The ILO and the right to strike

Abstract

The author argues that the June 2012 challenge by the ILO Employers' group to the hitherto generally accepted view regarding the right to strike under the Freedom of Association Convention, No. 87, is at odds with the historical understanding of the framework in which the Convention is embedded. She demonstrates how the ILO constituents have consistently recognized that there is a positive right to strike, which is inextricably linked to – and an inevitable corollary of – the right to freedom of association. The article also analyses the relative roles of the ILO supervisory bodies in this regard.

Dissensus and Deadlock in the Evolution of Labour Governance: Global Supply Chains and the International Labour Organization (ILO)

“…Discussions took place in a global context of rising employer power and declining worker power, as TNCs consolidated their power (Weil, 2014 ), and trade unions—with some notable exceptions—were in a state of decline (Visser, 2019 ). During this period, the Employers’ group leveraged their perceived power advantage to seek several changes in the ILO, including efforts to undermine the ILO’s approach to the right to strike (Bellace, 2014 ).…”

Historical perspectives on the International Labour Review 1921–2021: A century of research on the world of work1

“…The largest group of ILO authors contributed to the ILR in their capacities as researchers and technical experts, and with the increasing transformation of 42 Albert Thomas, in the first issue, introduced the ILO and its work (Thomas 1921). Harold Butler promoted the New Deal (Butler 1934), based on research provided by ILO economists. John G. Winant defined the ILO's role at the beginning of the Second World War (Winant 1939), and Edward Phelan outlined its role in the post-war world order (Phelan 1949).…”

New Directions in Employment Relations Theory: Understanding Fragmentation, Identity, and Legitimacy

“…International organizations, including multinational firms, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and multilateral institutions, such as the World Trade Organization and the European Commission, play an expanding role in a range of areas. They are involved in promoting global flows of goods, services, finance, and people; establishing the regulatory framework for these flows; and policing compliance with rules (Bellace 2014). Meanwhile, multinational firms have organized their own private regulation efforts, coordinating networks of organizations involved in standard setting and monitoring (Kuruvilla, Liu, Li, and Chen 2020).…”