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 Within the framework of the overarching concept of human rights, labor rights have always been at the center of the UN agenda. The right to work is reflected in Article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which includes the right to equal pay, the right to a fair salary, and the right to be part of trade unions.
Labor rights are at the core of international human rights law. Issues concerning labor rights are addressed through a variety of sub-topics, such as gainful employment for refugees, the right to work for all individuals regardless of race or ethnic origin, the non-discrimination of women in the field of employment, the conditions for child labor, the rights for the persons employed abroad (migrant workers), and the right of persons with disabilities to work on an equal basis with others.
The UN specialized agency dedicated to the topic, the International Labour Organization (ILO), is devoted to advancing opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. The ILO was founded in 1919, in the wake of a destructive war, to pursue a vision based on the premise that universal, lasting peace can be established only if it is based upon decent treatment of working people. The ILO became the first specialized agency of the UN in 1946.
 The forthcoming 98th Session of the International Labor Conference, organized by the ILO and expected to take place in June in Geneva, is going to host current debates on labor rights, namely “HIV/AIDS in the world of work” and “Gender equality at the heart of decent work”.
A widely discussed issue within the framework of labor rights is child labor. Currently, there are more than 200 million children under the age of 15 whom are part of a labor force, 55% are girls. ILO conventions 138 (1973) and 182 (1999) define child laborers as all children younger than 12 working in any economic activity, children 12–14 years old engaged in more than light work, and all children engaged in the worst forms of child labor – in which they are enslaved, forcibly recruited, prostituted, trafficked, forced into illegal activities or exposed to hazards. In addition to these ILO conventions, child labor is addressed in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UN Millennium Declaration, and the Oslo Agenda for Action adopted by the 1997 International Conference on Child Labor.
 Child labor is an issue that is being addressed through several collaborative efforts between the UN, civil society, and the private sector. For example ILO, UNICEF and the World Bank initiated the Rome-based inter-agency research project, Understanding Children's Work (UCW), in December 2000. The Project is guided by the Oslo Agenda for Action, which specifically identified the need to improve data collection, research capacity and monitoring systems related to child labor, and called for stronger co-operation amongst international agencies involved in combating child labor. Furthermore, the ILO and UNICEF run projects with several NGO partners in the field. For example, in February this year, the ILO extended its collaboration projects addressing child labor together with the World Organization of the Scout Movement. In Morocco, UNICEF and its partners, including the National Observatory for Children’s Rights, are working to reduce the number of children working in the handicrafts sector in Fez. Together they established the Fkih Mohamed Tahiri School, which offers former child laborers the opportunity to acquire formal education and to integrate with other children.
Last year, the UN proclaimed 12 June as the World Day against Child Labor, to raise awareness of the need to use education as a way to address child labor. The focus for this year will be on girls and labor.
 In a related topic, to promote the values of human rights and take part in the effort against racism and xenophobia, the UN is organizing the Durban Review Conference which will be held in Geneva from 20-24 April 2009. The purpose of the conference is to evaluate progress towards the goals set by the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in Durban, South Africa, in 2001.The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, marked the upcoming occasion by stating. “A rise in xenophobia, anti-migrant sentiments and discriminatory practices is likely to affect the rights of migrant workers and members of their families,” the report says. “Migrant workers will be, and already are, the first ones to lose their jobs.”
For more, see:
www.un.org
www.ilo.org
www.unicef.org
www.un.org/durbanreview2009
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