Director-General of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Gilbert Houngbo, has urged international community on need to do better to ensure the world’s 169 million migrant workers are able to realise their basic human and labour rights.
Noting that too many of the 169 million migrant workers in the world today are unable to exercise their basic rights, he said this leaves them invisible, vulnerable and undervalued for their contributions to society.
In a message on International Migrants Day, he urged global leaders to make fair labour migration a reality. According to him, the vulnerability of migrant workers to various forms of discrimination is exacerbated when it intersects with other grounds such as race, ethnicity and gender.
While saying migrants do not only go missing on high-risk and desperate journeys, Houngbo stated that many domestic, agricultural and other workers are isolated and out of reach of those who could protect them.
He stressed that undocumented migrants were particularly vulnerable to abuses. He said ILO supports governments, employers and workers to make fair labour migration a reality “Like all workers, migrant workers are entitled to the protection of international human rights and labour standards, including freedom of association and collective bargaining, non-discrimination and safe and healthy working environments,” he said.
“Migrant workers should also be able to realise their rights to social protection, development and recognition.
“To make these rights a reality, we need to acknowledge the key importance of fair recruitment including the need to eliminate recruitment fees and costs charged to migrant workers, which can help eradicate human trafficking and forced labour. Access to decent work is a key strategy to realise migrants’ development potential and contribution to society. We must recognise that injustices suffered by migrant workers are injustices to us all. We must do better,” he added.
