Mr. Uramoto complimented India for its steady economic growth and its positive role at the global

level, such as in the G20 and other international fora. Mr. Kharge acknowledged that ILO‘s tripartite

structure has helped shape India‘s tripartite institutional mechanisms at national and state levels,

He also spoke about the exemplary ILO-MOLE collaboration in India. Mr. Kharge mentioned that a

number of GOI flagship programmes are directed to address problems of the unorganized sector

workers and issues of informality.

Mr. Kharge made reference to recent updates and the steps being taken by MOLE towards

ratification of the 4 non-ratified ILO Core Conventions (C 138, C 182, C 87 and C. 89). Mr. Uramoto

expressed his appreciation for India‘s practices to ensure that legal and operational frameworks are

in place before ratification of ILO Conventions. Continued on page 2

Meetings with employers‘ (above) and workers‘ (below) representatives

Volume 2, Issue 1

January—March 2013 Quarterly E-Newsletter

From the ILO’s Office in India

Inside this issue:

ILO Regional Director visits

India

Post-MDG Development Agenda

1

2

Social Partners write:

AIOE

CITU

3

4

GET Report 2013—India launch

Workshop on Female Labour

Force Participation

5

5

MoU to Promote Migrant

Workers’ Rights

Canadian Labour Minister visits

ILO

6

6

Trade Unions in Tamil Nadu

observe Women’s Day

ILO-Media Partnership Against

Child Labour

7

7

News, views and analysis from

the world of work 8

Sexual Harassment at

W o r k p l a c e B i l l

passed by Parliament

on 26 February 2013;

awaits President’s

assent.

The Crimilan Law

[Amendment] Act,

2013 comes into force

prescribing stricter

p u n i s h m e n t f o r

c r i m e s a g a i n s t

women.

Latest Developments

ILO Regional Director‘s First Visit To India

Mr. Yoshiteru Uramoto, ILO Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific based in Bangkok, visited

India from 13 to 15 February 2013. This was Mr. Uramoto‘s first visit to India after taking-over as

Regional Director for Asia and Pacific in mid-October 2012.

Accompanied by Ms. Tine Staermose, Director of the ILO Country Office for India and Decent Work

Team for South Asia, Mr. Uramoto paid a courtesy call on Mr. Mallikarjun Kharge, Minister of Labour

& Employment (MoLE), Government of India on 13 February 2013. Dr. Mrutyunjay Sarangi,

Secretary; Mr. A.C. Pandey, Joint Secretary, and other senior officials of MoLE were present during

the meeting.

Meeting with the Hon‘le Labour Minister, Mr. Mallikarjun Kharge

E-Newsletter January—March 2013 From the ILO’s Office in India

Page 2

Mr. Uramoto mentioned the ILO‘s global role on jobs and employment

and offered technical support on issues currently under discussion with

the social partners. He indicated that the ILO was committed to support

India‘s efforts to advance sustainable development.

Among several other issues discussed were the need to explore potential

for regional collaboration as a follow up to the MoU between the ILO

International Training Centre,Turin and the VV Giri National Labour

Institute; engage in discussion on collaboration between KOSHA and

DGFASLI on occupational safety and health; and further promote South-

South collaboration though the SAARC conference on child labour in May

2013 and the international social security conference scheduled for

August 2013.

Mr. Yoshiteru Uramoto held meetings with the representatives of Indian

employers and leaders of workers‘ organizations on 14 February 2013.

Top officials from the All India Organization of Employers, Employers

Federation of India, Standing Conference of Public Enterprises,

Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry, PHD Chamber of

Commerce & Industry, Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry and

the Confederation of Indian Industry participated in the employers‘

meeting.

The employers‘ representatives shared their views about the current

industrial and labour situation in India and the challenges they were

facing. Talking about the challenges faced by the Indian employers,

among other things, they highlighted the labour law reforms to promote

sustainable enterprises. The employers‘ representatives sought ILO

support in the areas of employment, skills development and

entrepreneurship development as well as knowledge sharing with

experience from other countries.

