About us

The Campaigns and Communications Department handles the ITUC’s media work, website and other communications with affiliates and the public. It also manages ITUC video production, “new media”, graphics and, working with other departments, editing and production of ITUC publications.

The department also manages the ITUC’s campaigning and mobilisation activities, including campaigns on specific issues of concern as well as campaign action on countries and employers that violate workers’ rights. The ITUC Youth Programme is also run by the Campaigns and Communications Department.

A major part of the department’s activities is aimed at ensuring the fullest involvement of ITUC affiliates in the work of the Confederation. The campaign activities and publications in particular are done in close coordination with other ITUC departments, the ITUC Regional Organisations, Global Union Federations and other civil society organisations.

At the current time millions of people are jobless, unable to get promotion, badly paid and/or subjected to intimidation or harassment on account of their gender, religion, colour, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, political opinions, social origin, age or disability.

The main aim of the ITUC Equality Department is to work to ensure that those millions of people can live and work in conditions characterised by equality, dignity and justice.

Gender issues are a reality throughout the world of work and in society as a whole. The ITUC therefore needs to ensure that gender perspectives are mainstreamed in all its policies, activities and programmes at all levels. Women need, for example, to be organised in the sectors where they form the majority, where they are working with insecure contracts and where the unions are still poorly represented (e.g. in informal work, export processing zones, migrant labour and atypical employment, etc.).

Promoting respect of diversity at work and in society and implementing effective measures to combat racism and xenophobia, in particular at the workplace and in the labour market, are priorities for the ITUC. To that end, campaigns are being run on combating the discrimination and the unfair and often abusive working and living conditions that women workers, migrant workers and the members of their families are facing throughout the world.

Young men and women workers are another vulnerable group, despite the fact that they represent our world’s present and its future. Addressing their concerns and expectations effectively and ensuring their full involvement in trade unions are essential tasks.

A globalised world economy requires effective global governance. The ITUC seeks to increase intergovernmental cooperation to ensure that the social dimension of globalisation, including decent work and fundamental workers’ rights, is right at the centre of decision-making at world’s major global and regional institutions. This includes the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organisation, United Nations and its specialised agencies, especially the International Labour Organisation (ILO) with its tripartite structure and mandate to set international social standards.

The ITUC also works with its Global Unions partners to promote effective rules governing the behaviour of private business. We seek to achieve international frameworks for social dialogue and collective bargaining, and systems of corporate governance that hold management accountable for the social impact of business activities.

This requires a combination of campaigning and mobilisation with advocacy and lobbying so that the policies of these institutions and companies support, rather than undermine, the achievement of decent work for all. This includes action around:

 Trade, investment and labour standards
 Health and safety at work and sustainable environmental practices
 Global governance
 The social responsibilities of business including global social dialogue
 Social protection and sound legal employment relationships
 Trade union organising
 Fighting HIV and AIDS
 Combating child labour and forced labour

A major focus of ITUC work is to ensure full and universal respect for the Fundamental Workers’ Rights of the ILO, which guarantee the right to organise in a trade union, the right to collective bargaining, protection from discrimination, and the elimination of child labour and forced labour.

The Finance Department of the ITUC is responsible for the financial management of the organisation and manages the necessary tools to this effect.

Together with its affiliates, its regional organisations, the Global Union Federations, as well as with non-governmental organisations, the ITUC carries out ongoing campaign action for the universal respect of trade union rights, as guaranteed by the Conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

The ITUC defends trade unionists whenever their fundamental human rights are violated as a result of their trade union activities. It also takes action against other labour rights violations, and other violations of human rights especially where these affect working people.

 Scores of trade unionists are killed each year due to their union activities.

 Several thousands more are imprisoned, beaten in demonstrations, tortured by security forces or others, and often sentenced to long prison terms.

 Each year, tens of thousands of workers lose their jobs merely for attempting to organise a trade union.

 Throughout the world, millions of workers, often women and children, are forced to work against their will. The ITUC fights against forced labour wherever it occurs.

 In many countries, workers are discriminated against for political, ethnic, religious or other reasons. The ITUC confronts governments and employers that are responsible for such situations.

The ITUC’s work in this area includes research and documentation of national labour laws and practices, international trade union solidarity actions to support those whose rights are under attack, publicising violations to bring public pressure on those responsible, putting pressure on governments and employers which violate workers’ rights and by taking cases to the international judicial mechanisms of the ILO and also to United Nations human rights bodies.

The Organisation Department manages the translation services, information technology and general services.