An ILO program that WH4C and unionist from Malaysia participated in 2014

This was an ILO program, where Workers Hub For Change(WH4C) participated in - also present were Malaysian worker reps -Mohd Ridzwan Rama ABDULLAH, Executive Council, Electrical Industry Workers’ Union (EIWU), Selangor, Malaysia and Wan Noorulazhar Mohd HANAFIAH, President, Electronic Industry Employees Union (EIEU), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

# Do follow the link to see the contents of the program and discussion - it is CLEARER that the cut and copy content in this page  

Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal with Fluctuating Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and Other Forms of Employment in Electronics
(Geneva, 9–11 December 2014)

Final report of the discussion
GDFACE/2014/9
 

Final report of the discussion
Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal
with Fluctuating Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and
Other Forms of Employment in Electronics
(Geneva, 9–11 December 2014)
Sectoral
Policies
DepartmentGeneva, 2015

GDFACE/2014/9
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION
Sectoral Policies Department
Final report of the discussion
Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal
with Fluctuating Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and
Other Forms of Employment in Electronics
(Geneva, 9–11 December 2014)
Geneva, 2015
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE, GENEVA
Copyright © International Labour Organization 2015
First edition 2015
Publications of the International Labour Office enjoy copyright under Protocol 2 of the Universal Copyright
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Libraries, institutions and other users registered with reproduction rights organizations may make copies in
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organization in your country.
Final report of the discussion: Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of companies to deal with fluctuating
demands and the incidence of temporary and other forms of employment in electronics, Geneva, 9–11 December
2014, Sectoral Policies Department, International Labour Office, Geneva, 2015.
ISBN 978-92-2-129049-0 (print)
ISBN 978-92-2-129050-6 (Web pdf)
Also available in French: Rapport final de la discussion: Forum de dialogue mondial sur la capacité d’adaptation
des entreprises face aux fluctuations de la demande et l’incidence du travail temporaire et autres formes d’emploi
dans le secteur de l’électronique, Genève, 9-11 décembre 2014, ISBN 978-92-2-229049-9, Geneva, 2015, and in
Spanish: Informe final de la discusión: Foro de diálogo mundial sobre la capacidad de adaptación de las
empresas para hacer frente a la fluctuación de la demanda y al impacto del trabajo temporal y de otras formas de
empleo en el sector de la electrónica, Ginebra, 9-11 de diciembre de 2014, ISBN 978-92-2-329049-8, Geneva,
2015.
labour demand / temporary employment / outsourcing / electronics industry / conference report
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Printed by the International Labour Office, Geneva, Switzerland
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx v
Contents
Page
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1
First point for discussion: How do enterprises adapt to fluctuating demands which
may be caused, among other things, by technological innovation, shorter product
cycles and fast-changing customer demands? ................................................................................... 3
Second point for discussion: Adaptation to fluctuating demands often manifests itself
in high incidence of temporary and other forms of employment. What are the effects
of this situation on the enterprises? What are the effects on the workers? ........................................ 5
Third point for discussion: What solutions could be identified to address the issues
surrounding the use of temporary and other forms of employment to enterprises and
workers and how could decent work be promoted, contributing to a more sustainable industry? .... 7
Fourth point for discussion: Recommendations for future actions by the International Labour
Organization constituents and the International Labour Office with regards to the sector ............... 11
Discussion of the draft points of consensus ...................................................................................... 13
Points of consensus ........................................................................................................................... 21
List of participants ............................................................................................................................. 25

GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 1
Introduction
1. The Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal with Fluctuating
Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and Other Forms of Employment in Electronics
was held at the International Labour Office in Geneva from 9 to 11 December 2014. The
Governing Body of the ILO had proposed the convening of the Forum at its 317th Session
(March 2013) 1 and approved the Forum’s composition at its 320th Session
(March 2014). 2 The Office had prepared an issues paper 3 and suggested points for
discussion, which would serve as a basis for the Forum’s deliberations.
2. The purpose of the Forum was for tripartite participants to assess the reasons for
companies to choose temporary and other forms of employment, as well as the impact of
these forms of employment on the enterprise and the workers.
