Right To Just and Humane Conditions of Work: International Labour Organization Convention NUMBER-187
Right To Just and Humane Conditions of Work: International Labour Organization Convention NUMBER-187
Right To Just and Humane Conditions of Work: International Labour Organization Convention NUMBER-187
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
It is a genuine pleasure to express my deep sense of thanks and gratitudeto my mentor,
philosopher and guide Dr.Virender Negi, University Institute of Legal Studies, Panjab
University, Chandigarh. His dedication and keen interest above all his overwhelming attitude to
help his students had been solely and mainly responsible for completing my project. His timely
guidance, meticulous scrutiny, scholarly advice and scientific approach helped me to a very great
extent to accomplish this task.
Gurtirath Kaur
3
Index
1. Acknowledgement…………………………………..2
2. Introduction………………………………………....3
3. Rights at work…………………………….………4-7
4. ILO Convention no.187…………………………8-12
5. Indian Judicial Approach…………………….12-15
6. Conclusion….…………………………………16-17
7. Bibliography……….……………………………18
4
INTRODUCTION
Manu, the law-giver of ancient India, ordained that the king should support all his subjects as
earth does for all the living beings, without discrimination. The epic Mahabharat mentions that
the king should look after the welfare of the disabled, helpless, orphans, widows, victims of
calamities, and pregnant women by meeting their minimum needs. Kautilya, the greatest
economist of the medieval period of Indian history, said, “in the happiness of his subjects lies the
king’s happiness, in their welfare his welfare...” Mahatma Gandhi viewed work more as duty
than as right.The Constitution of India provides the jural basis for laws regulating employment
and labour in India which are collectively also referred to as industrial law or labour laws. The
fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution provide inter alia for equality before the law and
for prohibition of discrimination on the basis of religion, caste, sex, etc. Similarly, the Directive
Principles of State Policy laid down in Part IV of the Constitution adjure the State to inter alia
ensure that all citizens have an adequate means of livelihood, right to education, and just and
humane conditions of work, and to further ensure participation of workers in the management of
industries.1
The International Labor Organization, created by the Treaty of Versailles after World War I, has
published labor standards in dozens of areas, but it has identified eight essential core standards
(see box on page 13), most of which refer to basic human rights. Of the 175 ILO member
countries, overwhelming majorities have ratified most of the eight standards. More than 150
have ratified the four treating forced labor and discrimination in employment and wages.
Washington has ratified just two standards, one abolishing forced labor and the other eliminating
the worst forms of child labor, placing the United States in the company of only eight other ILO
member countries, including China, Myanmar, and Oman.2Many proponents of labor standards
would expand the core list of ILO protections to cover workplace safety, working conditions, and
wages.
1
Steve Hughes And Nigel Haworth: The international Labour Organization (ILO), published by Routledge
Global Institution page no.-146
2
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/workers-rights-labor-standards-and-global-trade/
5
There is a close relationship between labor rights and trade union rights. Wage work emerged
with the advent of the industrial revolution. Initially, there were no laws to protect the health of
wage earners, no limits on the workday and no paid holidays, nor was there a right to organize on
behalf of the common good. At first, the organizing of wage earners suffered harsh repression,
and later it was merely tolerated. Ultimately, the contemporary regimes protecting labor rights
were instituted. Thanks to their exercise of the right to organize trade unions, workers have won
and maintained many work-related rights. Labor rights include the right to freedom of
association, collective bargaining and the right to strike.3
The preamble of the 1944 International Labour Organization Constitution, which the ILO and its
oversight organs have acknowledged to have the force of law and to be legally binding on
member states, is the touchstone in international law for the right to dignified working
conditions. In effect, the preamble proclaims the urgency of improving conditions of injustice,
misery, and privation. It notes that "the failure of any nation to adopt humane conditions of labor
is an obstacle in the way of other nations wishing to improve the lot of workers in their own
countries."
The right to dignified working conditions is closely linked to the prohibition against slavery,
servitude and forced labor in different countries.
Forced labor is defined as labor required under the threat of punishment, whatever it may be, and
for which the individual has not offered himself or herself voluntarily.While most states have
ratified the pertinent international instruments and proclaim the freedom to work in various
forums, to consider forced labor a thing of the past would be a glaring mistake.
In reality, the forms of forced labor that affect the freedom to accept work often go unnoticed,
and on occasion enjoy some social support. In several countries, prisoners are required to
3
Supra-1 page no. 158
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perform forced labor beyond the terms allowed in ILO Conventions 29 and 105. In other
countries, persons are prevented from resigning from certain posts; other countries impose
criminal sanctions for participation in strikes; and in others, persons rendering obligatory
military service are forced to perform activities beyond those strictly military in nature.
