Historical & Developmental Role of International Labour

Organization (ILO) in society

(Mid Term Assignment of Labour Law)

Table of Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 2
History............................................................................................................................................. 3
Functions of ILO ............................................................................................................................. 5
Constitution of ILO ......................................................................................................................... 5
Operations of ILO ........................................................................................................................... 5
Role of Belarus ............................................................................................................................ 6
Conventions and Recommendations ............................................................................................... 6
Fundamental Conventions ........................................................................................................... 7
Governance (priority) Conventions ........................................................................................... 12
Role of ILO in development of social justice ............................................................................... 15
The ILO supervisory system ..................................................................................................... 16
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 17
Introduction

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to
advance social justice and promote decent work by setting international labour standards. It was
the first specialized agency of the UN. The ILO has 187 member states: 186 of the 193 UN
member states plus the Cook Islands (it is a self governing island country in south pacific ocean
with free association with New Zealand) are members of the ILO. The tripartite structure is
unique to the ILO where representatives from the government, employers and employees openly
debate and create labour standards.

The International Labour Office is the permanent secretariat of the International Labour
Organization. It is the focal point for International Labour Organization's overall activities,
which it prepares under the scrutiny of the Governing Body and under the leadership of the
Director-General.

The ILO employs some 2,700 officials from over 150 nations at its headquarters in Geneva, and
in around 40 field offices around the world. Among these officials, 900 work in technical
cooperation programmes and projects.

In 1969, the ILO received the Nobel Peace Prize for improving fraternity and peace among
nations, pursuing decent work and justice for workers, and providing technical assistance to
other developing nations.[2] Fifty years later to mark the organisation's centenary, it convened a
Global Commission on the Future of Work, whose report, published in January 2019, made ten
recommendations for governments to meet the unprecedented challenges of a changing world of
work. Those included a universal labour guarantee, social protection from birth to old age and an
entitlement to lifelong learning.[3][4]

The International Labour Organization has developed a system of international labour

standards aimed at promoting opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive
work, in conditions of freedom, equity, security and dignity.
History
The International Labour Organization was created in 1919 by Part XIII of the Versailles Peace
Treaty ending World War I. It grew out of nineteenth-century labor and social movements which
culminated in widespread demands for social justice and higher living standards for the world’s
working people. In 1946, after the demise of the League of Nations, the ILO became the first
specialized agency associated with the United Nations. The original membership of forty-five
countries in 1919 has grown to 121 in 1971.

In structure, the ILO is unique among world organizations in that the representatives of the
workers and of the employers have an equal voice with those of governments in formulating its
policies. The annual International Labor Conference, the ILO’s supreme deliberative body, is
composed of four representatives from each member country: two government delegates, one
worker and one employer delegate, each of whom may speak and vote independently. Between
conferences, the work of the ILO is guided by the Governing Body, comprising twenty-four
government, twelve worker and twelve employer members, plus twelve deputy members from
each of these three groups. The International Labor Office in Geneva, Switzerland, is the
Organization’s secretariat, operational headquarters, research center, and publishing house. Its
operations are staffed at headquarters and around the world by more than 3,000 people of some
100 nationalities. Activities are decentralized to regional, area, and branch offices in over forty
countries.

The ILO has three major tasks, the first of which is the adoption of international labor standards,
called Conventions and Recommendations, for implementation by member states. The
Conventions and Recommendations contain guidelines on child labor, protection of women
workers, hours of work, rest and holidays with pay, labor inspection, vocational guidance and
training, social security protection, workers’ housing, occupational health and safety, conditions
of work at sea, and protection of migrant workers.

They also cover questions of basic human rights, among them, freedom of association, collective
bargaining, the abolition of forced labor, the elimination of discrimination in employment, and
the promotion of full employment. By 1970, 134 Conventions and 142 Recommendations had
been adopted by the ILO. Each of them is a stimulus, as well as a model, for national legislation
and for practical application in member countries.

A second major task, which has steadily expanded for the past two decades, is that of technical
cooperation to assist developing nations. More than half of ILO’s resources are devoted to
technical cooperation programs, carried out in close association with the United Nations
Development Program and often with other UN specialized agencies. These activities are
concentrated in four major areas: development of human resources, through vocational training
and management development; employment planning and promotion; the development of social
institutions in such fields as labor administration, labor relations, cooperatives, and rural
development; conditions of work and life – for example, occupational safety and health, social
security, remuneration, hours of work, welfare, etc.

