Improving Compliance with Labour Protection

Labour protection is at the heart of the ILO’s mandate. Much of ILO’s work has centred on establishing labour protections through international labour standards, and more recently in extending such protections to all workers, regardless of their occupation or sector. Much of the academic and policy discussions have centred on of how much labour protection is granted by the law, also called the ‘level of labour protection’. However, how the law is observed in practice – the ‘degree of compliance’ – has paradoxically received less attention. Yet noncompliance with labour protections undermines the credibility of the ILO, and the regulatory system of its Member States. More importantly, it hurts the well-being of workers and their families.

The ILO Research Agenda on ‘improving compliance with labour protection’ aims to provide ILO constituents and the wider public with a greater understanding of current deficiencies in compliance and enforcement of labour protections and ultimately, to provide insights that can support ILO constituents in strengthening enforcement and compliance. Building on the existing literature in labour studies, industrial relations, political economy, labour law and economics, the research project adopts an inter-disciplinary and multi-faceted approach to analyse the subject conceptually and empirically, with a view to developing informed strategies.

Technical Inception Workshop

Initial work to develop the research agenda ‘Improving compliance with labour protection’ took place on November 14–15, 2023 at a technical workshop hosted by the ILO Research and Publications Department which hosted international and ILO experts. Participants engaged in critical discussions and engagement over the concept note to generate insights, improve knowledge on sources of information, and support the development of strategies that can inform technical work with ILO constituents.

• Full agenda of the 2-day Technical Inception Workshop
  (12 November, 2023)

• From left to right: Juan Chacaltana (ILO EMPLOYMENT), Ockert Dupper (ILO Vision Zero Programme Manager), Dora Sari (ILO STATISTICS), Janine Berg (ILO RESEARCH), Arianna Rossi (ILO Priority Action Programme on Supply Chains), Mark Anner (Rutgers University), Fabiola Mieres (ILO RESEARCH), Pamhidzai Bamu (WIEGO), Stephen Clibborn (University of Sydney), Aristea Koukiadaki (International Labour Review, ILR), Ana Virginia Moreira Gomes (University of Fortaleza, Brazil and currently ILO RO-Latin America and the Caribbean), Li Kungang (University of Anhui, China), Haroon Bhorat (University of Cape Town, South Africa), Elva Lopez Mourelo (ILO INWORK), Valkyrie Hanson (currently Regional Coordinator for Decent Work in Supply Chains, ILO Bangkok), and Leah F. Vosko (University of York, Canada).

From Theory to Practice Webinars provide a platform for experts to share insights on the practical challenges and successes on labour compliance and enforcement across different jurisdictions. These seminars serve as a bridge between theoretical knowledge and real-world application with the spirit to exchange ideas and learn from peers about this complex field of labour regulation.

(Coming soon)

Effective Labour Market Institutions Team:
Janine Berg, Fabiola Mieres, Pawel Gmyrek

Project contributors: Tim Gadanidis (March-July 2025).