educational Personnel, held in Dakar in June 1997, examined ways of improving the application in practice of teachers' rights, as set out in international labour standards and the ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers.(57) A special session of the Joint ILO/UNESCO Committee of Experts on the Application of the Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers examined reports from governments and international and national organizations of teachers and employers, particularly relating to the trade union rights of teachers.(58) The ILO also organized subregional seminars on the situation of teachers in Amman and Bucharest and prepared a study on the situation of women in education in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali and Senegal.(59)

Maritime activities

Structural changes and the fragmentation of traditional shipping operations, particularly through the extensive use of subcontracting, the employment of seafarers on foreign-registered ships and frequent changes in ownership and ship registration, have complicated the relationship between shipowners and seafarers and have affected seafarers' working and living conditions. In ports, the increased automation of cargo-handling and the structural adjustment programmes introduced to improve efficiency have resulted in reductions in the workforce and affected the training needs and conditions of work of portworkers. The overall objective of the ILO's maritime activities is the promotion of social and economic progress in shipping, fishing, ports and inland water transport, especially as regards the working and living conditions of workers in these industries.

The most important of the ILO's maritime activities during the biennium was the 84th (Maritime) Session of the International Labour Conference held in 1996, which adopted a total of seven international labour standards. These were:

One of the features of the Merchant Shipping (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 147), is that it refers in its Appendix to a number of other ILO Conventions relating to seafarers and containing fundamental work-related rights which set minimum standards for seafarers. The Protocol of 1996 extends the number of Conventions listed in the Appendix to Convention No. 147 and which therefore have to be observed by member States that ratify the Protocol, as well as including another list of Conventions from which member States may choose those that they wish to accept. Since the Maritime Session of the Conference, emphasis has been placed on promoting the ratification and implementation of the ILO's maritime labour standards, including Convention No. 147 and those adopted in 1996. At the request of ILO constituents, technical advisory services were provided and national tripartite seminars were held in Croatia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Republic of Korea, Panama, Philippines and South Africa.

The importance of Convention No. 147 lies in the fact that nearly all regional agreements between maritime authorities to harmonize the inspection of foreign-registered vessels are based on the Convention, as well as the relevant instruments of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). In the European region, towards the end of 1997, the maritime authorities carried out a concentrated inspection campaign of all ships entering European ports based on materials prepared by the ILO on certain aspects of Convention No. 147. The ILO continued to provide guidance to inspectors in several regions and prepared a training package on Convention No. 147 and inspection, which will be published in 1998.

With the ratification of Convention No. 147 by Croatia and India in 1996, the Convention had been ratified by 36 member States as of 31 December 1997.

Based on a report prepared by the ILO, at its 28th Session in October 1996, the Joint Maritime Commission agreed to revise the minimum monthly basic pay or wage figure for able seamen, in accordance with the Wages, Hours of Work and Manning (Sea) Recommendation, 1958 (No. 109).(60) The importance of this figure lies in the fact that it is used as a benchmark for different categories of seafarers when collective agreements are negotiated at the national or international level.

With regard to the health of seafarers, the ILO prepared draft guidelines for conducting pre-sea and periodic medical fitness examinations.(61) The guidelines were revised and adopted by an ILO/WHO consultation and will be widely distributed. It is expected that they will have a broad impact on how such examinations are carried out worldwide. Information is provided in Chapter 3 on the manual prepared by the ILO concerning drug and alcohol prevention programmes in the maritime industry.

The principal basis for ensuring the safety and health of portworkers remains the application of the relevant ILO standards. In many countries, law and practice are based on these instruments. For example, in the United States, new regulations on the safety and health of portworkers were adopted which apply the Occupational Safety and Health (Dock Work) Convention, 1979 (No. 152), rather than the earlier Protection against Accidents (Dockers) Convention (Revised), 1932 (No. 32).

