2004

1. Youth unemployment at all time high

   01 November 2004

   Half the world's unemployed are under 24, according to a new ILO study that charts the skyrocketing of youth unemployment over the past decade. Global Employment Trends for Youth, 2004 ( Note 1) puts the global youth unemployment rate at 14.4 per cent in 2003, a 26.8 per cent increase in the total number of unemployed young people over the past decade. Although young people represent 25 per cent of the working age population, they make up as much as 47 per cent of the 186 million people out of work worldwide in 2003. Some 88 million young people, aged 15 to 24, are out of work.

2. Mining out child labour in Santa Filomena

   01 November 2004

   They still mine for gold in Santa Filomena, a remote mining community far from Lima, Peru. But these days, they do it without the children. With the help of the ILO, this village of 1,500 inhabitants was able to declare itself child labour free this past June - providing a new sheen to the miners and their community.

3. European Companies and Nordea "Societas Europeae": Ancient name, new concept

   01 November 2004

   After years of debate and discussion, the European Union's plan to allow multinational companies to incorporate as "European Companies" is about to become a reality. The statute, together with an accompanying directive covering worker involvement, was passed in October 2001, to come into force three years later. From October of this year, a brave new experiment in company governance will begin allowing companies to operate across the EU with one set of rules and a unified management and reporting system.

4. Ten years after: A decade of progress for indigenous peoples

   01 November 2004

   The United Nations International Decade for the World's Indigenous People has focused new attention on the plight of these vulnerable peoples. Now, more than a decade after the adoption of the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169) - World of Work examines what progress has been made, and what problems still face these people in today's globalized world.

5. First global analysis: HIV/AIDS to have major impact on world of work

   01 November 2004

   An estimated 36.5 million people of working age have HIV, and by next year the global labour force will have lost as many as 28 million workers due to AIDS since the start of the epidemic. So says a new global report ( Note 1) by the International Labour Office (ILO) that paints a grim picture of the impact of HIV/AIDS on the world of work.

6. Global economic security in crisis: New ILO report finds "world full of anxiety and anger"

   01 November 2004

   A new ILO report ( Note 1) says that economic security promotes personal well-being, happiness and tolerance, while benefiting growth and social stability. Yet it finds the overwhelming majority of people in a state of economic insecurity, and raises doubts over rich countries' ability to turn wealth into happiness.

7. Indonesia: The art of collective bargaining

   22 October 2004

   Trade union rights have come a long way in Indonesia in the past six years. ILO online examines how a Labour Union leader in a Jakarta supermarket, with the help of an ILO programme, has set an example for dozens of other companies in Indonesia to create a productive workplace where not only workers but clients benefit.

8. India: hope dawns as women beat poverty

   15 October 2004

   On the eve of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (17 October), women around the world are organizing against poverty. In India, hundreds of self-help groups provide one example how women, with the support of unions and the ILO, can mobilize to improve their lives.

9. Frail older people – the long-term care challenge

   04 October 2004

   As the population in industrialized countries ages rapidly, the number of destitute and dependent people is growing. An average pension rarely covers the high costs of qualified care for the elderly. For this reason, Germany and Japan have introduced mandatory insurance systems to support care giving family members and relieve some of the burden on the state. German journalist Antje Soleimanian reports.

10. Fair globalization gathers momentum at the United Nations: An interview with ILO Director-General Juan Somavia

    01 October 2004