manual: women workers' rights and gender equality - International ...

Briefing Note 10 Introduction to the International Labour Organization
About the International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization (ILO) was founded in 1919 upon three basic ideals:
1. promotion of peace through social justice
2. recognition of collective rather than isolated solutions
3. development of the notion that no country should gain competitive advantage over others
through the application of sub-standard working conditions 25
In 1946, the ILO became the first specialized agency associated with the United Nations (UN).
Each specialized agency has its own area of competence and the ILO’s competence lies in the
world of work and employment. It has its own constitution and membership and its own
organizational structure, budget and staff. As of March 2003, there are 175 ILO member States.
A unique feature of the ILO as compared to other international agencies is its tripartite structure.
Employers’ and workers’ representatives participate in the ILO’s work on an equal basis with
representatives of their governments.
The International Labour Organization and Gender Equality
Gender equality is a fundamental human right and an essential condition for achieving effective
democracy. The ILO Constitution affirms, “all human beings, irrespective of race, creed or sex,
have the right to pursue both their material well-being and their spiritual development in conditions
of freedom and dignity, of economic security and equal opportunity”.
Countries are increasingly committed to the promotion of equality of opportunity and treatment
between women and men in the world of work. But governments, employers’ and workers’
organizations and other civil society organizations face difficulties in making the principles and
provisions of international instruments effective in national law and practice. They often seek
information from the ILO on the different approaches taken in various parts of the world to give
practical effect to gender equality principles 26 .
The ILO has approached the fundamental principle of equality of opportunity and treatment
between women and men in three main ways:
1. as a matter of human rights and essential condition for achieving effective democracy.
The fight against discrimination on the basis of sex is considered as a fundamental issue in
protecting human rights
2. as a matter of social justice, by improving women’s access to employment and training
and their conditions of work and social protection
3. as a matter of sustainable development, by promoting the participation of women in
decision making and their involvement in shaping development and labour policies and
practices that adequately respond to equality objectives
The policy instruments available to the ILO to promote equality for men and women in the world of
work are:
25 Briefing Kit Gender Issues in the World of Work, ILO, Geneva, 1995
26 e.quality@work: an information base on equal employment opportunities for women and men, ILO, Geneva, 2001
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