ILO statement: End workplace harassment

The ILO’s International Labour Conference, held this June in Geneva, Switzerland, approved the Convention on Violence and Harassment on 21 June 2019. This is the first international agreement to eliminate violence and harassment in the workplace.

The convention gains more weight from the fact that ILO’s conventions and agreements are tripartite. This means that the preparation of the Convention involved representatives of employer and employee organisations as well as representatives from participating governments in equal measure.

Approving the Convention and the related Recommendation is a major victory for employees and the trade union movement, which has been campaigning for the eradication of gendered violence in the workplace for several years.

The Convention requires that all participating countries issue legislation to eliminate harassment and violence in the workplace as well as define sanctions for such incidents. Employers will be under obligation to draft policies for cases of harassment and violence.

Global standards

The most ground-breaking aspect of the Convention is that in the future, uniform international criteria will be in place for identifying gendered violence everywhere in the world. All countries will be able to discuss harassment using shared terminology.

“This is significant when we think about the EU’s open labour market and the opportunities Finns have to work abroad, for example. When all workplaces around the world have the same criteria for gendered harassment and violence, addressing problematic situations will be easier. At the moment, problems may arise when a Finnish person works in Italy, for example, where the cultural limits of appropriate behaviour are very different,” says Erika Kähärä, PAM’s work environment specialist.

No country can make changes to the binding sections of the Convention, it cannot be modified and it applies equally everywhere. However, each country can adapt the Recommendation to its national legislation and practices in various ways.

Addressing effects of intimate partner violence at work

After ratifying the Convention, Finland will not be able to remain complacent either. This means that, for example, Finnish workplaces must make an effort to better identify the effects of intimate partner violence.

“The Convention places employers and other participating parties under obligation to consider how to better support and help employees who have experienced intimate partner violence. Often an individual’s difficult situation ripples through the community, when the information about the matter spreads. It’s important to think about how to reduce the stress of such situations,” specifies Kähärä.

Instructions on how to best help the victim will be drafted in cooperation with employer federations. The ILO Convention is an additional motivator in these negotiations and encourages the adoption of concrete tools.

PAM trains its members

Even though in Finland and other Nordic countries, the legislation, systems and practices surrounding harassment are on a good level in international comparison, we still have room for improvement. Our national legislation requires that all employees behave appropriately and let their colleagues work in peace. Nevertheless, PAM’s survey from 2015 (in Finnish) shows that a shockingly high percentage of employees face sexual or other harassment in the workplace.

“This is why we have trained and continue to train our members to identify harassment and encourage them to address these issues in the workplace to find solutions,” explains Merja Vihersalo, PAM’s work environment specialist.

If you notice harassment or violence in your workplace, whether the target is yourself or someone else, contact the occupational safety delegates in your workplace.

The Convention is legally binding and enforced on a governmental level. It will enter into force 12 months after being ratified by the first two member states.

The Recommendation complements the Convention. While not legally binding, the Recommendation provides instructions on applying the Convention.

The International Labour Organisation ILO operates under the UN and focuses on matters relating to labour and employment. ILO is currently celebrating its centenary, as the organisation was established in 1919. This year, the theme for the annual International Labour Conference was the future of work.