Mr. Uramoto, showing his keen interests on various issues raised by the

Indian Employers, thanked them for the meeting and said that the ILO

would be happy to share the international experience. He also

emphasized the importance of international labour standards as well as

social dialogue. Mr. Uramoto mentioned that India is an important

country and what the Indian employers do affect the ILO.

Mr. Uramoto met the senior leaders of the five Central Trade Union

Organizations viz. Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), Indian National Trade

Union Congress (INTUC), Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS), Centre for Indian

Trade Unions (CITU) and All India Trade Union Centre (AITUC).

During the meeting all the senior leaders from the above trade unions

were unanimous in reiterating the need for the ILO‘s continued support in

promoting the ratification of Core Conventions - more specifically

Conventions on Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining .

Mr. Uramoto‘s First Visit to India continued from page 1

Mr. Uramoto had opportunities to interact with Dr.

Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning

Commission and Dr. Abhijit Sen and Dr. Narendra Jadhav,

Members of the Planning Commission, Government of India,

on issues of mutual concern. In addition, he met officials of

a number of Ministries, policy planners, academia, the United

Nations Resident Coordinator and other UN officials,

International Financial Institutions, the diplomatic community

and the media. He also made a field visit to Faridabad to see

the Government of India‘s National Child Labour Programme

and Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana Programme in action.

Various issues such as hurdles in registration of trade unions,

payment of fair wages, increasing contractualization of jobs

where the employers engage contract workers in perennial

work, lack of retraining and skills training, social security for

the unorganized workers, violation of labour laws by

employers, weak enforcement of labour laws, workers‘ income

disparities and conditions of women workers were highlighted.

Post - 2015 Development Agenda

The United Nations General Assembly endorsed the Millennium

Declaration in 2000, reflecting the member states‘ commitment to a

global platform promoting peace and security, the reduction of

poverty, illiteracy and disease, and the protection of the environment,

all requiring strengthened democracy, good governance and

protection of human rights. In support of the Declaration, eight

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were adopted in 2002. These

Goals have served as a global development framework for the

international community during the past decade and have influenced

national policies.

With the deadline for the MDG targets to end in 2015, the United

Nations (UN) and its Member States have embarked on a process to

define a future development agenda. In India, nine national

organizations/institutions have been chosen to convene constituency

-based consultations involving the Government of India, civil society,

elected representatives, trade unions, industries, women's

organizations, farmers associations, research institutions and

youth organizations. The UN is also facilitating an open forum

website where interested individuals can share their views on the

post-2015 agenda. This can be accessed at: http://

www.worldwewant2015.org/india2015

The ILO - New Delhi facilitated the conduct of consultations with

all the trade unions both at zonal and national levels through the

Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). Four Zonal

consultations were organized in Chennai, Mumbai, Jaipur and

Kolkata during January-February 2013. In total, 10 central trade

unions - BMS, INTUC, HMS, AITUC, CITU, TUCC, AIUTUC, UTUC,

LPF and AICCTU - participated in the zonal consultations. The

four zonal consultations were followed by a "National

Consultation of Trade Unions on Post-2015 Development

Agenda" in New Delhi on 25 - 26 February 2013. The National

Consultation finalized a set of recommendations and presented

it at a validation Workshop of the UN on 19 March 2013.

ILO’s Start and Improve Your Business (SIYB) training: a success story

SIYB Training in Sonebhadra district of U.P.

In a bid to promote employment opportunities

in informal sector, the All India Organization

of Employers, has started Start and Improve

Your Business (SIYB) training in Sonebhadra

district of Uttar Pradesh. Sonebhadra is

characterized by an overwhelming majority of

Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe

population (around 47% of the total

population), widespread unemployment,

poverty and low levels of Human

Development Indicators.

The latest round of Generate Your Business

Idea (GYB) and Start Your Business (SYB)

training courses were completed in March

2013, wherein 45 youth learnt the skills of

business management. The training helped

participants in identifying a bankable

business idea, studying the market, making a

business plan and managing business

expenses.