3. The Chairperson of the Forum was Mr Douglas L. Sun, First Secretary, (United States).
The Government group coordinator was Mr Jarzewski (Poland). The Employers’ and
Workers’ group coordinators were respectively Mr Grayson and Mr Yagi. The Secretary-
General of the Forum was Ms Alette van Leur, Director of the Sectoral Policies
Department (SECTOR), the Executive Secretary was Mr David Seligson, and the
coordinator of secretariat services was Ms May Mi Than Tun.
4. The Forum was attended by 49 participants, including 28 Government representatives and
advisers from 18 member States, as well as ten Worker and seven Employer participants,
and four observers from intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) and international non-
governmental organizations (INGOs).
5. The Secretary-General of the Forum introduced the Chairperson. The Chairperson
explained that electronic products were widely used, and that large factories employed
thousands of workers in the sector. The Forum aimed to reach consensus for future actions
at global, national and local level.
6. The Secretary-General of the Forum underlined that the Forum took place seven years after
the last Forum on the matter. Personal lives had become increasingly dependent on
electronics during that time. The Forum had the aim of proposing solutions on how
companies can adjust to the fluctuation in electronic demand. In order to facilitate the
discussion, four points for discussions had been established. Following the Forum,
two official documents would be produced: a report of points of consensus, including
recommendations for future actions to be undertaken by the ILO and its Members, and the
record of the discussion.
7. The Forum adopted the proposed points of discussion and the draft timetable without
objections.
1 GB.317/POL/5.
2 GB.320/POL/5.
3 ILO: Ups and downs in the electronics industry: Fluctuating production and the use of temporary
and other forms of employment. http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_dialogue/---
sector/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_317267.pdf.
2 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
8. The Executive Secretary of the Forum presented the issues paper. The paper was meant to
facilitate the discussion by providing a glimpse of the industry. The first chapter was
focused on key features, such as the fact that it was a large employer, innovative, fast-
changing, and with many new products. Electronic products were ubiquitous, for instance
in motor vehicles. In 2010 China was the first producer of electronics, whereas the United
States contributed the largest value added, followed by China and Japan; however, supply
chains were more diverse than these lists suggested, with large producers and
manufacturers. The second chapter addressed how companies responded to real production
fluctuations, such as coordination between buyers and suppliers, annualized schemes, and
temporary and other work arrangements. Non-standard forms of employment differed also
from region to region. Five country case studies – China, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico and
Hungary – showcased the current opportunities and challenges in the sector, such as
employment creation for governments; flexibility, cost, quality, and employee turnover for
enterprises; and flexibility, employment security, wages, rights, and collective bargaining
for workers. The third chapter questioned whether recourse to temporary employment was
a stepping stone for permanent employment: some workers preferred temporary work for
its flexibility, even if their careers were at risk; and women were more likely to stay in
temporary employment. Furthermore, these forms of labour were less covered by
collective bargaining. ILO instruments such as the Part-Time Work Convention, 1994
(No. 175); the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181); and the
Employment Relationship Recommendation, 2006 (No. 198), offered some responses to
these challenges.
9. The Employers’ group coordinator welcomed the discussion on the new reality of the
electronic industry, since innovations and rapid changes in production processes had a
great impact on employment. Agreements, laws and workers’ skills would need to be
updated to keep pace with competitiveness. Terms such as non-standard and precarious
work were not adequate and the Forum should focus on the new industrial realities to reach
consensus, so the issues paper would only be a starting point for discussion. While
Chapters 1 and 2 gave a frame of the industrial situation in the electronics industry,
Chapter 3 was not as impartial as desirable, as it seemed to favour the workers. Employers
were dealing with many challenges in the sector and therefore needed to have a flexible
and resilient workforce; temporary employment could represent a key step for economic
progress. Keeping companies sustainable was important in order to provide employment in
places where unemployment rates were high.
10. The Workers’ group coordinator said both unions and workers took strong action against
precariousness and expressed great concern with regards to temporary work as a response
to fluctuations. The numbers of workers in temporary contracts seemed to be higher than
the issues paper suggested. In some cases, workers were not granted the right to join
unions, which was unacceptable. Products with high fluctuations, such as iPhones and PCs,
were just a small part of the industry; many other products, such as air conditioners, copy
and fax machines, did not suffer from such large fluctuations. He reminded the Forum of
the Declaration of Philadelphia’s axiom that labour was not a commodity and pointed to
success stories, like multiskilling and seasonal shifts of workers, which could reduce
problems arising from high fluctuation. Finally, he noted that migrant workers were
sometimes in forced labour and were denied the right to join unions, which could lead to
tragedies.