Article 7(a)(ii) of the ICESCR guarantees the right to remuneration that provides for dignified
living conditions for workers and their families. A similar provision appears in article 23 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights.The ILO has adopted conventions that regulate the
setting of minimum wage.
The main problems posed to the recognition and enjoyment of this right relate to the methods
used to determine minimum wage. 4
Convention No. 1 of the ILO limits the work day in industry,while Convention No. 30 does so
for commerce and offices. Although only fifty-two countries have ratified Convention No. 1, and
only thirty have ratified Convention No. 30, this is widely acknowledged to be an important
right.
In some countries greater limitations on the workday have been adopted. In others, in contrast,
there is more open-ended authorization for supplementary work or overtime, in practice
restricting the scope of the right to a limited workday.
This right is recognized and guaranteed not only in the main human rights instruments but also in
ILO Conventions Nos. 87 and 98.The latter are the most important elaboration of the mandate in
the preamble to the ILO Constitution relating to the freedom of association. The establishment of
free trade zones (FTZs), while providing jobs that might not otherwise be available, has also had
a significant impact on the rights of those specific sectors of workers-in large part because
worker protections are usually eased and trade union activities restricted in FTZs.5
Right to strike
It is the strength of workers’ struggles that has made the right to strike truly effective. Except for
article 8 of the ICESCR, the international instruments do not set forth the right to strike. The ILO
conventions have been silent with respect to this right, and it has been up to the oversight organs
to develop it and determine its scope.
4
Supra-2
5
ID
7
Despite ILO Convention No. 100 and the progress made in advancing the principle of
nondiscrimination, many obstacles remain to the full enjoyment of this right in many countries.
Even though national legislation in most countries enshrines the principle of equal pay for work
of equal value, discrimination in pay persists in practice.
Discrimination in pay affects not only women. It may also occur for any of the criteria prohibited
by ILO Convention No. 111,by article 2(2) of ICESCR, and article 2(1) of the ICCPR.6
The ILO has developed extensive doctrine on the scope and contents of the rights regulated by its
conventions. National legal systems have assimilated these principles.States have established
judicial and administrative systems for dealing with labor-related rights.
Human rights activists and labor rights defenders should make regular use not only of the
national courts, but also of the mechanisms of the international community. In particular, they
should
• support the trade unions of the respective country to make comments on the reports that the
governments must submit periodically to the International Labour Office;
• include comments and information on labor-related rights in the alternative reports submitted to
the CESCR; and
• establish mechanisms with the trade unions to advise them on the documentation and
submission of claims to domestic courts, the ILO and other international oversight organs.7
Migrant Workers
The need for cheap labor as fuel for the economic expansion of rich countries, and the problems
of unemployment and poverty in poorer countries, have contributed to increased migration of
people. Most developing countries use export of labor for securing badly needed foreign
exchange.
Migrant workers are subject to exploitation and denial of human rights. Migrant workers do not
generally enjoy the same political or ESC rights as citizens of host countries do. Legal protection
is generally unavailable.Undocumented workers are particularly vulnerable, since they have
neither legal protection nor the possibility of seeking help because they fear imprisonment and/or
deportation by the host country authorities.
6
Ahmedullah Khan: Commentary on the International Labour Organization and the Indian Response
7
http://nhrc.nic.in/Documents/Publications/KYR%20Work%20English.pdf
8
The ILO was the first to enact standards for the protection of the rights of migrant workers.
Child Labor
Another group that is vulnerable, exploited and denied rights at work are child workers working
in difficult or hazardous conditions. These young workers, in addition to facing immediate health
and other hazards, suffer the potential for long-term physical, intellectual and emotional distress.
Working children potentially face an adulthood of illiteracy and unemployment. Despite a range
of problems, child labor is widely practiced.
