GB.346/INS/14/Decision

Decision concerning the report on developments relating to the resolution concerning the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine from the perspective of the mandate of the International Labour Organization

Record of decisions | 10 November 2022

In the light of the developments in Ukraine outlined in document GB.346/INS/14 and the resolution on the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine from the perspective of the mandate of the International Labour Organization (ILO) adopted at its 344th Session (March 2022), the Governing Body:

(a) welcomed the work and considerations made by the Director-General and noted the information provided in the document;

(b) reiterated its most profound concern at the continuing aggression by the Russian Federation, aided by the Belarusian Government, against Ukraine and at the impact this aggression is causing to tripartite constituents – workers, employers and its democratically elected Government – in Ukraine, and to the world of work beyond Ukraine, and, in that regard, welcomed the Türkiye and UN-brokered Black Sea Grain Initiative, which allows the safe passage of commercial vessels and their crews;

(c) reiterated its call upon the Russian Federation to immediately and unconditionally cease its aggression and withdraw its troops from Ukraine, and reaffirmed that the Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine is grossly incompatible with the aims and purposes of the Organization and the principles governing ILO membership;

(d) urged the Russian Federation to meet all the obligations following from its ratification of ILO Conventions, including the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, as amended, (MLC, 2006) in particular in relation to the repatriation of seafarers and access to medical care; the Radiation Protection Convention, 1960 (No. 115), in relation to the exposure of workers to ionizing radiations in the course of their work; and the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) and its accompanying Protocol of 2014;

(e) encouraged the Director-General to continue to monitor and take appropriate steps to safeguard the labour rights of workers and support the sustainability of enterprises in Ukraine, including in areas that are temporarily controlled by the Russian Federation, and including in nuclear power plants;

(f) noted the temporary suspension of technical cooperation and assistance to the Russian Federation, including the termination of the public–private partnership project, and invitations to attend all ILO discretionary meetings, including the training activities offered by the International Training Centre of the ILO in Turin;

(g) expressed sincere appreciation for the efforts of the ILO staff in Central and Eastern Europe and in Ukraine for their continued work to support the tripartite constituents in Ukraine, and for the support and volunteering efforts of workers’ and employers’ organizations in Ukraine;

(h) continued to express its unwavering support for the tripartite constituents in Ukraine, requested the Director-General to continue responding to constituent needs in Ukraine and expand the ILO’s resource mobilization efforts, and welcomed the ongoing discussions on the opening of a Country Office in Kyiv;

(i) noted the considerations made by the Director-General in relation to the possible relocation of the Decent Work Technical Support Team and Country Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (DWT/CO-Moscow), and requested the Director-General to continue efforts to safeguard the technical cooperation or assistance to all countries in the subregion and to monitor the evolving situation of DWT/CO-Moscow, taking into account the views expressed during the discussion; and

(j) requested the Director-General to continue monitoring the impact of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine on the world of work and to report in detail to the Governing Body at its 347th Session (March 2023) on developments in the light of the resolution and the issues raised in this decision.

(GB.346/INS/14, paragraph 47, as amended by the Governing Body)