11. The Government group coordinator greeted the report but wished it had focused more on
African countries. He said the industry was globalized and that new technologies had a big
impact on employment trends and might also cause unemployment. He said the
consumers’ perspective and the employers’ perspective were different but both focused on
learning skills and sharing experiences. Additionally, it was important to promote the idea
of the social responsibility of business and national capacity.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 3
12. A representative from GoodElectronics stated that people sometimes forgot that employees
were human beings and that employment relationships should not respond solely to
fluctuations, because both parties would lose. Many temporary workers suffered from
exploitation. Fluctuating demand could be handled by overtime and other means rather
than through temporary or multiple short-term contracts, or using agency labour. The
increase in temporary employment meant a reduction in the bargaining power of unions.
Also, workers should not be discriminated against in terms of remuneration, and
enterprises should comply with international labour standards. The Forum should also
discuss the issues affecting student workers, internal migrant and immigrant workers, who
were exposed to exploitation. Outsourcing work led to injustices, and employers should
provide workers with adequate social protection.
First point for discussion: How do enterprises
adapt to fluctuating demands which may be
caused, among other things, by technological
innovation, shorter product cycles and fast-
changing customer demands?
13. The Executive Secretary presented the first point for discussion. He said parties may wish
to discuss the characteristics of the industry and different ways to deal with fluctuating
demands.
14. The Workers’ group coordinator noted that opening remarks on the first point for
discussion were going to be made by four Worker participants, which would address four
distinct issues. The Worker participant from Malaysia would discuss a national migration
programme; the Worker participant from the Philippines would discuss the dual training
system; the Worker participant from India would present the negotiation between workers
and employers; and the Worker participant from Indonesia would speak about multi-skilled
workers.
15. A Worker participant from Malaysia stated that contract manufacturers had responded to
fluctuating demands through outsourcing, which had caused an influx of migrant workers
to Malaysia. These workers were afraid they would be deported if they joined the local
union, since this had occurred when a company learned that some workers had joined the
union. This had a chilling effect on union organizing.
16. A Worker participant from the Philippines informed the Forum of the use of the dual
training system. The system had the effect of extending contracts to 18 months, but there
was no technology transfer because the tasks were limited to assembling products.
Students received 50 per cent of the salaries, and the difference was paid to the
universities. Student work increased conditions of exploitation and raised important safety
and health concerns. Some companies employed 16- and 17-year-old students, or did not
provide personal protective equipment (PPE). The system also weakened trade unions’
bargaining power.
17. A Worker participant from India said that his union in Siemens had signed a contract to
reduce wages in Siemens for four years in response to reduced demand. Training and
flexible working hours were important ingredients to address the challenges, and the
workers received the original wages after the four-year period.
18. A Worker participant from Indonesia presented a case where multiskilling allowed a
company to change products and models in a flexible way. The union–management project
introduced a third line of production that increased workers’ skills so less than ten workers
4 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
could perform the work that 50 workers previously had. The agreement provided added
benefits for achieving production goals, kept worker morale high, allowed workers to
enjoy their work and prevented conflicts.
19. The Worker group coordinator, speaking as the Worker participant from Japan, shared the
case of a Japanese manufacturer of air conditioners. Since people purchased most air
conditioners in spring, the trade union and companies reached an agreement to increase
working hours in peak seasons and reduce them in trough seasons.
20. The Employers’ group coordinator stated that the group’s intervention would focus on
collective issues of adapting to fluctuations; however, enterprises were not monoliths but
experience demands differently. Tier 1 enterprises bore the brunt of the fluctuations, but
they worked with other types of manufacturers. There were a number of temporary
workers in this industry, which needed different types of protection. He was pleased to
learn of the different experiences presented by the Worker participants.
