ILO’s Global Campaign for Ratification of Violence and Harassment

The International Labour Organization Convention 190 on violence and harassment in the world of work held a convention on June 25th, 2021. Many global unions will be launching a toolkit to support the Convention 190 (C190) and its Recommendation 206 (R206). This manual will provide many unions worldwide with tools to eradicate violence and harassment in the world of work. Millions of workers are affected by physical assault, bullying, sexual harassment, online abuse, economic violence, and abusive work practices globally. These are some of the most widespread forms of violence in the workforce. 

The COVID-19 pandemic deepened pre-existing inequalities and exposed vulnerabilities in social, political, and economic systems. A report by the UN shows that violence against women has intensified in the past year. Many women and girls felt economic impacts, and the global gender pay gap is stuck at 16%, with women paid up to 35% less than men in some countries. 

The toolkit will aim to provide unions with tools to develop workplace solutions that tackle violence and harassment with a special focus on gender-based violence and harassment and ensure that violence is not considered “part of the job.” 

Christy Hoffman, UNI Global Union General Secretary, said:

“Unions fought relentlessly to win this Convention. Now that it has come into force, we must make sure more countries ratify it and that it is properly implemented. There is still a long road ahead and this toolkit is another step for unions to gain the necessary knowhow that will enable them to put the ILO Convention 190 and Recommendation 206 into practice so that workers live in a world free from violence and harassment.”

The toolkit consists of a facilitators’ guide and an activities workbook. It aims to:

• Encourage discussion about violence and harassment and gender-based violence in the world of work.

• Raise awareness about Convention 190, its accompanying Recommendation R206, and its significance for workers – particularly women workers.

• Encourage unions across the world to campaign for the ratification of Convention 190 and its effective implementation in line with Recommendation 206.

• Encourage unions to use these instruments to integrate Convention 190 into the union bargaining agenda.

• Build stronger unions to enable workers to assert their rights to a world of work free from violence and harassment.

New Skills Are Needed to Tackle The Risks of The Future

The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened the significance of how critical health, safety, and well-being are to operate businesses successfully. In the manufacturing industry, workers are required to be on-site, so businesses need to equip their employees with appropriate competencies. 

Many recent news reports of COVID-19 outbreaks in plants demonstrate the impact when safety and precaution measures are unsuccessful. Protecting workers’ physical and mental health could improve business productivity and employee retention. 

At the same time, manufacturers’ futures rely on how effectively they can address four significant challenges:

• The changing nature of manufacturing work

• An aging workforce driving an increase in the hiring of younger and less-experienced workers

• Technology changes in the plant

• The unpredictability of economic globalization.

These factors have a direct impact on the occupational health and safety (OH&S) risk to workers.

The pandemic has highlighted just how vital the OH&S practitioner is to supporting COVID-19 safety plans while overseeing the many other health and safety risks in the workplace. Today’s OH&S professionals need a range of skills to support changing environments, including occupational medicine, epidemiology, occupational hygiene, mental health, and human factors.

They also need interpersonal, management, industry-specific and technical skills to equip them for the work ahead.

Manufacturing Safety Alliance of BC has researched the impact of labor market issues in British Columbia’s manufacturing sector for the health and safety profession.

This research included broad participation with manufacturing and union leaders, OH&S professionals, and industry associations across Canada. It has highlighted the need to define a standard set of competencies for OH&S professionals within the manufacturing sector.

To have standardized accreditation and certification, education programs should align to set a standard of competencies to ensure that new practitioners have the skills to be effective. Manufacturing also requires additional specialized training due to the complexity of risk areas.

Canadian Public Health Experts Discuss Pros and Cons of Disclosing COVID Outbreaks at Businesses

An article by the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) discussed the ethics and concerns of disclosing the names of businesses where COVID-19 outbreaks have occurred. When an outbreak of infection at a workplace is identified, standard public health practice is to publicly reveal the name of the workplace only if all contacts cannot be traced and a risk to the public is identified. 

In Canada, many larger cities such as Toronto and Hamilton have a reporting policy. In contrast, Ontario has no approach to reporting since the decision is left up to administrators of local health units. The authors of the article talk about the pros and cons of providing information to the public that could be seen as essential in letting a person make an informed decision on whether they want to visit a particular business. 

