Challenges and Opportunities of Teleworking for Workers and Employers in the ICTS and Financial Services Sectors

Issues Paper for the Global Dialogue Forum on the Challenges and Opportunities of Teleworking for Workers and Employers in the ICTS and Financial Services Sectors (Geneva, 24-26 October 2016)

This issues paper has been prepared by the International Labour Office as a basis for discussions at the Global Dialogue Forum on the Challenges and Opportunities of Teleworking for Workers and Employers in the Information and Communications Technology Services (ICTS) and Financial Services Sectors. At its 326th Session (March 2016), the ILO’s Governing Body decided that the Forum would: be held from 24 to 26 October 2016; be composed of eight Employer and eight Worker participants, selected after consultations with their respective groups of the Governing Body; and be open to all interested governments, while representatives of certain intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations would be invited to attend as observers. The purpose of the Forum is to allow tripartite participants to share their experiences of telework in the above sectors with a view to increasing their understanding of, and developing consensus on, the way forward with regard to its: (a) prevalence; (b) economic and social risks and benefits; and (c) employment relationships, work organization and professional development practices linked to, and their impacts on, the rights and protection of teleworkers, including those engaged in involuntary telework. Participants would also examine existing standards relevant to telework and consider how social dialogue could be harnessed to promote decent work in telework.