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Governing Body

GB.268/11
268th Session
Geneva, March 1997

 

ELEVENTH ITEM ON THE AGENDA

Report of the Committee on Sectoral and
Technical Meetings and Related Issues

1. The Committee on Sectoral and Technical Meetings and Related Issues met in two sittings on 14 March 1997 and was chaired by Mr. Héthy (Hungary). The Employer Vice-Chairman and the Worker Vice-Chairman were Mr. Thüsing and Mr. Blondel respectively.

I. Composition and purpose of the sectoral meetings
to be held in 1998-99

2. The Committee had before it a paper prepared by the Office(1) on the composition and purpose of the sectoral meetings scheduled to be held in 1998-99.

3. A representative of the Director-General (Mr. Morozov, Director of the Sectoral Activities Department) introduced the paper. He recalled that one of the decisions made by the Committee in the course of the evaluation of the sectoral activities programme concluded in March 1995 was that Governing Body decisions on meetings would take place in two stages. The first stage would be the selection of sectors and topics for all meetings in November of even-numbered years. The second stage, the following March, would consist in the Committee's recommendations on the composition, purpose and mode of selection of participants for all the meetings included in the programme. At the Governing Body's previous session (November 1996), the Committee had selected the 12 sectors and topics to be included in the programme of sectoral meetings for the 1998-99 biennium. The task before them at the present session was to make seven recommendations for each of the 12 meetings on: the duration of the meeting; the type of meeting -- bipartite or tripartite; the size of the meeting; the method of selection of the participants; the countries to be invited; the countries to be put on a reserve list; and the purpose of the meeting.

4. Mr. Morozov explained that the Office had selected the countries proposed to be invited to the meetings on the basis of the criteria adopted in November 1995 by the Governing Body.(2) In November 1996 the Committee had noted the difficulty of obtaining full government representation in recent sectoral meetings. In an attempt to address this issue, the Office had sent a letter to all ILO member States inviting them to list in order of priority the meetings they would be interested in attending in 1998-99. Twenty-nine answers had been received by the deadline of 10 January. By the time the Office proposals were finalized (24 January), the Office had received answers from a total of 82 member States. Seventeen additional replies were received after 24 January. To the extent possible, the preferences expressed by member States had been taken into account in drawing up the proposals. The secretariats of the Employers' and Workers' groups were consulted informally on the size, type and purpose of the meetings, and their views had been taken into account as far as possible.

5. In their general comments the Workers recalled that on various occasions they had expressed regret as to the little interest shown by some governments in nominating high-level participants or in participating at all in sectoral meetings. They also regretted that in the past some governments had nominated representatives from missions in Geneva instead of sectoral specialists. Mr. Blondel felt that the Office did not seem to have respected the criteria approved by the Governing Body, in letter or in spirit, when it had drawn up the list of countries proposed. Indeed, quite a few countries in the various regions had been excluded. The Workers' group had in no way interfered in the choice of member States invited. They had no knowledge of the content of the letter sent to governments, nor had they been informed of the answers received.

6. Concerning the mode of selection of the Employer and Worker participants, the Workers requested that for all meetings they should be selected by the groups. It was difficult with regard to certain countries to obtain nominees who genuinely represented workers. The Workers' group selected qualified experts to represent and defend workers at sectoral meetings.

7. The Employers would have welcomed further information and statistical data on the countries selected by the Office. Mr. Thüsing welcomed the Office initiative to obtain the views of member States on the meetings they wished to attend. He indicated that it was difficult to judge whether the Office selection met the criteria, and affirmed that the Employers' and Workers' groups had not been consulted on the selection of countries. He recommended that in future the Office should consult the group secretariats on the countries to be invited, since this would avoid the nomination of countries where it was difficult to ensure adequate group representation. He supported the Workers' proposal for group-selected nominations to sectoral meetings, since each group could better assess the situation of their members in different countries and thus improve the chances of success of the meetings. He recognized the importance attached by governments to national delegations, and therefore proposed that the Employers' and Workers' groups consider nominating delegates from the same country, as far as possible, as the government of a country invited, if that country informed the groups of strong preferences in a particular case. This suggestion was endorsed by Mr. Blondel.

8. The Employers criticized the purposes proposed by the Office for the 12 meetings, which were too uniform and unimaginative. It was not always necessary for meetings to adopt resolutions, and the organization of different types of meetings should have been foreseen. The meetings themselves should decide what texts they wished to adopt, and proposed that the word "may" be used in the formulation of the expected results.

