Cabinet to put ILO recommendations into practice

India is in support of the Recommendation pertaining to ‘The Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience (No.205)’, adopted by ILO in 2015.

The International Labour Organisation provides guidance to its member states, including India, on the measures to be taken to generate employment and decent work for the purposes of prevention, recovery, peace and resilience, with respect to crisis situations arising from conflicts and disasters.

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for placing the new Instrument adopted by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Recommendation concerning “The Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience (No.205)” before the Parliament. The International Labour Conference of ILO at its 106th session held in Geneva in June, 2015 adopted the Recommendation, and India supported the same.

The Recommendation also emphasises the need to ensure respect for all human rights and the rule of law, including respect for fundamental principles and rights at work and for International Labour Standards, in particular, those rights and principles relevant to employment and decent work.

Each member state of ILO is required to submit the instruments so adopted, before the competent authority (the Parliament in case of India). The adoption and placing of the Instrument for the information of the Parliament does not create any immediate obligation.

An ILO Recommendation is a non-binding instrument, which seeks to serve as a guiding principle for the national policy process.

The Recommendation affirms the need to develop and strengthen measures of social protection, as a means of preventing crises, enabling recovery and building resilience. It states that Members should adopt a phased multi-track approach implementing coherent and comprehensive strategies for promoting peace, preventing crises, enabling recovery and building resilience.

The approach should include promotion of local economic recovery for employment and decent work opportunities, as well as socio-economic reintegration, social protection and social inclusion, sustainable development, the creation of sustainable enterprises (in particular small and medium-sized enterprises); ensuring consultation and encouraging active participation of employers’ and workers’ organisations in planning, implementing and monitoring measures for recovery and resilience.

The Recommendation No. 205 is applicable to all workers and jobseekers, and to all employers, in all sectors of the economy affected by crisis situations arising from conflicts and disasters. It is also applicable to workers engaged in crisis response, including those involved in immediate response.