21. An Employer participant from Finland stated that employers have little flexibility because
national laws and European Union regulations were very strict. However, trade unions
were showing more flexibility, particularly at the company level, in adapting to workplace
conditions. In Finland, very few workers were on temporary contracts, but it was important
to have the flexibility to employ temporary workers. However, cheap labour was not
always profitable labour.
22. An Employer participant from Portugal presented the example of Portugal, which had very
restrictive labour laws but had become more flexible in the last five years as a result of the
crisis. Both parties understood that flexibility was a question of survival and that they
needed to be prepared to react quickly to market changes.
23. The Employers’ group coordinator, speaking as Employer participant from the United
States, stated that companies recognize that better communication and coordination across
the supply chain was a key tool. His organization, the Electronic Industry Citizenship
Coalition (EICC), provided a forum for this.
24. The Government group coordinator stated that the industry had globalized, in which
process the new technologies may have caused unemployment. Governments had to
consider the consumers’ perspective as well as promoting social responsibility.
25. The Government representative of China asserted that the electronics enterprises should
study the markets, the needs of customers and technological change; should focus on
research and development to develop improved products; and develop expertise and skills
because it was an intelligence-intensive industry.
26. The Government representative of Malaysia reiterated that skill training is important in
order to deal with fluctuations. He stated the need to study the unemployment scheme and
added that, in Malaysia, they are currently studying the policies relating to foreign workers
and the possibilities of having better policies for them, like expanding the safety net.
However, he clarified that the law does allow foreign workers to join existing unions, but
not to form new unions.
27. The Government representative of Cameroon stated that African countries are mostly
consumers of electronic products, although some countries, for example South Africa,
Algeria and Morocco, have also manufacturing of electronics. Governments needed to also
regulate the quality of products and ensure the health and safety of both workers and
consumers. He suggested that the Office organize a forum on these consumer-driven
issues, or regional forums in Africa and other regions. Even from a consumer point of
view, there were jobs-related issues like training and the maintenance of products.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 5
28. The Chairperson thanked the representative from Cameroon for this statement and
suggested to him to bring up this proposal in the fourth point of discussion.
29. The Employer participant from Portugal stated that one of the reasons for the good results
in this sector in Portugal is the dual training system: after the training many students join
the industry and become permanent employees of the companies.
30. A Worker participant from Indonesia described the case of JVC, a car audio company,
where the number of workers fluctuated by 200 between 2008 and 2014. Based on this, an
estimate of 200 temporary workers could be set as a maximum to address fluctuations in
demand. He argued that ways must be found to set limits on the scale of temporary
workers that can be hired.
31. The Workers’ group coordinator considered that the use of temporary workers can increase
companies’ profits in the short term but not in the long run.
32. The Employers’ group coordinator noted the need for better forecasting of demand and
communicating this more effectively down the supply chain to inform temporary workers
in advance of their work prospects.
Second point for discussion: Adaptation to
fluctuating demands often manifests itself in
high incidence of temporary and other forms of
employment. What are the effects of this
situation on the enterprises? What are the
effects on the workers?
33. The Executive Secretary outlined some of the issues that could be discussed, such as the
pros and cons of temporary and other forms of work, the differences across regions and
countries and gender dimensions of temporary work.
34. The Employers’ group coordinator asserted that temporary work needed to be looked at as
a benefit, risk and necessity. Temporary work helped in the retention of full-time jobs and
benefits. Noting the diverse situations of firms and differences in regions, he saw having
flexibility to respond to fluctuating demand as important for profitability. Temporary work
also can bring young skilled people into the workforce, and may lead to permanent
positions. Temporary work also brings to firms specialized expertise or work done by
women who may seek only part-time hours due to responsibilities at home with their
families.
35. He recognized the risks associated with temporary work noting the differences in context
across developing and developed countries. In the developed world the benefits
outweighed the risks. He mentioned risks, in particular in Asia, associated with training
temporary workers who leave for other employment, the possibility of losing intellectual
property, and the problems of workers in exercising their basic rights. Furthermore,
companies do not always understand the risks the workers, for example migrant workers
and students, encounter before entering the factories. He emphasized that temporary
employees have the right to fundamental human rights and that employers’ and workers’
organizations share the responsibility to educate temporary workers about their rights.
