Rules of the Game: a brief introduction to International Labour Standards (Revised edition 2014)

Aimed at a non-specialist audience, this revised publication provides an introduction to international labour standards and discusses their importance in today’s global economy, the subjects they cover, how they are applied and supervised, and where further information can be sought.

Rules of the Game: a brief introduction to International Labour Standards was first published in 2005 to help the ILO’s traditional constituents, but also non-specialists and the general public, to better understand the essence of the ILO Conventions and Recommendations, the application and supervision of international labour standards, and their importance in the global economy. It was revised for a first time in 2009 when a second edition was published. It was deemed appropriate to revise the second edition, in particular to integrate recently adopted instruments, including the HIV and AIDS Recommendation of 2010, the Domestic Workers Convention of 2011, the Social Protection Floors Recommendation of 2012 and the 2014 Protocol and Recommendation to tackle modern forms of forced labour. It was also important to take into account the entry into force of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, as well as to put into perspective the key role international labour standards can play in the context of the ongoing employment crisis. It is to be hoped that this new edition, which also coincides with the ILO’s 95th anniversary, will translate into an even wider dissemination of the Organization’s standards-related activities.