112th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC)

The 112th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) is being held at the International Labour Organization (ILO) Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, in June 2024. Government officials, trade union representatives and employers’ associations from 187 countries gather every year in Geneva to develop international labour standards and set the broad policies of the ILO. The agenda for this year’s ILC includes a standard-setting discussion on protection against biological hazards, a general discussion on decent work and the care economy and a recurrent discussion on the strategic objective of fundamental principles and rights at work. 

During the two-week session, a delegation of worker leaders and representatives from the International Alliance of Waste Pickers, the International Domestic Workers Federation (IDWF), HomeNet International, Self-Employed Women’s Association of India (SEWA), StreetNet International and WIEGO will participate in the Conference’s committee meetings to ensure that the perspectives, needs and experiences of workers in informal employment are reflected in the discussions and the priorities and policies of the ILO. 

The Global Networks of Workers in Informal Employment and WIEGO have a long history of participating in international labour standard-setting processes at the ILO. Our priority is to ensure that labour standards adopted at the ILC provide protections for ALL workers, including the world’s two billion workers in informal employment (who make up 61% of the world’s workers).

Our Positions on Decent Work in the Care Economy

Care is central to human, social and economic well-being, as well as to sustained economic development and decent work. During the ILC discussion on decent work and the care economy, we will be advocating for: 

1. The right to care services and social protection; 
2. Extending maternity protections to self-employed workers in informal employment;
3. Expanding high-quality public child-care services for workers in informal employment
4. Providing long-term care services and social protection for older workers;
5. Solidarity with all care workers and their need for labour and social protections; and
6. Social dialogue as a critical pathway for shaping and embedding the ILO’s 5R Framework for Decent Care Work.

• Read the Global Position Paper from Workers’ Organizations in Informal Employment on Decent Work and the Care Economy – [also available in Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, French]
• Read the International Domestic Workers Federation Position Paper on Domestic Workers and the Care Economy – [also available in Spanish, French and Portuguese]

Additional Background Documents

• ILC 112 Report VI on Decent Work and the Care Economy and Points for Discussion;
• ILC 112 Report IV (2) on Protection against biological hazards in the working environment; 
• ILC 112 Report V (Rev.) on Fundamental principles and rights at work at a critical crossroads and Points for Discussion.

Media Contacts

• Graciela Mora (onsite in Geneva): +506 8358 5592; graciela.mora@wiego.org (English, Spanish)
• Kendra Hughes (in Ottawa): +1613-807-2724; kendra.hughes@wiego.org (English, Spanish, French)