As a follow-up to the Tripartite Meeting on Social and Labour Problems caused by Structural Adjustments in the Port Industry,(62) which was held in May 1996, tripartite seminars and workshops on structural adjustment and human resources issues in ports were organized in Brazil, India, Indonesia and, at the subregional level, in the Philippines. The views expressed at these meetings will be used as a basis for further discussions between governments and the social partners in the restructuring of their ports. Work also continued during the biennium on the finalization of training materials for ports, which were tested in Kenya and the United Republic of Tanzania.(63) A course was also held for container terminal staff in Brazil using the training materials. Promotional activities were undertaken to raise awareness of the materials and it is expected that a wider programme of training will be developed. For example, at the request of the Port Management Association of Eastern and Southern Africa, the ILO carried out a training needs survey and prepared a project proposal for a regional training programme.

Notes

1. Activities of the ILO, 1994-95, Report of the Director-General, International Labour Conference (ILC), 83rd Session, 1996, pp. 8-9.

2. Labour administration, Report III (Part 1B), ILC, 85th Session, 1997.

3. Report of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations: General report and observations concerning particular countries, Report III (Part 1A), ILC, 86th Session, 1998, paras. 94-125.

4. Freedom of Association: Digest of decisions and principles of the Freedom of Association Committee of the Governing Body of the ILO, fourth (revised) edition, 1996.

5. ILO law on freedom of association: Standards and procedures, 1995.

6. Termination of employment digest: Compilation of legislation (forthcoming).

7. Le droit du travail et l'ajustement structurel: Réformes en Afrique francophone (ILO/World Bank -- forthcoming).

8. Export processing zones in the Philippines: A review of employment, working conditions and labour relations, by E.M. Remedio, Multinational Enterprises Programme Working Paper No. 77, 1996.

9. Export processing zones in Bangladesh: Economic impact and social issues, by D. Bhattacharya, Working Paper No. 80, 1997.

10. Technological and regulatory changes affecting multinational enterprises in telecommunications: Aspects of the impact on the workforce, by R. Mansell and P. Tang, Working Paper No. 78, 1996.

11. Women workers and working conditions in retailing: A comparative study of the situation in a foreign-controlled retail enterprise and a nationally-owned retailer, by I.U. Zeytinoglu and M. Crook, Working Paper No. 79, 1997.

12. Multinational enterprises in the courier service industry: Aspects of employment and working conditions in selected enterprises, by S.C. Wisniewski, Working Paper No. 81, 1997.

13. Innovations in social and labour relations in EPZs, by A. van Heerden (forthcoming).

14. Training manual on improving labour relations and human resources management in EPZs (forthcoming).

15. Training manual on improving the situation of women workers in EPZs (forthcoming).

16. Training manual on organizing workers in EPZs (forthcoming).

17. Meeting (changing) needs: Labour administration, 1997.

18. Consultation and cooperation bodies in labour administration, Labour Administration Branch Document No. 52, 1997.

19. The impact of employment agencies on the functioning of the labour market: Country studies, Labour Administration Branch Document No. 49; No. 49-1, Country study: Japan -- Development of private employment agencies and government policies, by K. Goka; No. 49-2, Country study: Hungary -- The impact of employment agencies on the functioning of labour markets, by I. Gere; No. 49-3, Country study: Austria -- Achieving ISO 9001 certification in a public employment service, by E. Buchinger; No. 49-4, Country study: Sri Lanka -- The impact of employment agencies on the functioning of labour markets , by C. Rodrigo; and No. 49-5, Country study: The Philippines -- A situational analysis of the labour recruitment industry , by A.T. Wong; 1997.

20. The relationship between public employment services and private employment agencies: Developing a cooperation framework, Sansier, M., Boutonnat, D. (eds.), Labour Administration Branch Document No. 51, 1997.

21. Strategies developed by the public employment service in response to structural changes in the labour market, Acts of the Inter-regional Technical Meeting WAPES/ILO, Labour Administration Branch Document No. 50, 1997.