It is noteworthy that since the launching of

ILO‘s flagship SIYB training in Sonebhadra in

November 2012 with funding support from

FVTRS, Bangalore, the business management

training has been imparted to around 225

youth till date. The training implementing

organizations (SIR, Lucknow; CTED, Lucknow

and SVSS, Mirjapur) are now engaged in

providing follow up support to the participants

and documenting success stories.

Contributions from our Social Partners

Trainees with the two SIYB Trainers—Mr. Mukesh Pandey

and Mr. Anshuman Chaturvedi in the March 2013 training

programme held in Sonebhadra.

The views expressed above are those of the contributor.

E-Newsletter January—March 2013 From the ILO’s Office in India

Page 3

Rani Devi, 30, was not so special to write about until January 2013 when she

underwent a life-changing training on enterprise development-SIYB. She was like any

other typical village woman whose dawns begin with cleaning cow-dung and dusks end

with washing utensils. She was married to a physically challenged and unemployed

youth in 2005, with whom she had a dream of living a decent and respectable life.

However, the dream came to an end even before her wedding henna (Mehndi) started

to fade and she found herself into a day-to-day bread-butter-battle. It was a tough time

for her, but she was not one to give up.

She started as an agricultural labourer to support her family but a mere 50 rupees

after 10 hours of strenuous work could barely feed her husband, in-laws and 4

children. The situation improved a little with revision of minimum wages in the state

and enactment of MG NREGA, but spiraling prices and unforeseen expenses soon

negated the positive effect. Her children were growing up and she was worried for their

better upbringing.

She then started a Baati-Chokha shop in the village with her small savings.

Unfortunately, the business failed terribly due to her lack of experience, skills and

understanding of the market. She also made an attempt to secure a bank loan to

invest in the business, but the Bank Manager was not convinced enough to approve

her loan application. Once again, she found herself left stranded in the battle of life.

It was only in January 2013 when she was approached to undergo ILO‘s flagship

enterprise development training program ‗Start and Improve Your Business‘ (SIYB),

being organized by FICCI and implemented by CTED in Ghorawal block of Sonebhadra

district of Uttar Pradesh. After much counseling and motivation, she reluctantly agreed

to attend the course. Unaware of the fact that this was going to be a life-changing

experience for her, she half-heartedly reached the training venue with her small baby

in the arm. The experienced trainers soon realized her situation and ensured her

active participation in various group assignments. Their efforts succeeded as Rani

Devi started showing interest in the training. Horrified with bitter experience of a failed

business in the past, she took extra interest in learning how to evolve a business idea,

study the market, make a business plan and manage various expenses of the

business.

Expert guidance of the trainers and the lessons of the past motivated her to set up a

fruit thela (hand cart) in Ghorawal market. She was advised to mobilize the required

startup capital from relatives only and not to wait for the bank loan. She was also

helped in selecting the place for her thela and networking with bulk suppliers of fruits.

Having confidence in her capabilities and seeing her charged enough to re-write her

life story, Rani Devi‘s family also offered their best to support her efforts.

Rani Devi finally managed to borrow an interest free loan of Rs. 20,000 from relatives

and started her business in Ghorawal town which is around 6 KM away from her

home. The business started doing well after some teething troubles. She has also

involved her husband in the business.

Anshuman Chaturvedi

Assistant Director- Labor and Employment

AIOE/FICCI, New Delhi

E-Newsletter January—March 2013 From the ILO’s Office in India

Page 4

Contributions from our Social Partners

Despite the respectable GDP growth of 8.5% anually during the

entire 11th Five Year Plan period, the rate of employment

generation has collapsed to mere 0.5% exposing a totally jobless

growth phenomenon. Employment generation is one of the

mechanisms for distribution, and with such insignificant

employment growth, the gains of GDP growth have been entirely

expropriated by the capitalist class.

