BASIC WORKER RIGHT

The prerogative of workers with respect to their working conditions as identified in the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, adopted in 1998.
(adapted from Programme for the Promotion of the Declaration, International Labour Organisation (ILO), 1996-2009, visited 2009-05-29)

"It is therefore a priority to protect the fundamental rights of workers in developing countries and elsewhere against unscrupulous governments or employers who seek to gain an unfair advantage in international trade through the violation of core labour standards."
(World Trade Organization, ICFTU statement on the agenda for the 4th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), 2001, visited 2009-05-27)

"The FTAA Agreement will only benefit all of the regions' and countries' sectors if it confers labor, social, and environmental benefits on its members, in addition to those that are strictly trade-related. Therefore, labor organizations insist that a labor clause be incorporated and integrated into the legal text of the FTAA Agreement in a way that ensures that the basic rights of all workers involved in trade and investment activities carried out in the framework of this hemispheric treaty are upheld."
(Lara, E., Remarks on the Treatment of Labor in the Draft Agreement of the Free Trade Area of the Americas , Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), 2002, visited 2009-05-27)

"Frequently in free trade zones, which have sprung up around the global economy core workers' rights are denied and indeed investment is attracted on the grounds of suppression of core rights."
(Trade Union Advisory Committee to the Organisation for Economic cooperation and Developement (OECD), Building the Social Dimension of the Global Economy. The Agenda following the Seattle WTO Ministerial Council. The OECD's Role, 1999, visited 2009-05-27)

The ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work is a document stating the commitment of governments, employer and worker organizations to respect core principles and rights, namely, freedom of association, the right to collective bargaining, the elimination of forced and child labour, and the abolition of discrimination in the workplace.

Background

When the World Trade Organization (WTO) was set up in 1994, concern over increasing inequalities produced vigorous debate on trade and labour standards (often called the "social clause debate"). In 1995, the United Nations World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen agreed on a set of commitments that mapped out new territory.

Among these, the Summit's third commitment established full employment as a basic priority of social and economic policies. Delegates also agreed to safeguard the basic rights of workers, "and to this end, freely promote respect for relevant International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions, including those on the prohibition of forced and child labour, freedom of association, the right to organize and bargain collectively and the principle of non-discrimination." Those words paved the way for the development of the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. The process was further supported by the first Ministerial Conference of the newly-established World Trade Organization, held in 1996, in Singapore.

Trade Ministers avowed respect for core labour standards identified by the ILO. In the same year, a landmark OECD study (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) on labour standards increased international awareness concerning worker rights.
(adapted from Programme for the Promotion of the Declaration, International Labour Organisation (ILO), 1996-2009, visited 2009-05-29)

The Declaration and the Rights

"The ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work aims to ensure that social progress goes hand in hand with economic progress and development.

Adopted in 1998, the Declaration commits Member States to respect and promote principles and rights in four categories, whether or not they have ratified the relevant conventions. These categories are: freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining, the elimination of forced or compulsory labour, the abolition of child labour and the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation.

The Declaration makes it clear that these rights are universal, and that they apply to all people in all States - regardless of the level of economic development. It particularly mentions groups with special needs, including the unemployed and migrant workers. It recognizes that economic growth alone is not enough to ensure equity, social progress and to eradicate poverty. [...]

These fundamental principles and rights provide benchmarks for responsible business conduct, and are incorporated into the ILO's own Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy. The OECD's Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises emphasize the principles and rights found in the ILO Declaration and the UN Global Compact promotes them as universal values to be achieved in business dealings around the world. A growing number of private sector codes of conduct and similar initiatives also refer to the fundamental principles and rights at work."
(Programme for the Promotion of the Declaration, International Labour Organization (ILO), 1996-2009, visited 2009-05-29)