Essays

The International Labour Organization (ILO) was created in 1919, as Part of the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I, to reflect the Belief that universal and lasting peace can be accomplished only if it is based on social justice. It was founded to pursue a vision based on the premise that universal, lasting peace can be established only if it is based upon decent treatment of working people. When the UN was formed, the ILO became its first specialized agency.

The Constitution of ILO was drafted by the Labour Commission set  Up  by the Peace Conference, which first met in Paris and then in Versailles. The Commission composed of representatives from nine Countries: Belgium, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, France, Italy, Japan, Poland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It resulted in a tripartite organization, the only one of its kind bringing totether representatives of governments, employers and workers in its executive bodies.  The Constitution contained ideas tested within the international association for Labour Legislation, founded in Basel in 1901. The driving forces for lLO's creation arose from security, humanitarian,   political and economic considerations. Summarizing them, the ILO, constitution’s Preamble says the High Conn-acting Parties were ‘move by sentiments of justice and humanity as well as by the desire to secure   the permanent peace of the world. 'There was keen appreciation of the  importance of social justice in securing peace, against a  background of exploitation of workers in the industrializing nations of that time There was also increasing understanding  word’s economic interdependence  and  the need for cooperation to obtain similarity of working conditions  in countries competing for markets. Reflecting these ideas, the Preamble to the ILO Constitution states that the failure of any nation to adopt humane conditions of labour is an obstacle in the way of other nations which desire to improve the conditions in their own countries. The areas of improvement listed in the Preamble remain relevant today. They include regulation of the hours of work including establishment of  a maximum working day and week: regulation of labour supply, prevention of unemployment and provision of an adequate living wage protection of the worker against sickness, disease and injury arising out  when  employment; protection of children, young  persons and women; prevision on for old age and injury, protection of the  interests of workers  when  employed in countries other than their own; recognition of the  principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value; recognition of  the principle of freedom of association; and organization of vocational and technical education, and other measures. From its early day, the ILO has made signal contributions to the world of work. Six International Labour Conventions were adopted at the very first International Labour

Conference held in Washington in October 1919. These Conventions dealt with hours of work in industry, unemployment, and maternity protection, night work for women, minimum age and night work for young persons in industry. Subsequently, 16 International Labour Conventions and 18 Recommendations were adopted in less than two years. However, this early zeal was quickly toned down because some governments felt there were too many Conventions, the budget too high and the reports too critical. Yet, the International Court of Justice declared that the lLO's domain extended also to international regulation of conditions of work in the agricultural sector. In 1926, a Committee of Experts was set up as a supervisory system on the application of ILO standards. The Committee, which exists today, is composed of independent jurists responsible for examining government reports and presenting its own report each year to the Conference. In 1960, the ILO established the Geneva-based International Institute for Labour Studies followed by the International Training Centre in Turin in 1965. The Organization won the Nobel Peace Prize on its 50th anniversary in 1969. It also played a major role in the emancipation of Poland from dictatorship, by giving its full support to the legitimacy of the Solidarnosc Union based on respect for Convention No. 87 on freedom of association, which Poland had ratified in 1957. lLO's vision of decent work states that work is central to people's well-being. In addition to providing income, work can pave the way for broader social and economic advancement, strengthening individuals, their families and

Communities. Such progress, however, hinges on work that is decent; decent work sums up the aspirations of people in their working lives.  As a global body responsible for drawing up and overseeing international labour standards (ILS), ILO seeks to ensure that labour standards are respected in practice as well as principle. ILO Conventions and ' Recommendations cover a broad range of subjects concerning work, employment, social security, social policy and related human rights. The lLO's supervisory bodies—the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations and the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards—regularly examine the application of ILS in ILO member States. Representation and complaint procedures can also be initiated against states that fail to comply with conventions they have ratified. A special procedure—the Committee on Freedom of Association—reviews complaints concerning violations of freedom of   .issociation, whether or not a member State has ratified the relevant conventions. In the view of the ILO, work is the main route out of

Poverty, which remains deep and widespread across the developing world and some transition countries, with an estimated 2 billion people in the world living on the equivalent of less than USD 2 per day. The 1944 Philadelphia Declaration Concerning the Aims and Purpose of the ILO states, "Poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere".

The ILO encourages governments and international organizations to respect the opinions of poor people and to design solutions that are tailor- made rather than 'one size fits all'. Furthermore, those solutions should he underpinned by greater policy coherence both among international agencies and within them. Juan Soma via, ILO Director-General opines 'People in poverty go through each day with the will to survive, but without the support and possibilities to move up the ladder of opportunity. Imagine where their efforts could take them if that ladder were in place. Our common responsibility is to help put it there'.

In promoting social justice and internationally recognized human and labour rights, ILO continues to pursue its founding mission that labour peace is essential to prosperity. Today, the ILO helps advance the creation of decent jobs and the kinds of economic and working conditions that give working people and business people a stake in lasting peace, prosperity and progress. It is devoted to advancing opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work in conditions of Freedom, equity, security and human dignity. It promotes rights at work, encourages decent employment opportunities, opportunities, engances protection and strengthens dialogue in li.indling work-related issues.