In fact, along with the development of technology, productivity per

worker has increased enormously during the two decades. In this

background, even if production gets substantially increased, it

cannot generate proportionately similar employment. Moreover

there is a limit to growth of production given the recessionary trend

in the world market affecting the country's export market in a big

way. Added to this is the phenomenon of 12 hour work prevalent in

most of the private sector entities. Such a situation has led to

galloping rise in unemployment with the reserve army of

unemployed swelling high to put downward pressure on wage of

those who are in employment.

Trade union movement has to address this phenomenon with the

seriousness it deserves. In consideration of the tremendous rise in

workers‘ productivity owing to development of technology, we must

raise the demand of 35 hours‘ work per week and a four shift

working day to address the problem of jobless growth

phenomenon. We must unleash a serious campaign on this

demand from our independent platform to sensitise the mass of

the workers as well as people at large on the issue to create

ground for joint country wide struggle in the days to come. This may

not be a slogan for agitation on immediate term but it must find a

serious place in all our independent campaigns on economic policy

and social issues. The campaign must continue side by side with

our ongoing workplace level struggles against violation of the

statute on eight-hour working as well as forcible unpaid extra hours

of work. The World Federation of Trade Unions has already raised

this demand for worldwide campaign in the context of the alarming

rise in youth unemployment all the world over.

The Report of General Secretary calls for unleashing independent

and widespread campaigns and struggles demanding: 1) Same

wage for same work; 2) 35 hours week and 4 shift working day; 3)

Social security for all; and 4) no employment below statutory

minimum wages and social security.

CITU calls for 35 hours work-week and other measures for promoting employment

The views expressed above are entirely those of the respective contributors.

We invite brief contributions from Social Partners on their activities and issues of their concern.

Resolution on Safety in Workplace and Occupational Health

The 14th Conference of CITU held on 4-8 April 2013 at Kannur

expresses grave concern on alarming increase in incidences of

accidents in workplaces throughout the country leading to death of

workers and also permanent as well as temporary disablement due

to injuries in numerous cases. In addition, continuous neglect by

both government and employers in the area of occupational

hazards are also affecting lakhs of workers life and livelihood. …

The demand to management should be for stringent preventive

safety measures and stringent observations. The demand to

Government must be for proper legislation having wider coverage

and a strong inspection and enforcement machinery to monitor

implementation and stringent punishment for violation.

For occupational health hazards, pressure must be built upon the

Government for ratification of all safety related Conventions of ILO

including Convention no 176 on occupational safety and health. We

must demand to widen the list of notifiable occupational diseases

to include all lung related diseases including Tuberculosis and also

diseases related to exposure to toxic chemicals, gas, particulates,

heat and dust. We must demand appropriate statutes on

prohibitive, protective and preventive measures against dust, heat,

toxic chemicals and gas and also against stress and strain

prevalent particularly in the IT sector to be stringently followed in all

the workplaces along with a strong enforcement machinery. We

must also simultaneously demand for adoption of appropriate

alternative technology in the production/operational process to

minimize the exposure to such hazards, if not fully eliminate. We

should also demand banning of use of asbestos and rehabilitation

of the workers working in the asbestos factories. Such an approach

would be instrumental in integrating the struggle on workplace

safety and occupational health with the larger problem of

environmental pollution confronted by the society as a whole.

The Conference calls upon the trade union movement in general

and the CITU unions in particular to make the issues relating to

safety and occupational health as one of the priority agendas for

struggle against the neoliberal policy regime and take initiative to

equip themselves appropriately to discharge this crucial

responsibility.

Mr. Amitava Guha, CITU, New Delhi

E-Newsletter January—March 2013 From the ILO’s Office in India

Page 5

Ms. Amarjeet Kaur, representing workers‘ organizations, indicated that the

trade unions have emphasized that the planning process has made economic

growth a jobless one. Mr. Ravi Wig, speaking on behalf of employers, pushed

for renewed emphasis on skills development and supporting women to move

out from low-pay and low-skills sectors.