Marking the beginning of its second half-century, the ILO has launched the World Employment
Program, designed to help countries provide employment and training opportunities for their
swelling populations. The World Employment Program will be the ILO’s main contribution to
the United Nations Second Development Decade.

There are some 900 ILO experts of fifty-five different nationalities at work on more than 300
technical cooperation projects in over 100 countries around the world.

Third, standard-setting and technical cooperation are bolstered by an extensive research, training,
education, and publications program. The ILO is a major source of publications and
documentation on labor and social matters. It has established two specialized educational
institutions: the International Institute for Labor Studies in Geneva, and the International Center
for Advanced Technical and Vocational Training in Turin, Italy.

Since its inception the ILO has had six directors-general: Albert Thomas (1919-1932) of France;
Harold B. Butler (1932-1938) of the United Kingdom; John G. Winant (1938-1941) of the
United States; Edward J. Phelan (1941-1948) of Ireland; David A. Morse (1948-1970) of the
United States; Wilfred Jenks (I970- ) of the United Kingdom.
Functions of ILO
The main functions of the ILO are the following:
- creation of coordinated policies and programs directed at solving social and labour issues;
- adoption of international labour standards in the form of conventions and recommendations and
control over their implementation;
- assistance to member-states in solving social and labour problems;
- human rights protection (the right to work, freedom of association, collective negotiations,
protection against forced labour, protection against discrimination, etc.);
- research and publication of works on social and labour issues.

Constitution of ILO

There are total 4 chapters, including 40 articles and two declarations in which there is declaration
of Philadelphia and time to time amendments in constitution. The first namely “Organization”
deals with its pre-setup, establishment of ILO, No of members their criteria of eligibility and
voting rights of members, Sets out important assignments and also designed external relations
with other countries, and most importantly functions, In Chapter II article 14 to 34 dictates and
deals all operational aspects in chapter III General provisions from article 35 to 28 and two
miscellaneous provisions are enumerated in chapter IV article 39 & 40 covers legal status and
discuss privileges and immunities

Operations of ILO
The basis of the ILO is the tripartite principle, i.e. the negotiations within the Organization are
held between the representatives of governments, trade unions, and member-states’ employers.

187 conventions and recommendations on social and labour issues have been adopted since
1919.

The International Labour Conference (ILC) is the ILO superior body convened at least once a
year. The Conference deals with examining and adopting the international norms in the social
and labour sphere, and with discussing universally important questions.
Role of Belarus
Membership in the ILO allows Belarus to study and apply the international practice of settlement
of social and labor issues, to develop social partnership (government – trade unions –
employers), to improve and regulate the labor market. Participation in the work of ILO helps to
develop labor laws based on global experience, to promote entrepreneurship, to solve the
problems of employment.
The Republic of Belarus interacts with the ILO on improving the conduct of collective
bargaining, resolving labor disputes and mediation.
The main body cooperating with the ILO is the Ministry of Labour and Social Security
of Belarus (the resolution No.877 ”On Cooperation of the Republic of Belarus with International
Organizations and Interstate Formations” adopted by the Council of Ministers of the Republic of
Belarus on November 21, 2017).

Conventions and Recommendations

International labour standards are legal instruments drawn up by the ILO's constituents
(governments, employers and workers) and setting out basic principles and rights at work. They
are either Conventions (or Protocols), which are legally binding international treaties that may be
ratified by member states, or Recommendations, which serve as non-binding guidelines. In many
cases, a Convention lays down the basic principles to be implemented by ratifying countries,
while a related Recommendation supplements the Convention by providing more detailed
guidelines on how it could be applied. Recommendations can also be autonomous, i.e. not linked
to a Convention.

Conventions and Recommendations are drawn up by representatives of governments, employers

and workers and are adopted at the annual International Labour Conference. Once a standard is
adopted, member states are required under article 19(6) of the ILO Constitution, to submit it to
their competent authority (normally Parliament) within a period of twelve months for
consideration. In the case of Conventions, this means consideration for ratification. If it is
ratified, a Convention generally comes into force for that country one year after the date of
ratification. Ratifying countries undertake to apply the Convention in national law and practice
and to report on its application at regular intervals. Technical assistance is provided by the ILO,
if necessary. In addition, representation and complaint procedures can be initiated against
countries for violations of a Convention that they have ratified

Fundamental Conventions
Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87)

Convention concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (Entry
into force: 04 Jul 1950)

Each Member of the International Labour Organisation for which this Convention is in force
undertakes to give effect to the following provisions.

