ILO chief's plea to new labour body

United Nations, Nov 2 (UNI) The head of the UN labour agency has appealed to the members of a new international labor group to grasp the opportunity of partnering with the United Nations, employers and workers to turn global goals for decent work into reality.

At the first conference of the International Trade Union Confederation, Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Juan Somavia said the new body's constitution would ''help make it a foundation for the new global social contract we direly need.'' He said, '' The frontline of the struggle is to ensure that workers have a say in adapting to the new global realities.

Globalisation has made the international framework of labour standards established by the ILO increasingly necessary.'' Copies of his remarks made yesterday in Vienna, Austria, were made available at the UN headquarters in New York.

Mr Somavia called upon the confederation, representing 166 million workers, to initiate a dialogue with international employers to support the ILO's new Decent Work Country Programmes in a drive to cut poverty to half by 2015 through the creation of decent work, which encompasses rights at work, employment, social protection and social dialogue. He also said the ILO and the confederation should persist in their commitment to the right of workers to organise, especially in the informal economy.

''Organising workers in the informal economy is a fundamental right,'' he said. ''In the developing world, organising has a local development meaning, helping whole communities onto a path of increasing productivity, improving incomes and workingconditions, providing better quality products and services.'' The new body comprises the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, the World Confederation of Labour and eight national trade union organisations. It was formed to give workers a stronger voice in meeting the challenges of globalisation and allow the union movement to remain a key player in an economic climate that is creating more losers, he said.

'' The political forces, the social development actors, the civil society voices, international organisations are all coming together for decent work for a decent life,'' Mr Somavia said, adding, ''the movement and the moment have arrived.'' UNI XC SAM HT1150