36. An Employer participant from Finland considered, referring to the issues paper, that many
temporary workers were interested in acquiring general skills that could apply to diverse
contexts. However, employers expected workers to already possess these general skills and
6 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
instead were prepared to offer company-specific training which, in turn, could involve
them more directly in the firm’s operations. He emphasized that it is the government’s
responsibility to provide for general skills training.
37. The Workers’ group coordinator expressed his surprise at agreeing with many of the points
already made and announced four examples from the European Union, Brazil, Philippines
and India, to illustrate various concerns of the workers.
38. A Worker participant from France, who also chairs the information and communications
technology (ICT) committee of IndustriALL European trade union, mentioned that, while
Europe did not have the same issues as Asian countries, the use of temporary contracts
presented more risks than opportunities. Several countries permitted very temporary
contracts, from zero work hours in the United Kingdom to the situation in Spain where the
workers tendered offers, where the lowest bid is taken by the employer. A more positive
example could be found in Germany, where the use of kurzarbeit linked with training
during the recession improved Germany’s competitiveness.
39. Moreover, prevalence of short work contracts creates problems, such as insecurity in
housing and social protection and less coverage for collective bargaining. He considered
the bipartite discussions in France in 2013 to have improved flexibility in the labour
market through more use of overtime, teamwork and similar measures. He closed by
emphasizing the importance of the EU Directives on fixed-term work (1999) and on
temporary agency work (2008).
40. A Worker participant from Brazil, noting the steady expansion of temporary workers,
considered that companies were using this practice to pay lower benefits, and also as a
means to demobilize union members.
41. A Worker participant from the Philippines noted that precarious forms of work were
widespread in his country. The numbers of contractual workers had doubled or tripled in
some firms. Temporary workers faced lower wages, lack of benefits and social protection,
higher rates of occupational safety and health issues, irregular work hours and income
insecurity. Contracted workers were discouraged or prohibited from joining unions.
Contractual workers avoided unions for fear of losing their jobs. Less than 10 per cent of
the Philippine workforce was unionized as unions have lost their traditional base.
Furthermore, companies also are hiring women workers who are seen as less likely to join
unions.
42. A Worker participant from India expressed that workers are temporary but jobs are
permanent. Many products and jobs had undergone changes and companies preferred to
hire temporary workers in order to reduce costs. The companies made profits and the
workers were affected by low wages due to a lack of unionization.
43. The Government representative of Malaysia noted that temporary work can benefit those
not able to work full time. Malaysia has changed the retirement age to 60 years, and set
that temporary and part-time workers employed for more than two years would be entitled
to retirement benefits at the new age.
44. The representative of the Government of China, referring to paragraph 52 in the issues
paper, clarified that China does not have student workers but instead apprentices. These
apprentices are not in the factories to meet labour demand but to learn.
45. Another representative of the Government of China clarified that the dual training system
consists of classroom learning and practising in factories. The schools provide the
apprentices with insurance for work-related accidents. These apprentices will have work
after graduation.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 7
46. The representative of the Government of the Philippines noted that employment has not
only been affected by the fluctuating demand for electronics but also by technological
innovations. There was an increased need for the industry to introduce new skills and
occupations and for governments and enterprises to develop training to fill skills gaps. The
electronics industry has been an employment growth driver which had led to increased job
growth but also job losses. The need for improved compliance could be partly addressed
by private compliance initiatives and tripartite cooperation.
47. The Employers’ group coordinator considered that demand for electronics was well
reflected in figure 7 of the issues paper, with frequent and wide fluctuations. Governments,
workers and employers should help to smooth out the sharp swings in demand and to
ensure greater reliance on full time labour. He noted that businesses cannot afford to hire
labour at the peaks who then sit idle during the troughs, nor can current workforces be
expected to work overtime as it was against ILO fundamental principles and United
Nations Guiding Principles and not good for health and safety or emotional well-being of
workers. But to reject business when demand peaks would also not increase jobs. He
reconfirmed the Employers’ group’s commitment to respecting human rights under the
United Nations Guiding Principles and the ILO’s fundamental principles but with clear
recognition of the reality of demand.