22. The role of labour inspection in transition economies, by J. Hammer, C. Ville and W. von Richthofen, Labour Administration Branch Document No. 48, 1996.

23. Employers' organizations in Asia in the 21st century, by S.R. de Silva, 1996.

24. L'ajustement stratégique des organisations d'employeurs: L'exemple de l'Afrique du Nord-Ouest, 1997.

25. The following research papers were produced during the biennium for use by employers' organizations. Some are in the process of being translated into other languages. They are available upon request from ACT/EMP: Elements of a sound industrial relations system, by S.R. de Silva; Elements in the shaping of Asian industrial relations, by S.R. de Silva; An introduction to performance and skill based pay systems, by S.R. de Silva; Le rôle du patronat dans l'emploi des personnes handicapées, by C. Dan; La planification stratégique des organisations d'employeurs, by C. Dan; Les projets d'appui à l'entreprise privée dans le cadre des organisations d'employeurs, by C. Dan; Les organisations d'employeurs face au processus de liberalisation des économies, by C. Dan; Le rôle des organisations centrales d'employeurs, by C. Dan; La industria de la maquila en Centroamérica, by E. Gitli, 1997; Estudio comparativo de legislaciones laborales en América Latina. A number of research papers were published in the Report of the Workshop on Employers' Organizations in Asia-Pacific in the Twenty-first Century, Turin, 5-13 May 1997.

26. The following sets of training materials were produced during the biennium. They are available upon request from ACT/EMP: Occupational safety and health (forthcoming) [subsequently published], by the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC); Strategic planning for employers' organizations (forthcoming) [subsequently published], by the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (IBEC); Managing an employers' organization in the 21st century, by S.R. de Silva; Negotiation and collective bargaining skills development, by S.R. de Silva; Human resource management and industrial relations, by S.R. de Silva; Tripartism, employers and their organizations, by S.R. de Silva; Developing the training role of an employers' organization, by S.R. de Silva; Human resource development for adjustment at the enterprise level, C.S. Venkata Ratnam (ed.); Financing of employers' organizations, by the New Zealand Employers' Federation; Industrial relations/human resources development (case-studies and teaching notes), by C.S. Venkata Ratnam.

27. As one employer to another ... What's all this about EQUALITY? 1996.

28. International labour standards: A workers' education manual, 4th (revised) edition (forthcoming).

29. Study materials for rural workers' organizations, a series of training modules (forthcoming).

30. Trade unions and structural adjustment: A guide for trade union participation, by C.S. Venkata Ratnam (International Management Institute), 1997 (manuscript -- available from ACT/TRAV upon request).

31. Governance of globalization: The ILO contribution, by R. Kyloh, 1997.

32. ILO Asia-Pacific Regional Seminar for Trade Union Organizations on Contract Labour: Proceedings, New Delhi, Apr. 1997.

33. La situación sociolaboral en las zonas francas y empresas maquiladoras del Istmo Centroamericano y República Dominicana, 1996.

34. Workers' Education, Nos. 102-108, 1996 and 1997.

35. A guide to gender equality bargaining (six booklets), 1997; and training materials entitled La lutte contre la discrimination dans l'emploi et la profession (six courses) (forthcoming).

36. Training materials entitled La participation aux décisions dans les entreprises (six courses), 1997.

37. Your health and safety at work (a training package including 12 modules and two instructors' manuals), 1996.

38. Sectoral activities briefing kit, 1997.

39. The impact of climate change policies on employment in the coalmining industry, prepared for the ILO by C. Polidano (Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics), 1997.

40. Globalization of the footwear, textiles and clothing industries: Effects on employment and working conditions, 1996 and Note on the proceedings: Tripartite Meeting on the Globalization of the Footwear, Textiles and Clothing Industries: Effects on employment and working conditions, 1996.