9. Representatives of a number of Governments (Austria, Germany, Russian Federation) welcomed the initiative of the Office to solicit the views of member States. A representative of the Government of Austria said that the former standing committee system reinforced continuity, since governments were involved in the preparation of the meetings from the initial stages. A representative of the Government of Germany noted that the short deadline for replies to the letter addressed to member States had precluded consultation with the national social partners. Governments could perhaps in future be given a longer deadline and could be invited to involve the social partners.

10. This statement was endorsed by a representative of the Government of the United States. She stated that one of the factors in a government's decision to accept or decline an invitation was the presence of the national social partners. There had been cases where one of the social partners had complained about criticisms addressed to them in their absence and to which they could not respond. She expressed concern about the letter sent by the Office, and felt it contained insufficient information to make possible a decision on participation, particularly for countries which did not frequently attend sectoral meetings. She invited the ILO to reinforce consultations with governments. The purpose of the meetings was not stated clearly enough, and she proposed that, in order to help governments designate their representatives to sectoral meetings, the Office should attach to the letter of convocation a paragraph stating the issues to be discussed.

11. A representative of the Government of India felt that meetings were important for tripartism and had an impact. He requested statistics on the countries proposed as participants. A lack of comparable statistics seemed to have led to the exclusion of his country from the meeting for the transport sector.

12. A representative of the Government of the Russian Federation thanked the Office for the work done between November and the present session. The selection of topics approved in November was fully satisfactory in his view.

13. A representative of the Government of China indicated that participation in international meetings and conferences had the effect of promoting reforms and improving national legislation in a country like China, where the economic situation had evolved considerably.

14. A representative of the Government of the United Kingdom welcomed the opportunity to continue to participate in sectoral meetings. Her Government welcomed the new format of sectoral meetings, especially the three-day symposium. With regard to the selection of participants she would approve whatever method ensured the best participation rate with the most appropriate experts.

15. A representative of the Arab Labour Organization noted with satisfaction that Arab members had been proposed for ten out of the 12 meetings. In view of the importance of electronics and mining he would have wished for Arab countries to have been represented also in the meetings for those sectors. Moreover, the representation of Arab States was limited to seven of the 20 who were Members of the ILO. Eight of the meetings proposed the participation of two or more Arab governments, and he invited the ILO to keep in mind the resolution adopted by the International Labour Conference with regard to the use of Arabic as a working language. Interpretation and translation services in Arabic had been neglected in a number of sectoral meetings held in 1996.

16. Representatives of a number of Governments (Austria, China, Germany, United States) strongly advocated the designation of national tripartite delegations to larger meetings. A representative of the Government of China said that governments were capable of selecting the best candidates in consultation with national social partners. He firmly believed that the Governing Body's view that larger meetings should have national delegations should be respected. A representative of the Government of Germany added that, regrettably, governments had to accept group-selected designations in order to avoid a stalemate. A representative of the Government of the United States strongly supported the nomination of national delegations in accordance with the outcome of the evaluation of the sectoral activities programme. She too recognized, however, the need to accept the consensus between the Employers' and Workers' groups for group-selected participants.

17. The Committee recommends to the Governing Body that for each meeting the Government representatives be appointed by the governments of the countries selected and the Employer and Worker representatives be appointed on the basis of nominations made by the respective groups of the Governing Body.

Duration of meetings

18. The Committee recommends to the Governing Body that the duration of each meeting be five calendar days.

Voluntary initiatives affecting training and education on
safety, health and environment in the chemical industries

19. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 69 participants, and that the following 23 countries be invited to participate: Argentina, Armenia, Brazil, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Russian Federation, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States.

20. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Algeria, Barbados, Chile, Finland, Ghana, Islamic Republic of Iran, Nicaragua, Romania, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates.

21. The Committee decided that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on voluntary initiatives affecting training and education on safety, health and environment in the chemical industries; to adopt conclusions that include guidance and proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Human resource implications of globalization
and restructuring in commerce

22. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 75 participants, and that the following 25 countries be invited to participate: Burundi, Canada, China, Colombia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Germany, Ghana, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Mali, Nepal, Nicaragua, Peru, Portugal, Slovenia, Suriname, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey.

23. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Algeria, Argentina, Benin, Brazil, Croatia, Dominica, Ethiopia, Finland, Grenada, Guatemala, Morocco, Nigeria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Zambia.

24. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on and experience of the emerging circuits of distribution and their impact on the employment and working conditions of commerce personnel; to adopt practical conclusions that include guidance and proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Technology and employment in the food and drink industries

25. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 60 participants, and that the following 20 countries be invited to participate: Burundi, Chile, China, Egypt, France, Ghana, India, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Portugal, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay.

26. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Argentina, Bahamas, Benin, Brazil, Ethiopia, Germany, Indonesia, Nepal, Philippines, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Tunisia.

27. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on how the effects on employment and working conditions of introducing new technology should be managed and what the roles of the tripartite parties should be in that process; to adopt conclusions that include guidance and proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Terms of employment and working conditions
in health sector reforms

28. The Employers proposed an increase in the private sector representation to this bipartite meeting.

29. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be bipartite, with a composition of 18 Government representatives, seven employers' representatives from the private sector and 25 Workers' representatives.

30. The Committee further agreed that the following 18 countries be invited to participate in the meeting: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mexico, Niger, Poland, Russian Federation, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Uganda, Zambia.

31. The Committee also agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Algeria, Bahamas, Brazil, Cuba, Cyprus, Dominica, Finland, Ghana, India, Italy, Morocco, Suriname, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, United States.

32. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on the impact on employment and working conditions of changes in the delivery of health services caused by reform of the health sector in countries undergoing structural adjustment and transition to market economies; to adopt conclusions that include guidance and proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Safety and health in the fishing industry

33. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 54 participants, and that the following 18 countries be invited to participate: Algeria, Chile, China, Cuba, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Norway, Panama, Philippines, Russian Federation, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Spain, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States.

34. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Denmark, France, Ghana, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mexico, New Zealand, Poland, Tunisia.

35. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on safety and health issues in the fishing industry; to assess work done by the FAO/ILO/IMO Working Group and by the FAO and the IMO; to adopt conclusions which identify follow-up activities and review ILO standards adopted specifically for fishermen; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

The impact of flexible labour market arrangements
in the machinery, electrical and electronic industries

36. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 72 participants, and that the following 24 countries be invited to participate: Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Portugal, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States.

37. The Committee also agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Argentina, Austria, Chile, Costa Rica, Ireland, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Nepal, Philippines, Turkey.

38. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on labour flexibility practices, their effects on employment and working conditions and on labour-management relations in the mechanical and electrical engineering industries; to adopt conclusions that include proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Social and labour issues in small-scale mines

39. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 54 participants, and that the following 18 countries be invited to participate: Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Burundi, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, South Africa, United Republic of Tanzania, Thailand, United States, Venezuela, Zimbabwe.

40. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Brazil, Chile, Fiji, Mali, Mexico, Namibia, Niger, Papua New Guinea, Viet Nam.

41. The Committee agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on the social and labour issues in small-scale mining and discuss the role of governments, the social partners and the ILO; to adopt conclusions that include proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Employment and industrial relations issues in oil refining

42. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 57 participants, and that the following 19 countries be invited to participate: Argentina, Azerbaijan, Brazil, China, Ecuador, Egypt, France, India, Indonesia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Romania, Russian Federation, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United States.

43. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Bolivia, Ghana, Italy, Kuwait, Norway, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, Ukraine, Uruguay, Venezuela.

44. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on employment and industrial relations issues in oil refining; to adopt conclusions that include proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Human resources dimension of structural
and regulatory changes and globalization
in postal and telecommunications services

45. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 60 participants, and that the following 20 countries be invited to participate: Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Cuba, Cyprus, Egypt, Finland, France, Ghana, India, Italy, Luxembourg, Russian Federation, Slovenia, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, United Kingdom, United States.

46. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Benin, Burkina Faso, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, Philippines, Sierra Leone, Sweden, Turkey, Venezuela.

47. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to share experience in dealing with liberalization and deregulation practices; to discuss the social implications of privatization and restructuring, with emphasis on employment status and levels, labour relations, working conditions and human resources development, including training and retraining; to adopt conclusions that include guidance and proposals for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

Human resource development in the public service
in the context of structural adjustment and transition

48. The Committee agreed that this meeting be bipartite, with 56 participants, and that the following 28 countries be invited to participate: Algeria, Bahamas, Benin, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, Germany, Hungary, India, Republic of Korea, Netherlands, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Russian Federation, Slovakia, South Africa, Suriname, Sweden, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Zambia.

49. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Armenia, Dominica, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Finland, Gambia, Lebanon, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Romania, Saint Lucia, Zimbabwe.

50. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to discuss the research findings; to adopt conclusions containing guidelines on human resource development of the public service in the context of structural adjustment and transition; and to adopt a report on the discussion.

Social and labour consequences of technological
developments, deregulation and privatization of transport

51. Mr. Thüsing stated that his group favoured the organization of a symposium for this complex sector so as to allow a free exchange of views by different interest groups. The multifaceted nature of the transport sector and the topic would benefit from the absence of a strict procedural framework. The new sectoral meetings system offered flexibility as to the type of meeting organized, and the Committee should make full use of these possibilities. An Employer member (Mr. Anand) added that, for Asian employers, the deregulation and privatization of the transport sector covered a number of sensitive issues which would better be dealt with in a symposium format.

52. Mr. Blondel took note of the Employers' arguments but found it difficult to see how all the problems could be considered during a three-day symposium. The experience of the recently held Symposium on Multimedia Convergence, which had not adopted conclusions, was a precedent to be avoided.

53. A representative of the Government of the United States agreed to a symposium only if conclusions were included in the purpose of the meeting. A representative of the Government of Germany approved the organization of symposia but was not convinced that this format was appropriate for the transport sector.

54. The Committee agreed that this meeting be organized in the form of a tripartite symposium, with 69 participants, and that the following 23 countries be invited to participate: Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Burundi, Egypt, El Salvador, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, United States, Zimbabwe.

55. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Austria, Benin, Bolivia, China, Finland, Gambia, Guatemala, India, Mauritius, Morocco, Nepal, Nigeria, Norway, Paraguay, Russian Federation, Thailand, Uruguay, Zambia.

56. The Committee also agreed that, as an output, this symposium should elaborate conclusions that would provide guidance for the ILO's future work in the various sectors considered. After the symposium, the Office should publish a report including a summary of the discussions.

Managing the privatization and restructuring of public utilities

57. The Committee agreed that this meeting should be tripartite, with 60 participants, and that the following 20 countries be invited to participate: Benin, Croatia, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, France, Grenada, Hungary, Israel, Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Peru, Russian Federation, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Suriname, Sweden.

58. The Committee further agreed to place the following countries on a reserve list: Argentina, Bahamas, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Colombia, Cyprus, Dominica, Guatemala, Italy, Lebanon, Madagascar, Mali, Panama, Spain, Switzerland.

59. The Committee also agreed that the purpose of the meeting should be to exchange views on experience in the privatization and restructuring of public utilities and their impact on employment, working conditions and human resource development, and service delivery; to adopt conclusions that include guidance for further action; and to adopt a report on the discussion. The meeting may also adopt resolutions.

60. The Committee recommends that the Governing Body approve --

  1. the type of meeting, the number of delegations and the countries to be invited to be represented, as proposed in paragraphs 19, 22, 25, 30, 33, 36, 39, 42, 45, 48, 54 and 57;
  2. the countries to be included on a reserve list, as proposed in paragraphs 20, 23, 26, 31, 34, 37, 40, 43, 46, 49, 55 and 58;
  3. the purpose of the meetings, as proposed in paragraphs 21, 24, 27, 32, 35, 38, 41, 44, 47, 50, 56 and 59.

II. Effect to be given to the recommendations of the
Tripartite Meeting on Improving the Conditions of
Employment and Work of Agricultural Wage Workers
in the Context of Economic Restructuring

61. The Committee had before it the Note on the Proceedings of the Tripartite Meeting on Improving the Conditions of Employment and Work of Agricultural Wage Workers in the Context of Economic Restructuring (Geneva, 23-27 September 1996) and the Director-General's proposals concerning the effect to be given to the texts adopted by the Meeting.(3)

62. A representative of the Government of India, who had chaired the Meeting, informed the Committee that it had dealt with essential issues for important social categories. He hoped that the texts adopted would contribute to improving the daily life of millions of farm labourers worldwide.

63. Considering the quality of the conclusions and the number of resolutions adopted, the Workers judged the Meeting to have been a total success and an illustration of how the new system could best be put to use. They thanked the Office for the thorough and professional preparation of the Meeting. In the conclusions the Office had been given a clear mandate to carry out research in important areas such as the situation of women and employment promotion policies and programmes. The Meeting also agreed to an appeal for ratification of the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138). He called the Committee's attention to the statement made during the Meeting expressing condolences and support to a Worker member, whose brother and other trade unionists were murdered in Colombia on 25 September.

