Press releases

December 2006 

• ILO welcomes new UN Convention on rights of people with disabilities
  14 December 2006 - The International Labour Office (ILO) today welcomed the unanimous adoption by the United Nations of a new Convention for people with disabilities, saying provisions of the ground-breaking Convention would benefit millions of people whose inability to find jobs due to social exclusion costs the global economy an estimated US$1.9 trillion dollars per year.
• ILO welcomes EU decision to promote Decent Work for All
  05 December 2006 - The International Labour Organization (ILO) today welcomed the decision of the European Council of Ministers to adopt a set of conclusions on the promotion of decent work in the European Union and through the world, saying it provided powerful new support to efforts aimed at making decent work a global reality.
• World Aids Day 2006: New ILO report says HIV/AIDS epidemic costing more than 1 million new jobs per year Says workplace should become major entry point for prevention and access to treatment
  01 December 2006 - The relentless advance of HIV/AIDS is markedly reducing economic and employment growth in countries hit hardest by the epidemic, jeopardizing their efforts to reduce poverty, create new jobs, especially for youth, and fight child labour, says a new report by the International Labour Office (ILO) released today.

November 2006 

• World AIDS Day 2006 in the world of work
  24 November 2006 - A wide variety of events are planned in the world of work on 1 December to mark World AIDS Day 2006, ranging from workplace events to forming of "human AIDS ribbons" as a way of saying "let's stand up and be counted," according to the International Labour Organization (ILO).
• ILO calls for zero tolerance of violence against children in the workplace
  20 November 2006 - Millions of child labourers and legally employed adolescents face "systemic" violence at their places of work, ranging from physical or verbal abuse to sexual harassment, rape and even murder, according to a new "World Report on Violence Against Children" ( Note 1) published today, Universal Children's Day.
• ILO Governing Body concludes 297th Session: Considers labour situation in Myanmar, Belarus and other countries
  17 November 2006 - The Governing Body of the International Labour Office (ILO) concluded its 297th session here following discussions on a range of issues including: follow-up activities to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) ministerial declaration on generating full and productive employment and decent work for all; respect of basic labour rights in Myanmar, Belarus and other countries; youth e ...
• ILO calls for strengthening labour inspection worldwide
  16 November 2006 - The International Labour Office (ILO) today proposed a new series of measures designed to "reinvigorate", modernize and strengthen labour inspectorates worldwide, in a move to boost the implementation of labour laws on the working conditions that protect the rights of millions of workers worldwide.
• The ILO formally recognizes the newly created International Trade Union Confederation
  15 November 2006 - Governing Body of the International Labour Office (ILO) today officially granted general consultative status to the newly-formed International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).
• ILO Governing Body opens 297th session: Labour situation in Belarus and Myanmar will be discussed, along with youth employment and labour inspection
  02 November 2006 - The Governing Body of the International Labour Office (ILO) will address a wide range of issues at its 297th session beginning here today, including basic labour rights in Myanmar and Belarus, the ILO response to the post-crisis situation in Lebanon and the latest report of the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association.
• ILO Director-General lauds formation of new global union federation representing 166 million workers Globalization makes ILO's labour standards increasingly essential
  01 November 2006 - The Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Juan Somavia today urged the 166 million strong new international trade union confederation to grasp the opportunity for tripartism to translate the ILO's Decent Work Agenda from a global goal to national reality.

October 2006 

• New ILO study says youth unemployment rising, with hundreds of millions more working but living in poverty
  27 October 2006 - The number of unemployed youth aged 15 to 24 rose over the past decade, while hundreds of millions more are working but living in poverty, according to a new report by the International Labour Office (ILO).
• ILO to launch new report on youth employment trends
  23 October 2006 - A major new study on youth employment trends, as well as the number of youth living in poverty is to be published by the International Labour Office (ILO).
• International road transport at the crossroads: Economy, drivers take the load of delays, says new ILO report
  20 October 2006 - Excessive border delays, inefficient or corrupt border officials and drivers' vulnerability to sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS put the international road transport sector at risk, according to a new report by the International Labour Organization (ILO).
• ILO Director-General Juan Somavia hails awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank
  13 October 2006 - General of the International Labour Office (ILO), Juan Somavia, today issued the following statement on the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize for 2006 to Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank:
• ILO Decent Work Research Prize 2007: Call for nominations
  09 October 2006 - The International Labour Organization today called for nominations for the first " ILO Decent Work Research Prize", to be awarded annually to an individual for their outstanding contribution to the advancement of knowledge about the ILO's central goal of decent work for all.

September 2006 

• ILO hosts interagency meeting to discuss avian flu and workplace impact and response
  26 September 2006 - The International Labour Office (ILO) is to host an interagency meeting here which will provide an opportunity to examine critical occupational safety and health, employment and livelihood issues in the context of a recent UN Action Plan with regard to the potential spread of the avian flu virus.
• New technologies will boost productivity, but also impact employment in retail, says ILO report
  15 September 2006 - The introduction of new technologies will be one of the driving factors contributing to productivity gains in the retail sector but will also affect the levels and quality of employment, says a new ILO report.
• ILO Asian Regional Meeting concludes its work and launches decent work decade
  01 September 2006 - Worker, employer and government leaders concluded the 14th Asian Regional Meeting of the International Labour Organization (ILO) today by launching an "Asian Decent Work Decade" aimed at linking the goal of decent work with the global poverty reduction agenda.

August 2006 

• ILO opens 14th Asian Regional Meeting Calls for new initiatives on job creation and decent work
  29 August 2006 - Citing the need to create some 250 million new jobs in the region over the next decade, the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO) opened its 14th Asian Regional Meeting here today by calling for new initiatives aimed at eliminating what he called the "decent work deficit".
• Asia and Pacific region faces massive jobs gap ILO Regional Meeting to discuss new strategies for creating productive employment, decent work and reducing poverty
  28 August 2006 - Robust growth in trade, investment and output have failed to keep pace with the growth of the labour force and tackle rising unemployment in Asia and the Pacific, where an estimated 250 million more workers are expected to be looking for jobs over the next decade, according to a new report from the International Labour Organization (ILO).