As the next steps, it was agreed by the Government of India representatives

that the recommendations from this workshop would be taken into

consideration in planning future interventions. ILO will update the studies

based on recommendations from the workshop. In addition, new research will

be explored to address knowledge gaps, while further consultations will be

organized with policy-makers to go deeper into a number of important issues,

which have been raised.

India Launch of ILO‘S Global Employment Trends Report 2013

Technical Workshop on Women‘s Labour Force Participation

The ILO and Ministry of Labour and Employment,

Government of India, joined hands to host a technical

workshop on ―Women‘s labour force participation in

India and South Asia: Have Women benefited from an

Era of Globalization and Growth?‖ in New Delhi on 14-

15 February 2013.

The event brought together representatives of

government departments, workers‘ and employers‘

organizations, policy planners, United Nations

representatives, academia and other experts from

India as well as SAARC countries. The participants

discussed trends in female labour force participation,

the situation of the work done by women, and various

factors affecting women in the world of work in India

and South Asia.

In his keynote address, Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia,

Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, emphasized

on the quality dimensions of employment, which are

difficult to quantify. Mr. Mallikarjun Kharge, Union

Minister of Labour and Employment, stated that India

is at a critical stage where women face challenges

from different quarters, which need to be collectively

addressed to ensure enhanced participation on

women in the labour market with dignity and social

justice. Moreover, the 12th Plan vision of inclusive

economic growth can be fulfilled only when women

are equal partners. The ILO Regional Director for Asia

and the Pacific, Mr. Yoshiteru Uramoto, stressed that

gender equality is a top priority for the ILO.

Ms. Lise Grande stated that growth, employment and Decent

Work should be at the centre of the global development

agenda and the situation in India demands that Decent Work

has to be at the centre of the Post-2015 Development

Agenda. She complimented the ILO for bringing the focus on

the need for a National Social Protection Floor.

Mr. Uramoto emphasized the importance of decent work for

all, and the need to ensure the quality of employment in the

context of recent trends of the contractualization of

workforce in India. He indicated that skills development and

social protection are important for increased productivity and

long-term sustainable development.

Dr. Sasikumar said that, in the beginning of the decade,

around 33% of workers were casual workers in the organized

sector and now the figure has increased to more than 50%.

Another interesting fact, according to him, is that 21% of

youth are not employed, but are neither in school nor looking

for employment, and it is important to target them for

facilitating smooth transition to work to take advantage of

the demographic dividend to contribute to economic growth.

Dr. Rana Hasan spoke about the National Manufacturing

Policy and the proposed National Manufacturing Zones

which have potential for introduction of flexicurity

approaches. He further mentioned about the need to

explore ways to support manufacturing firms and industry in

India so that they can grow to be more productive and then

be able to pay higher wages to workers.

Workers‘ and employers representatives also spoke from the

floor on about Decent Work and the informal economy.

The India launch of the ILO‘s flagship report ―Global Employment

Trends 2013‖ took place in New Delhi on 13 February 2013 to an

audience of about 160 people from ILO‘s tripartite partners, academic

community, UN family, international organizations, media and others

in the presence of Dr. Abhjit Sen, Member, Planning Commission; Mr.

Yoshiteru Uramoto, ILO Regional Director for Asia & the Pacific and Ms.

Lise Grande, the United Nations Resident Coordinator for India. The

highlights of the report were presented by Mr. Steven Kapsos, Senior

Economist and Dr. Sher Verick, Senior Employment Specialist from the

ILO, with Dr. S.K. Sasikumar from the V.V. Giri National Labour Institute

and Dr. Rana Hasan, Principal Economist from the Asian Development

Bank as discussants.

The central theme of Dr. Abhijit Sen‘s remarks was the need for

globally coordinated approaches to overcome the effects of the

ongoing economic crisis. He lamented that this approach, initiated by

G20 at the beginning of the crisis, has not continued. With reference

to India, he mentioned that structural adjustments needed for shift of

employment from agriculture to other sectors should be closely

analysed, and noted the importance of providing appropriate skills

development support to women workers.

