Realizing human rights at work by enhancing human capabilities.

 

Social justice, and consequently universal peace, requires a foundation of human rights. Those rights in turn depend for their realization on entitlements to certain basic capabilities. According to Sen (1999), people may have different aspirations for their lives, but everyone must have, within reason, the means (what he calls “capabilities”) to achieve these aspirations. The full realization of human rights strengthens individuals’ capabilities and agency by securing the legal, social and economic foundations necessary to claim dignity, equality and meaningful participation. This human-centred approach means people must be able to engage fully in society, advocate for their needs and challenge injustice. In turn, the progressive fulfilment of human rights relies on individuals and communities exercising their agency to demand accountability, shape policy and build inclusive institutions. This virtuous circle depends on rights such as freedom of opinion and expression, whose universality is recognized and guaranteed in the vast majority of national constitutions. This category of rights enables people to engage fully in society, advocate for their needs and challenge injustices. Human rights and social justice are thus mutually reinforcing. This interdependence between human rights, human capabilities and social justice has driven ILO constituents to adopt international labour rights and inform the development of labour market institutions, consistent with the ILO Constitution (1919), including the Declaration concerning the aims and purposes of the ILO (1944) (Declaration of Philadelphia), and with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) (UDHR) in key areas such as: freedom of association and peaceful assembly; free choice of employment and the abolition of forced labour; the elimination of discrimination and equality of opportunity and treatment in the workplace; the right to social security, maternity protection and protection against unemployment; equal pay for work of equal value; just and favourable working conditions, including safety and health; and the right to rest and leisure. The principles underpinning these standards – and frequently the language in which they are couched – have also been codified for the world at large in two binding treaties – the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966) (ICCPR), which together with the UDHR form the “International Bill of Human Rights”. The ICESCR includes specific provisions dealing with work, including: the right to work; just and favourable conditions of work; fair wages; equal remuneration for work of equal value; equal employment opportunities; safe and healthy working conditions; rest; leisure; reasonable hours of work; the right to form and join a trade union; the right to social protection (including social insurance and maternity protection); protection of children from economic and social exploitation (including harmful and underage work); and the right to an adequate standard of living (including adequate food, clothing and housing). The ICCPR guarantees civil rights and liberties essential to social justice. These include: the right to life, liberty and security of person; self-determination; freedom from slavery and forced or compulsory labour; equality before law and equal and effective protection against discrimination; an effective legal remedy without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status if rights are violated; the freedom of association and right of workers and employers to form and join organizations of their own choosing; freedom of thought and expression; and freedom of peaceful assembly. Both the ICESCR and the ICCPR state explicitly that parties to the Covenants cannot rely on its provisions to prejudice the guarantees provided in the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), which protects freedom of association and the effective right to collectively bargain.2 Moreover, certain civil liberties have explicitly been designated as essential for the normal exercise of trade union rights, including the right to freedom and security of person and freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention.3 Ultimately, by advancing decent work, social justice and human dignity, international human rights and fundamental labour rights remain essential not only to the ILO’s mandate for social justice but also to the foundational principles of the United Nations, as enshrined in the opening of the Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations (1945): to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained... The Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development (1995) (Copenhagen Declaration)4 reaffirmed the interdependence between social development, human rights and international security, building on the ILO Declaration of Philadelphia and the Charter of the United Nations. It reiterated “the conviction that social development and social justice are indispensable for the achievement and maintenance of peace and security within and among our nations” and added that in turn, “social development and social justice cannot be attained in the absence of peace and security or in the absence of respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms.”These texts reflect the basic precept of social justice, as affirmed in the ILO Declaration of Philadelphia, that “all human beings, irrespective of race, creed or sex, have the right to pursue both their material well-being and their spiritual development in conditions of freedom and dignity, of economic security and equal opportunity”.The Copenhagen Declaration committed the international community to the goal of ensuring quality jobs and safeguarding the basic rights and interests of workers and to promote respect for relevant ILO Conventions, “including those on the prohibition of forced and child labour, the freedom of association, the right to organize and bargain collectively, and the principle of non-discrimination.” Three years later, the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rightsat Work (1998), as amended in 2022, was adopted, which reaffirmed the “immutable nature” of these principles in fostering the ability of persons “to achieve fully their human potential”. The declaration requires all Member States to respect, realize and promote these principles and rights whether or not they have ratified the corresponding underlying ILO Conventions.

