The International Labour Organisation was created under the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 along with the League of Nations and became, in 1946, the first specialised agency of the United Nations. It has a tripartite structure unique in the United Nations, in which employers' and workers' representatives - the social partners of the economy - have an equal voice with those of governments in shaping its policies and programmes.

The ILO has four principal strategic objectives:

1. To promote and realize standards, and fundamental
    principles and rights at work.
2. To create greater opportunities for women and men
    to secure decent employment.
3. To enhance the coverage and effectiveness of social
    protection for all.
4. To strengthen tripartism and social dialogue


These objectives are realised in a number of ways:
1. Formulation of international policies and programmes to promote basic human rights, improve working and living conditions and enhance employment opportunities
2. Creation of international labour standards to serve as guidelines for national authorities in putting sound labour policies into practice
3. Formulation and implemention of an extensive programme of technical co-operation to make policies effective
4. Training, educating, research and publishing activities to advance all these areas

The ILO is guided by the principle that social stability and integration can be sustained only if they are based on social justice, particularly the right to employment with fair compensation in a workplace that is not injurious / harmful to health.

It provides technical assistance primarily in the fields of vocational training and vocational rehabilitation (IFP SKILLS); employment policy (EMP/ENT, EMP/STRAT); labour administration; labour law and industrial relations (IFP/DIALOGUE); working conditions; management development; co-operatives; social security (SEC/SOC); labour statistics (STAT) and occupational safety and health (SAFEWORK). It formulates international labour standards in the form of Conventions and Recommendations setting minimum of basic labour rights (NORMES): freedom of association, the right to organise, collective bargaining, abolition of forced child labour (IPEC), equality of opportunity and treatment (GENDER), and other standards regulating conditions across the entire spectrum of work related issues. It promotes the development of independent employers' and workers' organisations and provides training and advisory services to those organizations (ACT/EMP, ACTRAV).

The head office of the ILO is located in Geneva, Switzerland, and oversees the operations of the Colombo Area Office through the Regional Office for the Asia and Pacific (RO), located in Bangkok, Thailand. Sub Regional office (SRO), located in New Delhi, India, provides technical support to the Colombo Area Office.

The Colombo Area Office, established in 1984, provides the programme and administrative support to ILO's work in Sri Lanka. While the Maldives is not a member of the ILO, the office also provides administrative support as and when necessary.