Recently, the 113th Plenary Session of the International Labour Conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland.

About International Labour Conference (ILC)

• The International Labour Conference (ILC) is the highest decision-making body/General Assembly of the International Labour Organization (ILO).
  • It is often referred to as the “Parliament of Labour” and is held annually in Geneva, Switzerland. 
• First Session: The first session was held in Washington in 1919. 
  • From India, Narayan Malhar Joshi, a trade union leader and follower of Gopal Krishna Gokhale, participated as a representative of labourers.
• Annual Meeting: The ILC meets annually in Geneva and brings together representatives from governments, employers, and workers of all 187 ILO member states.
• Tripartite Structure: Each member country sends four delegates:
  • Two government representatives
  • One employer representative
  • One worker representative
    • Each delegate has one independent vote.
• India and ILC: India is a founder member of the International Labour Organization, which came into existence in 1919.
  • The International Labour Conference (ILC) has so far had 4 Indian Presidents:
    • Sir. AtulChatterjee (1927), 
    • Shri Jagjivan Ram, Minister for Labour (1950), 
    • Dr.Nagendra Singh, President, International Court of Justice (1970) and 
    • Shri RavindraVerma, Minister of Labour and Parliamentary Affairs (1979). 

Key Points From The 113th Plenary Session of International Labour Conference 2025

• Adoption of Convention No. 192 on Biological Hazards: The conference adopted Convention No. 192, the first international standard specifically addressing biological hazards in the working environment. 
• Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), 2006: Approved Amendment to the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), 2006. 
  • This amendment ensures the right to shore leave and repatriation for seafarers.
  • It reinforces recognition of seafarers as key workers.

• • • The Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), 2006, adopted by the International Labour Organization (ILO), is a comprehensive international treaty that sets minimum working and living standards for seafarers globally.
    • India ratified the MLC in 2015.
• Decent Work in the Platform Economy: Discussed for the first time, standard-setting process to address labour issues in the platform economy, including gig and app-based work. 
  • It aims to improve rights and protections for platform-based workers.
  • The goal is to adopt a new Convention and Recommendation in 2026 that ensures rights related to fair pay, health and safety, data protection, social security, and freedom of association for platform-based workers.
• Labour Rights and Human Rights: The ILC granted Palestine observer status at the ILO. 
  • The conference invoked Article 33 of the ILO Constitution against Myanmar, urging the military junta to comply with international recommendations on forced labour. 
  • It also discussed labour rights violations in countries such as Belarus, Hungary, Georgia, Iraq, Kyrgyzstan, and Malaysia.
• ILO’s Role in Global Social Development: Provided formal approval for the ILO’s tripartite contribution to the upcoming Second World Summit for Social Development (November 2025, Doha).

Achievements Of India Highlighted In 113th Plenary Session of the International Labour Conference

• India’s unemployment rate declined from 6% in 2017 to 3.2% by 2024.
• Over 7.5 crore jobs were created in the formal sector in the last seven years.
• National Career Service (NCS) portal being leveraged to aggregate global job demands and
• facilitate international labour mobility.
• Over 300 million unorganised workers registered on the e-Shram portal, paving the way for targeted benefits and social protection coverage.
• As per the ILO World Social Protection Report, India’s social protection coverage has grown from 24.4% in 2019 to 64.3% in 2025 
  • Over 940 million people in India have social protection coverage.
• India’s Code on Social Security 2020 recognizes platform workers as a distinct category.

India’s Recommendations At The 113th Plenary Session of the International Labour Conference

• Workers’ Protection: India supports the critical need to safeguard workers from biological hazards in occupational settings. But is cautious against  overly broad definitions in the biological hazards instrument that extend beyond workplace settings.
• Risk-Tiered Strategy: India recommends graded, risk-tiered strategy that balances worker safety with operational realities
• Accommodation Of diversities: It urges to take into account and accommodate diversities across countries when setting global standards.

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