48. The Workers’ group coordinator emphasized that flexibility should always be freely
chosen by the worker; while flexible work is often unavoidable, the right of temporary
workers to join a union must be ensured. Too often workers are not allowed to join unions
or unions are avoided, which weakens their capacities to effectively negotiate.
49. A Worker participant from France noted that although the industry was characterized by
demand fluctuations for some products due to seasonal factors, this did not apply to the
whole industry and that temporary work was disproportionately used.
50. The Employers’ group coordinator stressed that his group’s position was that temporary
workers should not be prevented from joining a trade union in conformance with the local
law.
Third point for discussion: What solutions could be
identified to address the issues surrounding the use of
temporary and other forms of employment to enterprises
and workers and how could decent work be promoted,
contributing to a more sustainable industry?
51. The Chairperson summarized the preceding discussions: temporary work can be a win–win
formula, which can help businesses adjust to fluctuating demand.
52. The Executive Secretary of the meeting presented the third point for discussion, inviting
participants to explore innovative solutions, against the background of decent work in the
industry. He also informed the Forum that a meeting of experts would take place
February 2015 regarding the theme of non-standard forms of employment.
53. The Workers’ group coordinator underlined that there is not a single solution to the
problem of recourse to temporary and non-standard forms of employment in electronics,
but that case studies can be good examples to consider. However, national laws should
consider the risks and the benefits of temporary and other forms of employment. He called
on six Worker participants to introduce national and international examples.
8 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
54. A Worker participant from Malaysia stated that the best solution to demand fluctuation
would be to promote direct employment. In Malaysia, labour agencies were not regulated
by law until March 2012: thanks to trade union activity, the new law limited the use of
labour contractors in certain sectors. However, the use of agency work breaks the
employment relationship and workers could be organized and covered by collective
bargaining agreements (CBAs) only if they were employed directly by the user enterprise,
and migrant workers could not exercise the freedom of association in practice.
Furthermore, agencies had no real control over working conditions.
55. A Worker participant from the Philippines argued that all workers should have regular
status since the start of their employment relationship. He cited the recent struggle in NXP,
where unions negotiated the regularization of 200 temporary employees. Philippine unions
attempted to extend the CBA and grievance mechanisms to these workers, to organize
them, and to help them organize workers’ associations. He underlined the importance of
education on fundamental labour rights. Philippine unions also engaged in dialogue with
the Government on the issue of precarious work and advocated for the adoption of the
Regular Employment Bill, which would limit labour-only contracting and provide these
employees with security of tenure. Finally, he stated that building alliances at the national,
regional and international level promoted concerted actions to raise the issue of precarious
work and promote decent work. He advocated for negotiating at the local level with the
management to address the effects of business cycles.
56. A Worker participant from Indonesia presented six solutions that had been implemented in
Indonesia. First, union and management in two large industrial areas negotiated a 30 per
cent limit on temporary workers, through mutual communication and respect. Second,
many temporary workers were granted higher salaries than permanent workers, to deter
enterprises from abusing this type of contract. Third, Indonesian law only allowed
employers to outsource certain jobs (not in core sectors such as manufacturing), and many
of these workers had greater security through contracts that were at least one year long; in
addition, employers were required to provide permanent contracts after two consecutive
temporary contracts. Fourth, many temporary workers enjoyed the same working terms
and conditions as their permanent counterparts. Fifth, many employers sought to retain
workers when demand fell, for example assigning them to other work areas; training them
when work is lacking; or keeping them temporarily at home and then rotating them. Sixth,
there was an ongoing discussion to create a special shareholder status for workers, which
would provide some income when unemployed. In addition, laid-off workers were covered
under state- or employer-funded health insurance after the end of their contracts.
57. The Workers’ group coordinator, speaking in his capacity as Worker participant from
Japan, presented two case studies on in-house minimum wages and the use of guidelines
and check-sheets. First, some unions and employers negotiated in-house minimum wages
on the basis of the minimum wage established by the Government at the national or local
level. Second, guidelines and check-sheets had been developed by his union for use at the
local level. Such procedures conferred local responsibility for ensuring decent work
conditions in the field.