However, there are also many reasons that businesses may not publicly state that their workplace had an outbreak, the most prominent being people’s right to privacy. The article believes that it is vital to protect workers from stigma, public shaming, and harassment that could be associated with COVID-19. "Moreover, businesses that are outed as having an outbreak of infectious disease may face serious consequences that in turn may lead to loss of employment for workers and downstream effects for local economies," said the article.

An argument for letting employers know about outbreaks is that people are more likely to cooperate with efforts of the public health agencies to control an outbreak by allowing rapid access and intervention to protect workers. Ontario’s stay-at-home order expired on June 2nd, but existing restrictions on gathering, businesses, services, and activities will remain in effect for the time being. This includes limiting outdoor gatherings to up to five people, limiting essential retail capacity to 25%, restricting non-essential retail to do curbside pick-up and delivery, and prohibiting indoor gatherings. 

In the US, there are 28 OSHA-approved State Plans that set standards and enforcement programs and must be at least as effective as OSHA in protecting workers and in preventing work-related injuries, illnesses, and death. 

In conclusion, the article in the CMAJ states that more collaboration is needed between public health agencies and workplaces to ensure that such things as paid sick leave and better infection controls come into play. 

ILO and Vietnam Cooperate to Promote International Labor Standards and Decent Work For All

Vietnam’s Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on May 20 regarding cooperation in accelerating the implementation of ILO conventions in Vietnam for the next ten years. The document was signed on 20 May 2021 for the 2021-2030 period. 

This partnership includes raising awareness of the international labor standards, applying the ILO Conventions to Vietnamese laws, promoting the national capacity to implement and develop proposals for ratifying further ILO conventions. MoLISA Minister Dao Ngoc Dung states that the alliance is an important event that marks a new period of cooperation for the country. This helps the Vietnamese Government realize common goals regarding human rights, citizen rights, and employment relationships. 

Chang Hee Lee, Vietnam’s Country Director for ILO, has made significant contributions to achievements in labor and employment. He helped Vietnam urge the EU to ratify the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), amending the 2019 Labour Code, improving the MoLISA’s State management capacity, and raising the country’s position in the ILO. 

“If all goes as planned, Viet Nam will become a leading country among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states in promoting international labor standards. I believe that it will lead to social upgrading, which is required for Vietnam to move towards becoming an upper-middle-income country,” says Change Hee Lee.

Vietnam has ratified 25 ILO Conventions to date, including seven out of eight fundamental conventions ranging from collective bargaining, non-discrimination, child labor, and forced labor.

UN Leaders Urging Companies to Take Measures to Protect Seafarers’ Rights

The United Nations has issued a list of human rights to business enterprises that are engaged in the maritime industry to protect seafarers that may be stranded on ships due to new COVID-19 variants and government-imposed travel restrictions. The Human Rights Due Diligence Tool is a joint initiative by the UN Global Compact, UN Human Rights Office, International Labour Organization (ILO), and the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

The tool provides guidance and a checklist for cargo owners, charterers, and logistics providers to conduct human rights due diligence across their supply chains to identify, prevent, mitigate and address adverse human rights impacts for seafarers. 

Amid concerns about the number of crew stranded working beyond their contacts at sea due to COVID-19 restrictions, UN agencies hope the new guidance will help ensure that the working conditions are respected and comply with international standards. The guidance aims to ensure that seafarers have rights safeguarded, such as physical and mental health, and access to family life, and freedom of movement. 

Although the maritime industry contributes more than 80% of global trade goods, there have been reports that seafarers are working way beyond the 11-month maximum limit of service on board. An estimated 200,000 crew are stuck on commercial vessels globally amid recent attempts to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Unilever and other big retail brands are among consumer giants adopting a toolkit to audit their shipping supply chains to help bring seafarers stuck on commercial vessels back home and eliminate human rights risks. 

Any company that puts any cargo on ships will be encouraged to use the checklist, which includes asking ship owners and those who charter space on vessels to support crew changes and ensure clauses aren’t being added to contracts that prevent crew relief.