After championing the concept of “decent work for all” in 1999 (ILO 1999), the ILO in 2008 formally declared decent work to be an “effective response” to the challenges of globalization and “accelerating change”, including income inequality, continuing high levels of unemployment and poverty, vulnerability of economies to external shocks, and the growth of both unprotected work and the informal economy. To meet the “universal aspiration for social justice”, decent work required simultaneous action in pursuit of four “equally important” strategic objectives: ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization (2008), as amended in 2022 (Social Justice Declaration), Preamble and Part I(A). Social Justice Declaration.  Social Justice Declaration, Part I(A)(iv). Social Justice Declaration, Parts I(C)(iii) and II(B)(iii). Social Justice Declaration, Part II(B)(iii). 

▶promoting employment by creating a sustainable institutional and economic environment; ▶developing and enhancing measures of social protection – social security and labour protection – which are sustainable and adapted to national circumstances;                                                            ▶promoting social dialogue and tripartism;                                                                                        ▶respecting, promoting and realizing the fundamental principles and rights at work.

Fundamental principles and rights at work were declared to be “of particular significance, as both rights and enabling conditions that are necessary for the full realization of all of the strategic objectives”. Achievement of all four strategic objectives would be dependent on following the legal guidance provided by “principles and provisions of international labour standards” – and the labour rights expressed in them – benchmarking each one of the decent work pillars, with special emphasis on “those regarded as most significant from the viewpoint of governance covering tripartism, employment policy and labour inspection”. To that end, Member States were invited to consider “the review of their situation as regards the ratification or implementation of ILO instruments with a view to achieving a progressively increasing coverage of each of the strategic objectives”. In sum, international labour standards articulate the labour rights and labour market institutions that facilitate the realization of the full spectrum of human rights within the world of work and direct action to advance decent work in pursuit of social justice. The global consensus that labour rights are essential components of human rights was reiterated in 2015, when the international community agreed on a set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs seek to foster “universal respect for human rights and human dignity, the rule of law, justice, equality and non-discrimination; of respect for race, ethnicity and cultural diversity; and of equal opportunity permitting the full realization of human potential and contributing to shared prosperity” (UN 2015, para. 8). In particular, SDG 8 targets the protection of labour rights in the context of promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. For its 100th anniversary in 2019, the ILO Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work (2019) (Centenary Declaration) was issued, reaffirming the ILO’s commitment to fundamental principles and setting a course to achieve social justice and decent work by further developing its human-centred approach to the future of work, which puts workers’ rights and the needs, aspirations and rights of all people at the heart of economic, social and environmental policies. It also seeks to ensure a just transition to the future of work and contribute to sustainable development. The Centenary Declaration further directs the ILO to, among other things, harness the fullest potential of technological progress and productivity growth, facilitate the transition from education and training to work, and promote an enabling environment for entrepreneurship and sustainable enterprises. As the Second World Summit for Social Development in November 2025 approaches, the progress made in respect of human rights needs to be examined – in particular those rights relating to the world of work, which provide a foundation for the exercise of other rights in life outside the world of work. This chapter will illustrate three axes along which the realization of central human rights at work is evolving. Each axis represents a strategic objective through which the ILO Decent Work Agenda is expressed: (i) freedom of expression and association; (ii) fundamental principles and rights at work; and (iii) the right to work understood as decent work for all, the right to just and favourable conditions of work (labour protection), and the right to social security. The chapter will use empirical measures to assess the level of normative consensus and state of play as expressed in the ratification and application of international labour standards, long-term systemic support expressed in national constitutions and statistical data to the extent available. Subsequent chapters will also gauge the substantive realization of other human rights, such as the right to education and freedom from hunger and poverty, through the lens of equal opportunities, fair distribution and fair transition. The conclusion will summarize key points from the section.