Page 6

E-Newsletter January—March 2013 From the ILO’s Office in India

On 21 February 2013, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar,

Chhattisgarh and Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE),

Government of India, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on

inter-state coordination for migrant workers in Ranchi, Jharkhand.

Every year thousands of workers move across states in search of

seasonal work. Many of these migrant workers, such as those

working in brick kilns, stone quarries etc, end up into a situation

of bondage because of the huge advance wages they take prior to

migration. A strong need for such inter-state coordination was felt

by the states to promote rights of migrant workers and to enable

access to services and schemes in source and destination states.

The MoU lays down the roles and responsibilities of sending and

receiving states of migrant workers.

Mr. Anil Swarup, Addl. Secretary and Director General, Labour

Welfare, Government of India, who signed the MoU said that this

MoU sets a framework for coordination and communication

between the Centre and the States, enabling them to work

together for migrant workers, especially those who work in most

precarious situations. Mr. A.K. Garg, Registrar (Law) from National

Human Rights Commission, who was also present at the meeting,

expressed the hope that the articles of the MoU will be

implemented by the States in the true spirit and they would take

proactive steps to eliminate bonded labour.

Speaking at the occasion, Ms. Panudda Boonpala, Deputy

Director, ILO DWT and CO for India, said that the MoU is a crucial

first step towards promoting rights of migrant workers, especially

those who are vulnerable and get into bondage situation. Mr. J.C.

Sharma, Principal Secretary (Labour), Andhra Pradesh and the

Odisha officials shared the progress made post signing of the

MoU in June 2012. To help facilitate the work on inter-state

migration, a Central Level Migrant Workers Cell has been

constituted at MoLE. The Cell looks into the issues of inter-state

migration, provides technical assistance to the states, and offers

a communication channel to help facilitate resolution of

grievances, if any.

The MoUs have been facilitated by the ILO under the MoLE - ILO

project on ―Reducing Vulnerability to bondage in India through the

promotion of decent work‖. The current project is targeted at

migrant workers and their children, working mainly but not

exclusively in the brick kilns sector, who often enter into ‗neo-

bondage‖ situations. The project is supporting inter-state

coordination mechanisms for such migrant workers, with a focus

on work place improvements, organization and unionization of

workers, linking them to social security schemes and improving

wages and recruitment practices.

Four States and Centre sign MoU to Promote Rights of Migrant Workers

The MoUs aim to promote rights of workers (including the right to

safe and informed migration, organization and unionization, collective bargaining, right to minimum wages, regular payment

of wages etc.) as well as enable access to services (such as

health, education for children, financial inclusion), and schemes

(social security, health insurance, and skills developments etc.).

First Row (L to R): Dr. Gurdeep Singh, LC, Uttar Pradesh; Mr. Vishnu Kumar, PS (L), Jharkhand; Mr. Anil Swarup, Addl. Sec. and DGLW, MOLE, GoI; Mr. Amar Kanth, DLC, Bihar; Ms Panudda Boonpala, ILO; Mr. A.K. Garg, Registrar, NHRC; Second Row (L to R): Mr. J.C. Sharma PS(L), Andhra Pradesh; Mr. Sunil Kumar, LC, Jharkhand; Mr. Vijay Kumar, Advisor to the Governor of Jharkhand.

MoU Implementation With the signing of the MoU the Governments of Jharkhand, Bihar,

Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh are keen to start the activities listed in the MoU.

An action plan template was created based on the discussions, with inputs from the stakeholders including Trade Unions, Employers Organizations, Government officials from different states and departments, Civil Society, Academia and Media. The action plan template lists the key items which the sending and receiving states will be implementing in a progressive manner to operationalize the key articles of the Memorandum of Understanding.

The key actions will be first piloted in the project districts selected for each of the 4 states, with focus on the brick kiln sector. The action may be expanded to other districts as well.

