The International Labour Office welcomed the adoption on Friday of a resolution
on the ILOs Global Jobs Pact sponsored by more than 170 countries attending the
UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) meeting here.

The Global Jobs Pact is an urgent call for worldwide action at the national,
regional and global level to put employment and social protection at the heart
of recovery policies.

Citing the depth and breadth of the economic and financial crisis affecting all
countries and the ensuing employment losses and human hardship, the resolution
encourages UN Member States to promote and make full use of the Global Jobs
Pact as a general framework within which each country can formulate a policy
package specific to its situation and priorities.

This resolution provides a strong new element in the growing international
support for the ILOs Global Jobs Pact, said ILO Director-General Juan Somavia.
It is an indication of both the urgency of the situation, and the relevance and
timeliness of the Pact and creates a strong platform for follow-up actions in
addressing the global jobs crisis.

The resolution E/2009/L.24 was adopted by consensus following an introduction
by the Ambassador of Brazil, H.E. Farani Azevedo, Chairperson of the Governing
Body of the ILO.

The resolution requests UN funds, programmes and specialized agencies to take
into account the Global Jobs Pact in their policies and programmes and invites
international financial institutions and other relevant international
organizations to integrate the policy contents of the pact in their activities.

It further invites donor countries, multilateral and other development partners
to consider providing funding for the implementation of the recommendations and
policy options of the Global Jobs Pact. The resolution requests the
Secretary-General to report to ECOSOC at its 2010 session on progress made in
its implementation.

The Global Jobs Pact was adopted by government, employer and worker delegates
at the 98th session of the International Labour Conference in June, following
strong support from heads of state and government, vice presidents, ministers
of labour and leaders of workers and employers organizations during the ILO
Summit on the Global Jobs Pact, held on 15-17 June.

G8 leaders meeting in Italy in early July also highlighted the relevance of the
Global Jobs Pact in responding to the crisis worldwide and advancing the social
dimension of globalization.

The Pact is a productive growth agenda for the recovery of the real economy,
based on the ILOs Decent Work Agenda. It proposes a balanced and realistic set
of policy measures that countries, with the support of regional and
multilateral institutions, can adopt to strengthen their ongoing efforts to
address the crisis while pursuing economic, social and environmental
sustainability.

The Economic and Social Council is the specialized organ of the United Nations
in charge of coordinating the economic, social and related work of the 14 UN
specialized agencies, functional commissions and five regional commissions.

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AplusA-online.de - Source: International Labour Office