58. A Worker participant from India identified three solutions implemented in his company to
provide decent work and develop a sustainable industry. First, a 2004 CBA established that
workers would be recruited at 60 per cent of the wages of existing workers, and raised to
par within four years. In 2010 another CBA established that workers would be recruited at
80 per cent of the wages of existing workers, and raised to par within nine years. Second,
training programmes enabled workers to carry out different tasks within multi-product
enterprises. Third, a company and a union negotiated to give rehiring priority to
40 workers from a closed production plant.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 9
59. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) observed that
negotiations at the local level were very important. However, the use of temporary
employment and agency work often denied workers the opportunity to join unions and
bargain collectively and more needed to be done, particularly by governments, to give
them such access. She welcomed the emphasis that had been made on skills development,
which was an important means of dealing with the consequences of fluctuating demand,
although it was largely incompatible with temporary work. While negotiations at the local
level could succeed, more needed to be done at the global level to recognize the role of
temporary workers and to take them into consideration in overall structures. At a seminar
in Boston in 2012, IndustriALL had been able to discuss the issue of temporary workers
with the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC). In the seminar, the importance
of freedom of association had been recognized, and participants had recognized that
companies should review their hiring practices in relation to temporary workers and look
critically at the sector’s need for such work in correlation with the due diligence
established by the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. There was a
need to work at both the ground and global levels and she welcomed the continuation of
dialogue to seek a balance between business requirements and workers’ rights.
60. The Employers’ group coordinator welcomed the points made by the Worker participants
noting that they did not oppose certain forms of flexibility. His group agreed that all
workers should have freedom of association and collective bargaining rights, in accordance
with local laws; that human rights should be respected regardless of employment status and
that all workers should enjoy the same occupational safety and health standards. A key
point arising out of the discussion was that workers and employers had to work together to
adapt to the market and use all types of forms of work. The discussion should not have a
narrow focus on migrant and agency workers, but rather on workers in vulnerable
situations. His group welcomed solutions based around skill development and the
examples of internal cross-training. Governments, unions and employers all had a
responsibility to train the next generation of workers and to ensure the continuing
development of the current generation. There was a general consensus around the need to
establish strategies to give the flexibility needed by enterprises, while respecting standards.
They all had a responsibility to make temporary workers feel part of their enterprises, and
to educate them on their rights. National laws should also evolve to adapt to an
increasingly fluctuating demand and to take full advantage of all forms of flexible work,
while ensuring the respect and enforcement of the fundamental human rights of all
workers, regardless of union membership. His group supported the point made by the
participant from Indonesia that temporary workers should have the same rights as
permanent workers. He agreed that all temporary workers should receive the minimum
wage, and that negotiations at the local level were an effective way to address issues. In
each of his last three statements, he warned against adopting general rules based on
solutions applied in specific contexts. He also requested clarification of the exact nature of
the check-sheets mentioned by the Worker participant from Japan.
61. An Employer participant from Portugal stated that flexible legislation should be adopted to
enable competitiveness which everyone would know and respect.
62. An Employer participant from Belgium welcomed the Workers’ support for freedom of
association for contract and other workers. He explained that there were funds in
seven countries for training and granting better working conditions for agency workers, for
example to help workers obtain loans and driving licences. There was no real erosion of
collective bargaining rights; rather an evolution of the market and banning of agency work
was not a solution. He urged countries to ratify ILO Convention No. 181 in order to get rid
of abuses linked to agency work.
63. The representative of the Government of Egypt underlined that modifying legislation
needed time. Moreover, rights such as medical schemes and insurances were not foreseen
10 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
by all countries. Therefore, it was not logical to make such schemes mandatory
everywhere. Finally, the issue of temporary work was dependent on demand and supply
and governments could not oblige companies to change temporary work to permanent
work.
64. The representative of the Government of China stressed the importance of a social
protection floor for temporary employees, including medical insurance and occupational
safety and health (OSH) at the workplace. He also stated that flexible opportunities for the
informal sector should be granted, training encouraged and skills and capacity building
improved. He finally observed that vocational qualification systems were important, as
certifications could increase workers’ mobility.