During the 1980s new forms of the organization of production and new global patterns of
investment have emerged.These have changed the pattern and meaning of work. In the last two
decades, the majority of new jobs in the developed countries have been of a "casualized" nature,
which is a shift from regulated and unionized work.Most governments of the Organization of
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have pushed for deregulation as well as
privatization of the social means of production. This has led to increased reliance on
subcontractors by private and public sector corporations.Workers in the subcontracted units
enjoy far fewer legal rights and benefits.8
Workers in the unregulated sectors are called invisible workers since they work in isolation in
scattered sweatshops and home-based units. They do not benefit from labor laws. Without a
collective identity, they cannot receive much protection, even if laws are enacted in their
favor.Some countries have enacted laws related to homeworkers, and in 1990 the ILO published
a conditions of work digest on homework.It provides in-formation on relevant, varied legislation
enacted in various countries. In Peru, for example, the wage rate for homeworkers cannot be less
than that paid for the same work in a factory or workshop.9
8
Supra-6
9
ID
9
DEFINITIONS
(a) the term national policy refers to the national policy on occupational safety and health and the
working environment developed in accordance with the principles of Article 4 of the
Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155);
10
https://www.civilserviceindia.com/subject/Law/notes/fundamental-right-work.html
10
(b) the term national system for occupational safety and health or national system refers to the
infrastructure which provides the main framework for implementing the national policy and
national programmes on occupational safety and health;
(d) the term a national preventative safety and health culture refers to a culture in which the right
to a safe and healthy working environment is respected at all levels, where government,
employers and workers actively participate in securing a safe and healthy working environment
through a system of defined rights, responsibilities and duties, and where the principle of
prevention is accorded the highest priority.
OBJECTIVES
Article 2 (1) Each Member which ratifies this Convention shall promote continuous
improvement of occupational safety and health to prevent occupational injuries, diseases and
deaths, by the development, in consultation with the most representative organizations of
employers and workers, of a national policy, national system and national programme.
(2)Each Member shall take active steps towards achieving progressively a safe and healthy
working environment through a national system and national programmes on occupational safety
and health by taking into account the principles set out in instruments of the International Labour
Organization (ILO) relevant to the promotional framework for occupational safety and health.
(3) Each Member, in consultation with the most representative organizations of employers and
workers, shall periodically consider what measures could be taken to ratify relevant occupational
safety and health Conventions of the ILO. 11
NATIONAL POLICY
Article 3
(1) Each Member shall promote a safe and healthy working environment by formulating a
national policy.
(2) Each Member shall promote and advance, at all relevant levels, the right of workers to a safe
and healthy working environment.
11
International Labour Organization Convention No. 187
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(3) In formulating its national policy, each Member, in light of national conditions and practice
and in consultation with the most representative organizations of employers and workers, shall
promote basic principles such as assessing occupational risks or hazards; combating occupational
risks or hazards at source; and developing a national preventative safety and health culture that
includes information, consultation and training.
NATIONAL SYSTEM
Article 4
(1) Each Member shall establish, maintain, progressively develop and periodically review a
national system for occupational safety and health, in consultation with the most representative
organizations of employers and workers.
(2) The national system for occupational safety and health shall include among others:
(a) laws and regulations, collective agreements where appropriate, and any other relevant
instruments on occupational safety and health;
(b) an authority or body, or authorities or bodies, responsible for occupational safety and health,
designated in accordance with national law and practice;
(c) mechanisms for ensuring compliance with national laws and regulations, including systems
of inspection; and
(d) arrangements to promote, at the level of the undertaking, cooperation between management,
workers and their representatives as an essential element of workplace-related prevention
measures.
(3) The national system for occupational safety and health shall include, where appropriate:
(a) a national tripartite advisory body, or bodies, addressing occupational safety and health
issues;
(d) occupational health services in accordance with national law and practice;
(f) a mechanism for the collection and analysis of data on occupational injuries and diseases,
taking into account relevant ILO instruments;
(g) provisions for collaboration with relevant insurance or social security schemes covering
occupational injuries and diseases; and
(h) support mechanisms for a progressive improvement of occupational safety and health
conditions in micro-enterprises, in small and medium-sized enterprises and in the informal
economy.12
NATIONAL PROGRAMME
Article 5
(1) Each Member shall formulate, implement, monitor, evaluate and periodically review a
national programme on occupational safety and health in consultation with the most
representative organizations of employers and workers.
(a) promote the development of a national preventative safety and health culture;
(c) be formulated and reviewed on the basis of analysis of the national situation regarding
occupational safety and health, including analysis of the national system for occupational safety
and health;
(e) be supported, where possible, by other complementary national programmes and plans which
will assist in achieving progressively a safe and healthy working environment.
(3) The national programme shall be widely publicized and, to the extent possible, endorsed and
launched by the highest national authorities.
FINAL PROVISIONS
12
Supra-11
13
Article 6 -This Convention does not revise any international labour Conventions or
Recommendations.
Article 7 -The formal ratifications of this Convention shall be communicated to the Director-
General of the International Labour Office for registration.
Article 8 (1) - This Convention shall be binding only upon those Members of the International
Labour Organization whose ratifications have been registered with the Director-General of the
International Labour Office.
(2) It shall come into force twelve months after the date on which the ratifications of two
Members have been registered with the Director-General.
