The Catholic - Labor Network

Documents & Articles which concern Catholic and Labor Issues Papal Social Encyclicals Other Catholic Social Teachings Catholic Hospitals & Labor Catholic Schools & Labor Msgr. George Higgins Catholic Worker Connection General Articles of Interest Home Page The Catholic-Labor Network E-Mail List The Catholic-Labor Network is dependent on interested persons sharing their activities struggles, victories and prayers with other like minded men and women of faith. We strongly invite all those who visit this page, and who share a common interest in issues effecting the Catholic Church and the Labor Movement to subscribe. Occasionally, notices will be sent when this page is updated. When important events happen, we will pass on the information through the e-mail list, and most of all, the e-mail list is a means by which we can pray and support each other. Some Catholic and Labor Links The Holy See The National Conference of Catholic Bishops Human Rights for Workers The Labor Issues Guide National Association of Catholic School Teachers The Houston Catholic Worker Catholic Online National Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice The Seamless Garment Network The International Labour Organization The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations The International Transport Workers Federation Union Web

How the ILO Fares Today By Msgr. George G. Higgins The Yardstick February 12, 2001     In preparing to take part in a forthcoming seminar on “Labor and Globalization” sponsored by the local Maryknoll House in Washington, I had occasion to review some of the major documents on this subject by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.     One document, dated Nov. 18, 1999, was drafted by the secretary of the council, Bishop Diarmuid Martin, who just a few weeks ago was named an archbishop and promoted to head up the Vatican office dealing with the many U.N.-related agencies located in Geneva, Switzerland.     Archbishop Martin's paper, “Trade, Development and the Fight Against Poverty,” said that “it is essential that respect for the dignity of the human being be shared by all countries, both developed and developing ones. To this end, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace strongly supports the work of the International Labor Organization, the competent international organization in this field.”     Established in 1919 as an integral part of the League of Nations, the ILO is the oldest specialized agency of the United Nations and the only one with a tripartite structure. Each national delegation is made up of government, labor and management representatives. The ILO seeks to guarantee human rights in general and the basic rights of workers in particular. It has been trying to do this by supervising the application of the international standards adopted during its 82-year history.     The central problem, however, is implementation. If a sovereign state accepts but then ignores an international convention or treaty, what can be done?     When a treaty between nations is broken, enforcement can be obtained or at least attempted by various sanctions. If the treaty is not honored, the confrontation is between nations. But human rights conventions generally regulate the relations of individuals within their own community, behind the wall of independent nationhood. If broken, the confrontation is between individual men and women and the modern state's fearsome authority.     This kind of treaty was scarcely known before 1906 when the Bern Conventions secured the agreement of 13 nations to restrict night work for women and prohibit the use of certain poisonous substances in manufacturing. The problem of enforcing the Bern Conventions, however, had not been worked out when World War I began.     However revolutionary they were in principle, those conventions still did not plunge into the deep waters of basic human rights. Not until the founding of the ILO was there a concerted effort to guarantee the individual's basic rights by international agreement.     The ILO has worked out procedures for monitoring international conventions. Many cover such matters as working hours, safety regulations, fair wages. Others lay down fundamental human rights within the ILO's province: freedom of worker and employer association, freedom from forced labor and freedom from discrimination in employment. But despite great progress, nobody would claim that the problem of implementation has been solved. The ILO's effectiveness still depends on the cooperation of member governments and the militancy, vigilance, ability and dedication of workers and employers as they participate in partnership with their governments in ILO affairs.     The ILO always has enjoyed strong support from the Vatican and always has had a qualified priest on its Geneva staff, serving as a liaison with Catholic social action movements throughout the world.    Because of the growing interest in the subject of international trade, the ILO is now receiving more media coverage than ever on the debate over labor standards in trade relations. I hope this gives the organization new life and encourages member nations to redouble efforts on behalf of basic human rights.     This goes especially for the United States, which unfortunately has yet to ratify some of the ILO's most important conventions and treaties. Papal Social EncyclicalsOther Catholic Social TeachingsGeneral Articles of InterestCatholic Worker Connection Msgr. George HigginsHome Page E-Mail: Fr. Sinclair Oubre