A key discussion conference will be held 24-25 January, in Brussels, by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) on Decent Work that will shape this year’s European Commission report on the subject. The conference is entitled “Decent Work for All – Mobilising EU and Partners,” and is held ahead of the EC’s expected mid-2008 progress report on a 2006 EC Communication on Decent Work.

Two sessions will occur each day, with a round-table discussion concluding the conference at 14h30 on 25 January. The four sessions will deal with Decent Work within Lisbon; Trade and Decent Work; Decent Work and Government; and Youth Employment, Migration, Mobility, Employment, and Development.

The Decent Work Agenda was also linked to sustainable development at last November’s ILO Governing Board meetings in Geneva. The Working Group on the Social Dimension of Globalisation convened a round-table forum on Decent Work. Joaquín Nieto, Spanish labour federation CC.OO Secretary of Health, Safety, Environment, stressed that workers and their enterprises must be the first priority in transition to sound and sustainable development.

He said, for example, that a “great transition” will need to occur in order to reduce carbon emissions, but that this must be fully accompanied by a “just transition” based on labour rights, social protections, and training.