Employers' Handbook on ILO Standards-related Activities

APPENDIX 7
plaints under articles 24 and 26 of the Constitution, as well as serious violations found by the
Committee on Freedom of Association, should prompt the Organization to reorient technical
assistance to the problem areas, not in the sense of introducing conditionality but of offering
better targeted support. The work of supervisory bodies would also have greater visibility and
impact if it could be fed into readily accessible databases for use not just in technical cooperation
but also in research. It could then be part of a general process of disseminating the work of
the ILO’s supervisory bodies to a wider public.
Codes of conduct
An important but distinct issue is the proliferation of “codes of conduct”, voluntary initiatives
that usually operate at the enterprise or sectoral level. These can complement, but do not
replace, enforcement of national legislation and international standards. Voluntary codes could
use ILO standards as points of reference and as sources of inspiration. This could include developing
manuals for use with such codes, incorporating information on various Conventions, on
the 1998 Declaration and on the 1977 Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational
Enterprises and Social Policy. Voluntary codes could then become complementary opportunities
for the ILO to disseminate its principles and values.
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