41. Business ethics in the textile, clothing and footwear (TCF) industries: Codes of conduct, by J.P. Sajhau, 1997 (also available in French and Thai).

42. Toward a code of conduct in the textile, clothing and footwear industries: Laws and possibilities, a study on the Philippines, by B. Bitonio Jr., 1997; Labour issues in the textile and clothing industry: A Sri Lankan perspective, by M.R. Tennekoon, 1997; and Labour issues in the footwear industry: A Sri Lankan perspective, by A. Silva, 1997.

43. Safety and health of meat, poultry and fish processing workers, by S. Tomoda, 1997.

44. Code of practice on safety and health in forest work, 1997.

45. For further information on the Forestry Workforce Network, please contact Mr. P. Poschen, Sectoral Activities Department, International Labour Office.

46. People, forests and sustainability: Social elements of sustainable forest management in Europe, 1997.

47. Note on the proceedings: Tripartite Meeting on Social and Labour Issues concerning Migrant Workers in the Construction Industry, 1996.

48. Foreign construction workers in Singapore, by G. Ofori, 1997.

49. Productivity improvement and labour relations in the tea industry in South Asia, by B. Sivaram, 1996.

50. Flower growing and employment in Colombia, by P. Egger (forthcoming); Flower growing and employment in Ecuador, by P. Farnu (forthcoming) [subsequently published]; and The Dutch flower sector: Structure and employment, by P. Elshof (forthcoming) [subsequently published].

51. Steel in the new millennium: Nine case studies, N. Jennings (ed.), 1997; and Trayectoria de modernización y calificación en la industria siderúrgica: Perspectivas para el siglo 21: Estudio de caso de una planta en México, by A. Hernández, A. García and L. Mertens, 1997.

52. Responsible Care and related voluntary initiatives to improve enterprise performance on health, safety and environment in the chemical industry, by K. Munn, 1997.

53. Final report: Symposium on Multimedia Convergence, 1997.

54. Report of the ILO/PSI Workshop on Employment and Labour Practices in Health Care in Central and Eastern Europe, Prague, May 1997 (also available in Russian).

55. Report of a Subregional Workshop on Human Resource Development in the Public Service in CARICOM Countries, 1997.

56. Recent developments in the education sector: Report for discussion at the Joint Meeting on the Impact of Structural Adjustment on Educational Personnel, Geneva, 22-26 Apr. 1996; Impact of structural adjustment on the employment and training of teachers: Report for discussion at the Joint Meeting on the Impact of Structural Adjustment on Educational Personnel, 1996; and Note on the proceedings: Joint Meeting on the Impact of Structural Adjustment on Educational Personnel, 1996.

57. Final report: Colloque conjoint ILO/UNESCO sur les programmes d'ajustement structurel et la condition du personnel enseignant, Dakar, 23-26 June 1997.

58. Report: Joint ILO/UNESCO Committee of Experts on the Application of the Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers, Paris, 15-18 Sep. 1997.

59. Les femmes dans les filières techniques et professionnelles: Situation des enseignantes dans quatre pays ouest-africains (Bénin, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali et Sénégal), 1996.

60. Wages, Hours of Work and Manning (Sea) Recommendation, 1958 (No. 109): Updating of the minimum basic wage of able seamen, Joint Maritime Commission, 28th Session, Geneva, Oct. 1996.

61. Guidelines for conducting pre-sea and periodic medical fitness examinations of seafarers, Annex II of the Report of the ILO/WHO Consultation on Guidelines for Conducting Pre-sea and Periodic Medical Fitness Examinations for Seafarers, Geneva, 25-27 Nov. 1997.

62. Social and labour problems caused by structural adjustments in the port industry, 1996; and Note on the proceedings: Tripartite Meeting on Social and Labour Problems caused by Structural Adjustments in the Port Industry, Geneva, 20-24 May 1996.

63. Portworker Development Programme, 1997.


Updated by VC. Approved by RH. Last update: 26 January 2000.

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