• Railroad Worker"Indian Railways Track Maintenance _Dec 2007_ _Jalandhar_Punjab_India_ by gopal1035 (50)" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: gopal1035 (Gopal Aggarwal) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
  
  

International Labor Organization

• The International Labor Organization was founded in 1919 in the wake of World War One as part of the original League of Nations. In 1946, the United Nations made it its first specialized agency. The organization states that "labor peace is essential to prosperity." It devotes itself to furthering employment opportunities for people across the globe to enjoy basic levels of "freedom, equity, security and human dignity" in the workplace.
  
  

Fundamental Principles

• The International Labor Organization adopted its Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work at its 1996 conference. The Declaration proscribed four "fundamental" principles for its 183 member states. These "fundamental" rights include freedom of association and collective bargaining, the prohibition of discrimination, the prohibition of forced labor, and the prohibition of child labor. An overwhelming majority of member states have ratified the fundamental principles as of 2009. The US has ratified the principles barring forced and child labor.
  
  

US Labor Laws

• While the US has not ratified many of the international conventions that deal with labor issues, it does have a robust employment law regime. The National Labor Relations Act allows private sector employees to choose if they wish to join a union or not and bars employers from discriminating on that basis. Subsequent laws have relaxed some of these standards. The Fair Labor Standards Act provides a minimum wage and overtime wages for public sector employees. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) sets employer standards for pension issues. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) prescribes workplace safety standards. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in the workplace based on race, national origin, religion and gender. Congress has passed additional laws to protect disabled and elderly workers. Finally, many states have passed their own labor laws that go further in protecting workers than US federal law.
  
  

European Union

• The European Community promulgates minimum labor requirements that govern employment conditions. European member states then model their national law to guarantee worker protections that fall within these European requirements. National courts and other national bodies enforce these protections. In addition, the European Court of Justice helps settle disputes and disseminates legal advice regarding the interpretation and implementation of such laws.
  
  

Other International Labor Conventions

• The 1948 Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention provides the right for employers and employees to join organizations. The 1949 Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining Convention prohibits discrimination against union members. The 1930 Forced Labour Convention prohibits forced labor. The 1957 Abolition of Forced Labour Convention strengthens anti-forced labor provisions. The 1958 Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention requests a national policy to eradicate workplace. The 1958 Equal Remuneration Convention calls for man and women to receive equal pay. Finally, the 1973 Minimum Age Convention attempts to abolition child labor.