64. The Employers judged the Meeting favourably, but were critical of its preparation. Mr. Thüsing quoted the closing speech made by the Employer Vice-Chairperson of the Meeting who had stressed his group's vigorous objection to a sensationalist press release published by the Office underlining the sector's most negative aspects and overlooking the improvements that had taken place. The resolutions adopted, however, illustrated the good work done by the Meeting.

65. The Workers did not share the Employers' views on the preparation of the Meeting or on the press release.

66. The Committee on Sectoral and Technical Meetings and Related Issues recommends that the Governing Body --

  1. authorize the Director-General to communicate the Note on the Proceedings:
    1. to governments, requesting them to communicate the texts to the employers' and workers' organizations concerned;
    2. to the international employers' and workers' organizations concerned;
    3. to the international organizations concerned;
  1. request the Director-General to bear in mind, when drawing up proposals for the future programme of work of the Office, the wishes expressed by the Meeting in paragraphs 25 to 26 of the conclusions and in the relevant parts of the resolutions.

III. Report of the Joint Maritime Commission

67. The Committee had before it the report of the Joint Maritime Commission (28th Session, Geneva, 22 October 1996) and the Director-General's proposals for the effect to be given to the texts adopted by the Commission.(4)

68. Mr. Blondel underlined that if there was no regular session of the Joint Maritime Commission during the next biennium, it would be important for arrangements to be made for convening a bipartite wage committee, as proposed by the Commission.

69. Mr. Thüsing agreed with Mr. Blondel, on condition that the wage committee meet without any additional financial expenditure for the Office.

70. The Committee on Sectoral and Technical Meetings and Related Issues recommends that the Governing Body --

  1. authorize the Director-General to communicate:
    1. the text of the resolution concerning the ILO minimum wage for able seamen to governments of member States, drawing their special attention to the paragraph of the resolution concerning the wage figure that should be applied in substitution for the figure contained in the Seafarers' Wages and Hours of Work and the Manning of Ships Recommendation, 1996 (No. 187);
    2. the text of the resolution to the international employers' and workers' organizations having consultative status;
  1. request governments to transmit the text of the resolution to the employers' and workers' organizations concerned;
  2. request the Director-General to continue consultations with the secretaries of the Shipowners' and Seafarers' groups of the Joint Maritime Commission on the establishment of a bipartite wage committee.

IV. Effect to be given to the Tripartite Meeting on the
Globalization of the Footwear, Textiles and Clothing Industries:
Effects on Employment and Working Conditions

71. The Committee had before it the Note on the Proceedings of the Tripartite Meeting on the Globalization of the Footwear, Textiles and Clothing Industries (Geneva, 28 October-1 November 1996), and the Director-General's proposals concerning the effect to be given to the texts adopted by the Meeting.(5)

72. An Employer member (Mr. Anand), who had chaired the Meeting, was pleased to report that this delicate assignment had been a success thanks to the support of the group secretariats and the Office.

73. Mr. Blondel underlined in particular the resolution on child labour, which called on governments as a matter of priority to ratify and fully implement a number of important instruments including Convention No. 138 and the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105). He also drew the Committee's attention to the conclusions, and in particular paragraph 6 on new employment possibilities and paragraph 8 on homeworkers.

74. A representative of the Government of the United States expressed her full satisfaction as to the outcome of the Meeting. The important texts adopted, and in particular the resolution on child labour, would serve a useful purpose. The excellent themes addressed by the panels had allowed participants to engage in fruitful dialogue.

75. A representative of the Government of Mexico judged the discussion to have been highly useful, even though the discussion on the social dimensions of trade in textile, clothing and footwear products had been contentious. It was misleading to say that the conclusions had been adopted unanimously, since two delegations had stated certain reservations.

76. The Committee on Sectoral and Technical Meetings and Related Issues recommends that the Governing Body --

  1. authorize the Director-General to communicate the Note on the Proceedings:
    1. to governments, requesting them to communicate these texts to the employers' and workers' organizations concerned;
    2. to the international employers' and workers' organizations concerned;
    3. to the international organizations concerned;
  1. request the Director-General to bear in mind, when drawing up proposals for the future programme of work of the Office, the wishes expressed by the Meeting in paragraphs 12 to 15 of the conclusions and in the resolutions.