(3) Thereafter, this Convention shall come into force for any Member twelve months after the
date on which its ratification is registered.
Article 9 (1) - A Member which has ratified this Convention may denounce it after the expiration
of ten years from the date on which the Convention first comes into force, by an act
communicated to the Director-General of the International Labour Office for registration. Such
denunciation shall not take effect until one year after the date on which it is registered.
(2) Each Member which has ratified this Convention and which does not, within the year
following the expiration of the period of ten years mentioned in the preceding paragraph,
exercise the right of denunciation provided for in this Article, will be bound for another period of
ten years and, thereafter, may denounce this Convention within the first year of each new period
of ten years under the terms provided for in this Article.
Article 10 (1)- The Director-General of the International Labour Office shall notify all Members
of the International Labour Organization of the registration of all ratifications and denunciations
that have been communicated by the Members of the Organization.
(2) When notifying the Members of the Organization of the registration of the second ratification
that has been communicated, the Director-General shall draw the attention of the Members of the
Organization to the date upon which the Convention will come into force.
Article 11 -The Director-General of the International Labour Office shall communicate to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations for registration in accordance with Article 102 of the
Charter of the United Nations full particulars of all ratifications and denunciations that have been
registered. 13
13
Supra-11
14
Article 12 - At such times as it may consider necessary, the Governing Body of the International
Labour Office shall present to the General Conference a report on the working of this
Convention and shall examine the desirability of placing on the agenda of the Conference the
question of its revision.
Article 13 (1) Should the Conference adopt a new Convention revising this Convention, then,
unless the new Convention otherwise provides:
(a) the ratification by a Member of the new revising Convention shall ipso jure involve the
immediate denunciation of this Convention, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 9 above, if
and when the new revising Convention shall have come into force;
(b) as from the date when the new revising Convention comes into force, this Convention shall
cease to be open to ratification by the Members.
(2) This Convention shall in any case remain in force in its actual form and content for those
Members which have ratified it but have not ratified the revising Convention.
Article 14- The English and French versions of the text of this Convention are equally
authoritative.
More recently, the court performed a similar exercise when, in the context of articles 21 and 42,
it evolved legally binding guidelines to deal with the problems of sexual harassment of women at
the work place (Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan 15 (1997) 6 SCC 241.). The right of workmen to be
heard at the stage of winding up of a company was a contentious issue. In a bench of five judges
that heard the case the judges that constituted the majority that upheld the right were three. The
14
Bandhua Mukti Morcha v. Union of India, (1984) 3 SCC 161
15
Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (1997) 6 SCC 241
15
justification for the right was traced to the newly inserted Article 43-A, which asked the 11 state
to take suitable steps to secure participation of workers in management. The court observed: It is
therefore idle to contend 32 years after coming into force of the Constitution and particularly
after the introduction of Article 43-A in the Constitution that the workers should have no voice in
the determination of the question whether the enterprise should continue to run or be shut down
under an order of the court. It would indeed be strange that the workers who have contributed to
the building of the enterprise as a centre of economic power should have no right to be heard
when it is sought to demolish that centre of economic power.
CONCLUSION
From the very beginning of our life, we are surrounded by those people who only taught us about
class and caste discrimination. We were hindered from playing with the children’s whom our
16
society called backward class; we cannot eat food which is touched by the people of these
classes.
Due to which these peoples’ area of job seeking falls limited and they are forced to be bonded
labor. This is why we need to change our mental viewpoint at first place we have to understand
that class and caste is not universal, it is what we make, and it is what we decide, all these
normative thinking have to be flush out from the psyche of the people which can only be
possible by educating them because education plays a very important role in shaping the
demeanour of a person through which there can be a possibility of equal distribution of
opportunities and there should also be respect for the labours dignity.
These people should also be counseled about the factor and should provide confidence that they
are meant not only for these types of works but they can also be a part of respectful professions
whether it is teaching, engineering, etc. all they need is education. They can educate their
children’s and can live a life worth living. They have to understand that they are not born for
being slaves they can be kings as well and can live the way they want and can have employment
wherever they want.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. International Labour Organization Convention No. 187
2. Ahmedullah Khan: Commentary on the International Labour Organization and the Indian Response.
3. N.N Kaul, India and International Labour Organization, Metropolian Book, Delhi, 1956.
4. Steve Hughes And Nigel Haworth: The international Labour Organization (ILO), published by
Routledge Global Institution.
5. http://nhrc.nic.in/Documents/Publications/KYR%20Work%20English.pdf
6. https://www.civilserviceindia.com/subject/Law/notes/fundamental-right-work.html
7. http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/edumat/IHRIP/circle/modules/module10b.htm