Workers and employers, without distinction whatsoever, shall have the right to establish and,
subject only to the rules of the organisation concerned, to join organisations of their own
choosing without previous authorisation.

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98)

Convention concerning the Application of the Principles of the Right to Organise and to Bargain
CollecAdoption: Geneva, 32nd ILC session (01 Jul 1949) tively (Entry into force: 18 Jul 1951)

Workers shall enjoy adequate protection against acts of anti-union discrimination in respect of
their employment.

Such protection shall apply more particularly in respect of acts calculated to--

(a) make the employment of a worker subject to the condition that he shall not join a union or
shall relinquish trade union membership;

(b) cause the dismissal of or otherwise prejudice a worker by reason of union membership or
because of participation in union activities outside working hours or, with the consent of the
employer, within working hours.

Workers' and employers' organisations shall enjoy adequate protection against any acts of
interference by each other or each other's agents or members in their establishment, functioning
or administration.
In particular, acts which are designed to promote the establishment of workers' organisations
under the domination of employers or employers' organisations, or to support workers'
organisations by financial or other means, with the object of placing such organisations under the
control of employers or employers' organisations, shall be deemed to constitute acts of
interference within the meaning of this Article.

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) (and its 2014 Protocol )

Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour (Entry into force: 01 May 1932)

Each Member of the International Labour Organisation which ratifies this Convention
undertakes to suppress the use of forced or compulsory labour in all its forms within the shortest
possible period.

With a view to this complete suppression, recourse to forced or compulsory labour may be had,
during the transitional period, for public purposes only and as an exceptional measure, subject to
the conditions and guarantees hereinafter provided.

At the expiration of a period of five years after the coming into force of this Convention, and
when the Governing Body of the International Labour Office prepares the report provided for in
Article 31 below, the said Governing Body shall consider the possibility of the suppression of
forced or compulsory labour in all its forms without a further transitional period and the
desirability of placing this question on the agenda of the Conference.

For the purposes of this Convention the term forced or compulsory labour shall mean all work or
service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said
person has not offered himself voluntarily.

Nevertheless, for the purposes of this Convention, the term forced or compulsory labour shall not
include--

(a) any work or service exacted in virtue of compulsory military service laws for work of a
purely military character;

(b) any work or service which forms part of the normal civic obligations of the citizens of a fully
self-governing country;
(c) 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;

(d) any work or service exacted in cases of emergency, that is to say, in the event of war or of a
calamity or threatened calamity, such as fire, flood, famine, earthquake, violent epidemic or
epizootic diseases, invasion by animal, insect or vegetable pests, and in general any circumstance
that would endanger the existence or the well-being of the whole or part of the population;

(e) minor communal services of a kind which, being performed by the members of the
community in the direct interest of the said community, can therefore be considered as normal
civic obligations incumbent upon the members of the community, provided that the members of
the community or their direct representatives shall have the right to be consulted in regard to the
need for such services.

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105)

Convention concerning the Abolition of Forced Labour (Entry into force: 17 Jan 1959)

Each Member of the International Labour Organisation which ratifies this Convention
undertakes to suppress and not to make use of any form of forced or compulsory labour--

(a) as a means of political coercion or education or as a punishment for holding or

expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political, social
or economic system;

(b) as a method of mobilising and using labour for purposes of economic development;

(c) as a means of labour discipline;

(d) as a punishment for having participated in strikes;

(e) as a means of racial, social, national or religious discrimination.

Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138)

Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment (Entry into force: 19 Jun
1976)

Each Member which ratifies this Convention shall specify, in a declaration appended to its
ratification, a minimum age for admission to employment or work within its territory and on
means of transport registered in its territory; subject to Articles 4 to 8 of this Convention, no one
under that age shall be admitted to employment or work in any occupation.

Each Member which has ratified this Convention may subsequently notify the Director-General
of the International Labour Office, by further declarations, that it specifies a minimum age higher
than that previously specified.

The minimum age specified in pursuance of paragraph 1 of this Article shall not be less than the
age of completion of compulsory schooling and, in any case, shall not be less than 15 years.

Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 3 of this Article, a Member whose economy and
educational facilities are insufficiently developed may, after consultation with the organisations
of employers and workers concerned, where such exist, initially specify a minimum age of 14
years.

Each Member which has specified a minimum age of 14 years in pursuance of the provisions of
the preceding paragraph shall include in its reports on the application of this Convention
submitted under article 22 of the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation a
statement--

(a) that its reason for doing so subsists; or

(b) that it renounces its right to avail itself of the provisions in question as from a stated
date.
Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182)

Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst
Forms of Child Labour (Entry into force: 19 Nov 2000)

For the purposes of this Convention, the term the worst forms of child labour comprises:

(a) all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children,
debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including forced or compulsory
recruitment of children for use in armed conflict;

(b) the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or
for pornographic performances;

(c) the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production
and trafficking of drugs as defined in the relevant international treaties;

(d) work which, by its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the
health, safety or morals of children.

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100)

Entry into force: 23 May 1953

For the purpose of this Convention--

(a) the term remuneration includes the ordinary, basic or minimum wage or salary and any
additional emoluments whatsoever payable directly or indirectly, whether in cash or in kind, by
the employer to the worker and arising out of the worker's employment;

(b) the term equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value refers to
rates of remuneration established without discrimination based on sex.

Each Member shall, by means appropriate to the methods in operation for determining rates of
remuneration, promote and, in so far as is consistent with such methods, ensure the application to
all workers of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal
value.
This principle may be applied by means of--

(a) national laws or regulations;

(b) legally established or recognised machinery for wage determination;

(c) collective agreements between employers and workers; or

(d) a combination of these various means.

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111)

Convention concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation (Entry into

force: 15 Jun 1960

For the purpose of this Convention the term discrimination includes--

(a) any distinction, exclusion or preference made on the basis of race, colour, sex, religion,
political opinion, national extraction or social origin, which has the effect of nullifying or
impairing equality of opportunity or treatment in employment or occupation;

(b) such other distinction, exclusion or preference which has the effect of nullifying or
impairing equality of opportunity or treatment in employment or occupation as may be
determined by the Member concerned after consultation with representative employers' and
workers' organisations, where such exist, and with other appropriate bodies.

Any distinction, exclusion or preference in respect of a particular job based on the inherent
requirements thereof shall not be deemed to be discrimination.

For the purpose of this Convention the terms employment and occupation include access to
vocational training, access to employment and to particular occupations, and terms and
conditions of employment.

Governance (priority) Conventions

The ILO Governing Body has also designated another four Conventions as governance (or
priority) instruments, thereby encouraging member States to ratify them because of their
importance for the functioning of the international labour standards system. The ILO Declaration
on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization, in its Follow-up, emphasizes the significance of these
Conventions from the viewpoint of governance.

The four governance Conventions are:

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81)

Each Member of the International Labour Organisation for which this Convention is in force
shall maintain a system of labour inspection in industrial workplaces.

1. The system of labour inspection in industrial workplaces shall apply to all workplaces in
respect of which legal provisions relating to conditions of work and the protection of workers
while engaged in their work are enforceable by labour inspectors.

2. National laws or regulations may exempt mining and transport undertakings or parts of such
undertakings from the application of this Convention.

1. The functions of the system of labour inspection shall be:

(a) to secure the enforcement of the legal provisions relating to conditions of work and the
protection of workers while engaged in their work, such as provisions relating to hours,
wages, safety, health and welfare, the employment of children and young persons, and other
connected matters, in so far as such provisions are enforceable by labour inspectors;

(b) to supply technical information and advice to employers and workers concerning the
most effective means of complying with the legal provisions;

(c) to bring to the notice of the competent authority defects or abuses not specifically
covered by existing legal provisions.

2. Any further duties which may be entrusted to labour inspectors shall not be such as to interfere
with the effective discharge of their primary duties or to prejudice in any way the authority and
impartiality which are necessary to inspectors in their relations with employers and workers.

1. Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122)

 2. With a view to stimulating economic growth and development, raising levels of
living, meeting manpower requirements and overcoming unemployment and
underemployment, each Member shall declare and pursue, as a major goal, an active
policy designed to promote full, productive and freely chosen employment.

3. 2. The said policy shall aim at ensuring that--

a. (a) there is work for all who are available for and seeking work;

b. (b) such work is as productive as possible;

c. (c) there is freedom of choice of employment and the fullest possible

opportunity for each worker to qualify for, and to use his skills and
endowments in, a job for which he is well suited, irrespective of race, colour,
sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin.

