ILO Understanding On Violence And Harassment: Five Key Questions

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UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Justin Forsyth meets with girls that had been kidnapped and raped by Boko Haram in Muna Garage IDP camp, in Maiduguri, Nigeria, 29 September 2017.For more than 8-years, Boko Haram related violence has devastated the lives of families and in particular children across northeast Nigeria. Nearly 1 million children have been displaced by the crisis and around 20,000 people killed, amid horrific violations of child rights. Children who have been killed, maimed and abducted, widespread sexual violence and the forcible recruitment of women and children as ‘human bombs’. Attacks on children, as well as children forced to carry out attacks, are so common that they are almost expected or accepted as part of the conflict.UNICEF’s Deputy Executive Director, Justin Forsyth, visits Maiduguri, northeast Nigeria, from 27 September to 29 September 2017. On the trip, Forsyth visited a UNICEF supported clinic, providing inpatient therapeutic care in Maiduguri town. The clinic is providing critical support to children affected by severe acute malnutrition, including an intensive care unit. With Maiduguri hosting so many displaced persons, there is a serious strain on health services. Forsyth met a one month old boy who had been left in a bag by the roadside. Some people thought the baby was a bomb. However, Aisha a mother of seven other children realized it was a baby and rushed the boy, who is now named Mohamed, to the clinic. She is now the surrogate mother.    Banki on the border with Cameroon, has been almost been completely destroyed and now houses thousands of displaced persons who have gathered at a camp for their own safety and to access basic services. In Banki, Forsyth went to a UNICEF supported primary health care clinic that is helping to treat children with severe acute malnutrition, saving many lives. He also sat in on a class at a temporary school set up to provide some opportunities for children to resume school and have

For the earliest time violence and harassment in the world of practice are included in new international labour standards, selected at the Centenary International Labour Conference and now open for ratification by ILO member States.

The process behind these instruments started in 2015, and – with the recent global outcry against violence and harassment – their adoption could not be more timely or relevant. The Convention is strong and practical. Together with the Recommendation, Convention No. 190  provides a clear framework for action and an opportunity to shape a future of work based on dignity and respect, free from violence and harassment. The right of everyone to a world of work free from violence and harassment has never before been clearly articulated in an international treaty. It also recognizes that such behaviours can constitute a human rights violation or abuse.

These instruments – the first of the ILO’s second century – also reaffirm the ILO’s crucial standard-setting role. They are tangible evidence of the enduring value and strength of the social dialogue and tripartism, and social dialogue and tripartism will be essential to implementing them at a national level.

What kind of acts come under the definition of “violence and harassment”? 

Definitions vary and lines are often blurred. For example, sexual “harassment” is often classified as a form of gender-based “violence”. This is why the Conference took a pragmatic approach, defining violence and harassment as “a range of unacceptable behaviours and practices” that “aim at, result in, or are likely to result in physical, psychological, sexual or economic harm”. This potentially covers physical abuse, verbal abuse, bullying and mobbing, sexual harassment, threats and stalking, among other things. The Convention also takes account of the fact that nowadays work does not always take place at a physical workplace; so, for example, it covers work-related communications, including those enabled by ICT.

Who will be protected under the Convention?

The Convention’s focus on inclusivity is very important. It means that everyone who works is protected, irrespective of contractual status, including interns, volunteers, job applicants, and persons exercising the authority of an employer. It applies to the public and private sectors, the formal and informal economy, and urban and rural areas.

Some groups and workers in certain sectors, occupations and work arrangements are acknowledged to be especially vulnerable to violence and harassment; for example, in health, transport, education and domestic work, or working at night or in isolated areas. The sectors specific to each country will be identified through tripartite consultation.

Gender-based violence and harassment are specifically highlighted, and the approach also takes into account third parties (e.g. clients, customers, service providers and patients) because they can be victims as well as perpetrators.

Importantly, the impact of domestic violence on the world of work is also included. This is a significant step in bringing domestic violence out of the shadows, and changing attitudes. The Recommendation also sets out practical measures, including leave for victims, flexible work arrangements, and awareness-raising.

Is it possible for the Convention to change attitudes?

Changing attitudes is never easy but is essential if we are to eliminate violence and harassment from the world of work. The adoption of strong instruments like this sends a powerful message. It makes the invisible visible, acknowledging the pervasiveness and unacceptability of violence and harassment.

We need to tackle the underlying causes, including multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, gender stereotypes and unequal gender-based power relations.

Workplace risk assessments, as set out in the Convention and detailed further in the Recommendation, can also help to change attitudes because they can take into account factors that increase the likelihood of violence and harassment (such as gender, cultural and social norms). The Convention and Recommendation also call for training and awareness-raising measures.

When does it come into force?

As with most ILO Conventions, Convention No. 190 will enter into force 12 months after two member States have ratified it. Given the high level of support indicated when it was adopted, we are confident it will come into force quickly.

But the Convention will have an impact even before then. All Member States are required to bring it to the attention of their competent national authorities, and this ensures the issues receive visibility at national as well as international level.