The Action Plan Template will be circulated to all 4 states by the ILO. The states will fill in the template with realistic timelines for implementation and send it back to MoLE and ILO.

The states to notify the setting up of the Intra State/Inter-State Coordination Cell as per Article 4 and District Migrant Workers Facilitation Cells as per Article 5 and 6 of the MoU in source and destination districts (this can start with the pilot districts for the Project and later expanded to other districts). The states may also explore setting up of the Tripartite+ Committees to assist the State and District Level Cells as done in Andhra Pradesh.

A review meeting will be called in next 2-3 months to review the progress of the MoU implementation.

Canadian Delegation led by Federal Deputy Minister of Labour Visits ILO

Canadian Federal Deputy Minister of Labour, Ms Hélène Gosselin, along with a three member delegation

comprising Ms Debra Young, Director General, International and Intergovernmental Labour Affairs of the

Canadian Labour Program; Mr. Pierre Bouchard, Director, Bilateral and Regional Labour Affairs, Canada;

and Mr. Gideon Lundholm from Embassy of Canada in India, visited ILO DWT and CO for India on March

18, 2013. The purpose of the visit was to understand the work of ILO in India.

On 14 March 2013, Mr. Pierre Bouchard visited a Canadian funded ILO Project on ―Reducing

Vulnerability to Bondage in India through Promotion of Decent Work‖ in Renga Reddy district, Andhra

Pradesh. He had discussions with the Principal Secretary (Labour), Mr. J.C. Sharma and Labour

Commissioner of Andhra Pradesh. He also interacted with the brick kiln workers and their children,

employers, and the state government officials.

Ms Hélène Gosselin

E-Newsletter January—March 2013 From the ILO’s Office in India

Page 7

Trade Unions in Tamil Nadu Observe International Women‘s Day

The Tamil Nadu Trade Unions Joint Action Forum (JAF) conducted a

large public meeting to commemorate International Women‘s Day at

Madurai on 8 March 2013. More than 850 members comprising a

majority of rural women workers and domestic workers actively

participated in this meeting from six national trade unions AITUC, BMS,

CITU, INTUC, HMS and LPF. The ILO - ACTRAV / Norway Project ―Trade

Unions for Social Justice‖ supported this activity.

Each year, JAF observes the International Women‘s Day highlighting

women workers issues, rights and safety in general. This year, the JAF

conducted this public meeting highlighting the ILO‘s Message: ―Stop

violence at work‖. The meeting discussed women‘s rights and safety at

work place and created awareness on the need for ratification of C. No.

189 to ensure decent work for domestic workers.

Mr. G. Kalan, President, INTUC - Tamil Nadu Branch addressed the

gathering. He highlighted the issues of rights and safety of women

workers both in organized and unorganized sectors. He appreciated

the efforts of ILO in bringing all the national trade unions together to

work on various issues related to workers in general and women

workers in particular. The JAF reaffirmed its commitment and

cooperation to take forward the ILO activities.

Mr. Ariel B. Castro, Senior Specialist on Workers Activities, ILO-New

Delhi and Mr. Magnus Berge, Chief Technical Advisor, ACTRAV, ILO -

Geneva, also addressed the gathering.

Forging ILO - Media Partnership on Elimination of Child Labour

To pilot test a Media Kit on Child Labour, prepared under the Convergence Project against Child

Labour, an ILO-Media interaction was held at Manesar, Haryana on 25-26 March 2013. Twenty

one media persons from leading national newspapers as well as representatives of the regional

media from Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Gujarat, the five states where the

Convergence Project is being implemented, participated in the discussions. The participants

also included representatives from institutes of communication / schools of journalism.

