Objective 6: Facilitate fair and ethical recruitment and safeguard conditions that ensure decent work

The ILO Guidelines for a Just Transition towards Environmentally Sustainable Economies and Societies for All, adopted by representatives of governments, employers’ and workers’ organizations in 2015, provide a policy framework and an operational tool to address environmental change in a way that advances social justice and promotes decent work creation.1 This policy brief is part of a series of briefs that seek to deepen the technical and policy understanding of the application of the Just Transition Guidelines.

The U.S. government is committed to ensuring high labor standards, bringing workers' voices to the decision-making table, and enforcing rules against unfair labor practices – not just at home, but around the world. That is why President Biden launched the Presidential Memorandum on Advancing Worker Empowerment, Rights, and High Labor Standards Globally, the first whole-of-government approach to advance workers’ rights by directing departments and agencies to elevate labor rights in their work abroad.

The Presidential Memorandum on Global Labor Rights helps to:

The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) has been campaigning for comprehensive immigration and labour law reform to ensure decent work and rights for all workers, regardless of immigration status, and has developed a series of tools and resources to facilitate migrants’ awareness of their rights. 

The General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT) has been reaching out to trade unions in destination countries to ensure the protection of Nepalese migrant workers. They have moreover signed agreements and MoUs with trade unions in Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Hong Kong, and the Republic of Korea to enhance Nepalese workers' rights in these countries.

The group "Migrants CSC" informs and raises awareness among migrant workers (documented or undocumented) about their rights, the labour legislation in force in Belgium and the fight against all forms of exploitation and discrimination.

The service also responds to individual requests on issues such as work permits, extending residence permits, diploma equivalence, and validation of skills. 

In a nutshell:

The Arab Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) provides information and assistance, capacity building and services to support migrant workers in the region access decent work conditions, working hours, healthcare, justice, equal pay and gender equality. 

The MRC in 2018 launched a project aimed at supporting and empowering a total of 230,000 migrant workers from Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Indonesia based in Jordan. 

The African Trade Union Migration Network (ATUMNET) was formally formed and launched in August, 2016 after a meeting in Kigali, Rwanda, under the auspices of the African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa). 

The UnionMigrantNet is a European network of contact points providing services to migrants established, managed and supported by trade unions. It is promoted by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC).

The main goal of the network is to support fair labour mobility and migration. The services provided by the UnionMigrantNet contact points are aimed at promoting the collective and individual interests and rights of migrants regardless of their status.

In particular, the specific aims of the network are to: 

The Global Programme “Shaping development-oriented migration” (MEG) assists partner countries in leveraging the benefits of regular migration and engaging diaspora for sustainable development.

Working on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the MEG is active in up to 15 partner countries around the globe. It contributes towards implementing the GCM and is part of a comprehensive approach to migration and development. The MEG contributes to the following objectives: 

Established by the UN Network on Migration in May 2019, the Fund is governed by a diverse and inclusive Steering Committee and administered by the UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office.

Committed to safe, orderly, and regular migration, the Migration Multi-Partner Trust Fund supports the adoption and implementation of the Global Compact for Migration to encourage the uptake of migration approaches that benefit communities of origin, transit, and destination, as well as migrants.