V. Invitation of non-governmental international organizations

77. The Committee was informed(6) that it was proposed to invite the following non-governmental international organizations, besides those that have full consultative status with the International Labour Organization, to be represented by observers at the Meeting of Experts on Safety and Health in Forest Work:

78. The Committee was informed that it was proposed to invite the following non-governmental international organizations, besides those that have full consultative status with the International Labour Organization, to be represented by observers at the Tripartite Meeting on the Iron and Steel Workforce of the Twenty-first Century:

79. The Committee was informed that it was proposed to invite the following non-governmental international organizations, besides those that have full consultative status with the International Labour Organization, to be represented by observers at the Tripartite Meeting on Breaking through the Glass Ceiling: Women in Management:

80. The Committee on Sectoral and Technical Meetings and Related Issues recommends that the Governing Body authorize the Director-General to invite --

  1. the non-governmental international organizations mentioned in paragraph 77 above to be represented by an observer at the Meeting of Experts on Safety and Health in Forest Work;
  2. the non-governmental international organizations mentioned in paragraph 78 above to be represented by an observer at the Tripartite Meeting on the Iron and Steel Workforce of the Twenty-first Century;
  3. the non-governmental international organizations mentioned in paragraph 79 above to be represented by an observer at the Tripartite Meeting on Breaking through the Glass Ceiling: Women in Management.

VI. Other questions

(a) Draft IMO/ILO/UN/ECE Guidelines for Packing
of Cargo Transport Units (CTUs)

81. The Committee had before it the draft IMO/ILO/UN/ECE Guidelines for Packing of Cargo Transport Units (CTUs).(7)

82. The Committee recommends that the Governing Body endorse the publication by the IMO of the IMO/ILO/UN/ECE "Guidelines for the packing of cargoes, other than bulk cargoes into or onto cargo transport units (CTUs), applicable to transport operations by all surface and water modes of transport".

(b) Symposium on Multimedia Convergence
(Geneva, 27-29 January 1997)

83. The Committee had before it a paper(8) prepared by the Office and submitted for information.

84. Mr. Blondel, who had chaired the symposium, regretted the absence of conclusions. As time was pressing, however, he reserved his right to give his in-depth views on this meeting during the discussion of the report of the Committee in the Governing Body's plenary sitting.

85. Mr. Thüsing had received positive feedback from the Employer participants in the symposium. Since no negotiations had been involved, there had been more open discussion. The symposium had been a success. The Employers also intended to make a brief statement to the plenary sitting of the Governing Body when the Committee's report was considered.

86. A representative of the Government of Japan believed the three-day symposium to have been very fruitful. This type of meeting was a welcome innovation to the sectoral meetings system. He asked the Office to develop a meeting format which involved all participants fully and still led to conclusions.

87. A representative of the Government of Germany said that the quality of the discussion had been excellent. The subject-matter had been appropriate for a symposium, since the topic was new and its complexity lent itself particularly well to the symposium format.

88. A representative of the Government of the United States regretted that there had been no negotiated outcome to the symposium.

(c) ILO/WHO Consultation on Guidelines for
Conducting Pre-Sea and Periodic Medical Fitness
Examinations for Seafarers

89. The Committee had before it a paper(9) prepared by the Office.

90. The Committee recommends that the Governing Body --

  1. authorize the holding of the ILO/WHO Consultation on Guidelines for Conducting Pre-Sea and Periodic Medical Fitness Examinations for Seafarers in November 1997, in Geneva, with a composition of four ILO (two Shipowner and two Seafarer) representatives and four WHO representatives;
  2. request the Director-General to communicate its decision to the Director-General of the World Health Organization.

Geneva, 19 March 1997.

Points for decision:

1 GB.268/STM/1.

2 General characteristics for sectoral meetings, para. 7.

3 TMAWW/1996/14, attached to GB.268/STM/2.

4 JMC/28/4, attached to GB.268/STM/3.

5 TMFTCI/1996/11, attached to GB.268/STM/4.

6 GB.268/STM/5.

7 MSC 67/21/4, attached to GB.268/STM/6/1.

8 GB.268/STM/6/2.

9 GB.268/STM/6/3.


Updated by VC. Approved by NdW. Last update: 26 January 2000.

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