Various aspects of child labour were shared by Ms Tine Staermose, Director, ILO Decent Work

Team for South Asia and Country Office for India, New Delhi; Dr Shantha Sinha, Chairperson of

the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights and Mr Y P Yajurvedi, Director-General of

the VV Giri National Labour Institute. Two young people, rescued from child labour and doing

well professionally, brought a positive note to the discussions. Ms Staermose said with the help

of the India‘s free and powerful media, ILO was looking to see how the movement against child

labour in India could be invigorated. ILO, she said, wanted to partner with the media to ensure

that the Media Kit was useful and widely disseminated. Dr Shantha Sinha said child labour was

a deeply contentious issue and trying to eliminate it sometimes disturbed a deep-seated

economic-political–social nexus.

The impact of education in ending

child labour cannot be over-

emphasised. In Kerala, in the

absence of child labour the wages of

adults went up by more than five

times. Dr Sinha described the

Convergence Project and its strategy

as ―a very effective pilot that now

needs to be taken forward by the

government and brought to scale‖.

Mr YP Yajurvedi spoke of the various

laws and the challenges of

enforcement. Ms Preet Verma,

National Project manager, ILO, spoke

on the Project interventions and the

processes that went into the

delineation and operationalization of

major Project

interventions.

E-Newsletter January—March 2013 From the ILO’s Office in India

Page 8

News, views and analysis from the world of work

―Full and productive employment and decent work should be a

central goal of the post-2015 development agenda.‖

- Mr. Guy Ryder, DG, ILO

.~*~*~

9th European Regional Meeting of ILO opened in Oslo, Norway, on 8

April 2013 with an urgent call for effective employment and social

policies in reaction to stark figures that show at least one million

Europeans lost their jobs in the past six months alone. 51

countries from Europe and Central Asia are participating in the

meeting.

~*~*~

A constitutional amendment guaranteeing equal rights for Brazil‘s

six and half million domestic workers comes into force on 2 April.

Several countries have now passed legislation protecting domestic

workers – evidence that the momentum sparked by the ILO

Convention 189 on domestic workers is growing.

~*~*~

Lebanon‘s long awaited pension reform within reach. For many

workers in the Lebanese private sector, reaching retirement age

means facing an uncertain future with little access to social

protection. But that‘s about to change thanks to the collaborative

work of the government, its social partners, the ILO and the World

Bank.

The right of workers and employers to create and join

organisations of their own choice freely and without fear of

reprisal or interference - to freely associate with whomever they

choose - is a fundamental right that the ILO's Declaration of

Philadelphia calls 'essential for sustained progress of societies

worldwide'. For over 60 years, the ILO Committee on Freedom of

Association (CFA) – the ILO supervisory body - has examined more

than 3,000 complaints about violations of this right. CFA‘s work is

―confidential, concreate and in consensus‖ says Paul van der

Heijden, Chair of the CFA since 2002.

~*~*~

The ILO marked International Women‘s Day with calls for action to

combat violence against women in the workplace. In a speech

delivered at the ILO‘s headquarters in Geneva on 8 March 2013,

Mr. Guy Ryder described gender-based violence as ―exceptionally

dehumanizing, pervasive and oppressive.‖

~*~*~

Economic crisis, social injustice and youth unemployment

threatens democracy in Europe, says Mr. Martin Schulz, President

of the European Parliament (EP). He noted that the ILO and the

EP were among "the first to oppose austerity measures" as a

response to the economic downturn and stressed the need for a

balance between fiscal discipline and growth.

~*~*~

A Safe Workplace is No Accident .

For more information and details regarding the snippets given above and a lot more, please

visit the ILO website: http://www.ilo.org

We welcome your suggestions and contributions. Please write to us.

Editorial Management & Advice: Ms. Tine Staermose, Director and Ms. Panudda Boonpala, Deputy Director.

Editor: Mr. Anandan P. Menon

We‘re on the web! www.ilo.org/india ILO Decent Work Team for South Asia &

Country Office for India

Core 4B, 3rd Floor, India Habitat Centre

Lodi Road, New Delhi – 110 003, India Promoting jobs, protecting people

Phone: +91-11-24602101

Fax: +91-11-24602111

E-mail: delhi@ilo.org

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ILO New Delhi Office staff with the visiting Regional Director, Mr. Yoshiteru Uramoto