3.The said policy shall take due account of the stage and level of economic development and the
mutual relationships between employment objectives and other economic and social objectives,
and shall be pursued by methods that are appropriate to national conditions and practices.

Labour Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 (No. 129)

In this Convention the term agricultural undertaking means undertakings and parts of
undertakings engaged in cultivation, animal husbandry including livestock production and care,
forestry, horticulture, the primary processing of agricultural products by the operator of the
holding or any other form of agricultural activity.

Where necessary, the competent authority shall, after consultation with the most representative
organizations of employers and workers concerned, where such exist, define the line which
separates agriculture from industry and commerce in such a manner as not to exclude any
agricultural undertaking from the national system of labour inspection.

In any case in which it is doubtful whether an undertaking or part of an undertaking is one to

which this Convention applies, the question shall be settled by the competent authority.

In this Convention the term legal provisions includes, in addition to laws and regulations,
arbitration awards and collective agreements upon which the force of law is conferred and which
are enforceable by labour inspectors.
Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144)

In this Convention the term representative organisations means the most representative
organisations of employers and workers enjoying the right of freedom of association.

Each Member of the International Labour Organisation which ratifies this Convention
undertakes to operate procedures which ensure effective consultations, with respect to the
matters concerning the activities of the International Labour Organisation set out in Article 5,
paragraph 1, below, between representatives of the government, of employers and of workers.

The nature and form of the procedures provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be
determined in each country in accordance with national practice, after consultation with the
representative organisations, where such organisations exist and such procedures have not yet
been established.

The representatives of employers and workers for the purposes of the procedures provided for in
this Convention shall be freely chosen by their representative organisations, where such
organisations exist.

Employers and workers shall be represented on an equal footing on any bodies through which
consultations are undertaken.

Role of ILO in development of social justice

The ILO, through the adoption of international labour standards, has responded in the past and
continues to respond today to a growing number of challenges faced by workers, employers and
governments alike in the global economy. The ILO’s core mission to strive for a better future for all in
the world of work requires it to understand and anticipate the factors that contribute to the changes that are
transforming the world of work

By establishing new rights and protections for workers and employers in this changing
environment, the ILO continues to fight for a world with equality, and freedom from
discrimination.
The ILO supervisory system
International labour standards are only effective if they are enforced. To achieve this, ILO
Conventions are backed by a supervisory system that is unique at the international level, which
helps ensure that countries apply the Conventions they ratify.

The ILO regularly examines how standards are applied in member States and points out areas
where they could be better implemented.

If there are any difficulties in the application of these standards, the ILO can help countries to fill
the gaps, in particular by providing technical assistance. Once a country has ratified an ILO
Convention, it is obliged to report regularly on the measures it has taken to implement that
Convention. Governments are required to share their reports with the most representative
national employers’ and workers’ organizations , which offer their own comments. The
Committee of Experts was set up in 1926 to provide an impartial and technical evaluation of the
state of application of international labour standards in ILO member States.

Today it is composed of 20 eminent jurists appointed by the Governing Body for three-year
terms. These experts come from different geographic regions, legal systems and cultures.
The annual report of the Committee of Experts is submitted to the International Labour
Conference, where it is examined by the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards.

This committee is made up of Government, Employers’ and Workers’ delegates, who select a
number of cases for discussion, based on the Committee of Experts’ report.

Governments appearing on this list of cases are expected to respond before the Conference
Committee and to provide information on the situation in question.

In many cases, the Conference Committee draws up recommendations for governments to take
specific steps to remedy the problem, and offers ILO support to governments in tackling the
issues.

It is often through such technical assistance, usually provided by the ILO over many years, that
violations of labour rights end and working people can enjoy their fundamental rights and
protections.

Conclusion
International Labour Organization (ILO) has played an important role in development of social
justice as well as bringing normality to working standards and protection of labour rights as well
as development of mechanism of protection of workplace rights and ethics by labour as well as
employer. Countries which are part of organization may or may not adopt these conventions or
recommendations but being the researcher and supervisory body their work is always appreciated
as well as adopted partially or fully to bring harmony and peace in case of workplace disputes
therefore, we can rightly state that ILO has played extensive role and very effective role in
achieving their missions and goals and also have developed systems in world for proper
administration of justice in labour and workplace irregularities.