65. The representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea underlined that non-
regular workers were increasing in his country, accounting for 6 million or 33 per cent of
the total national workforce. He stated that the Republic of Korea has undertaken
comprehensive measures to address discrimination against non-regular employees and with
reinforcing the social safety net of vulnerable groups. The three main Korean policies were
related to: (i) strengthening inspection for workplaces for identifying discrimination cases;
(ii) requiring companies with more than 300 workers to improve their status and disclosing
the number of workers under each type of contract; and (iii) promoting education and
counselling activities and voluntary measures in order to reduce discrimination.
66. The Government group coordinator synthesized the discussions held in the Government
group. First, labour relations in electronics should not differ from those of other sectors.
Second, a flexible labour market was important and had significant influence on the
electronics industry because of high demand fluctuations. Third, besides legislation, there
should be a focus on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the struggle against
discrimination. Fourth, skills and vocational training supported the flexibility of the labour
force and contract regularization. Fifth, government policies should ensure the stability of
the ICT sector and facilitate negotiations.
67. The representative of the Government of the Philippines gave examples from her country.
First, strong labour compliance was important: the Philippines had increased the number of
labour inspectors and trained them properly in recent years, and compliance with labour
laws was incentivized, for example with certificates of compliance or even a presidential
certificate of excellence in labour compliance. Second, new laws were being drafted
through social dialogue in the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council, which resulted
in faster adoptions. Third, social dialogue continued to be active at national and regional
level, through particular initiatives such as the tripartite council for electronics, aimed at
discussing specific sectoral issues. Finally the Philippine Government brought more
support and capacity building in developing dispute resolution skills.
68. The representative of the Government of China stressed that labour inspection should play
an important role. He referred to the Philippine statement and added that China recently
initiated wage consultations with social partners.
69. The Workers’ group coordinator, speaking in his capacity as Worker participant from
Japan, underlined that check-sheets were verifications within the companies, at the field
level, to ensure that the right things were done at the right time and place, to maintain good
labour relations. They should also be completed by workers and not only by companies.
Prodded for more information by the Employers’ group coordinator, he explained that the
term “check-sheet” was invented in Japan and that they promoted uniform standards for
them, focusing on key points including wages and other issues. Many studies had been
carried out. The Chairperson intervened stating that he probably referred to what was
called “checklists” in the United States.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 11
70. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) reminded the
Employers that fundamental principles and rights at work (FPRW) are universal, and not
restricted by national laws.
71. The Employers’ group coordinator responded to five points raised by other participants.
First, he supported the use of checklists, but preferred validated audit programmes, which
would consider all key human rights along with management systems, ethics and
environmental responsibility. Second, he stated that all parties who had ratified human
rights Conventions should work to abide by them. The representative of the International
Organisation of Employers (IOE) clarified that FPRW were binding on all member States
by virtue of their membership in the ILO. The Employers’ group coordinator continued
with his third point, welcoming the extension of social insurance and other protections to
temporary workers by the Governments of China and the Republic of Korea, but not
supporting the use of quotas on temporary labour and limits on the duration of temporary
labour situations: these were best decided by workers and enterprises rather than through
legislation. Fourth, most employers did not mind disclosing the numbers of workers
employed in temporary and other forms of work, but others considered it as part of their
corporate strategy. Fifth, the group welcomed the ideas from the Philippines, especially the
concept of partnerships to encourage corrective action and incentivize excellent
performance. That was preferable to only policing, which could stimulate lying, falsifying
records, and bribing.
Fourth point for discussion: Recommendations
for future actions by the International Labour
Organization constituents and the International
Labour Office with regards to the sector
72. The Chairperson thanked the participants for the good work done concerning point No. 3
during the morning session before opening point four for discussion on recommendations
for future actions.
73. The Employers’ group coordinator restated the importance of tripartite negotiations to
addressing rights and protection issues affecting temporary workers, and the role of the
Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181), in guiding these initiatives. He
recommended that the ILO proactively promote its ratification and implementation. He
recommended that the ILO continue its research on flexible work and generating insights
through country cases, which show the importance of the cooperation between employers
and workers. Training workers in their fundamental rights is a shared responsibility
between the three parties, with a role also for the ILO to play. He concluded by
encouraging governments to adapt the legislation to facilitate the new challenges in terms
of flexibility but also to apply systematically the law.
74. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) proposed a number of
recommendations to be considered. He opened by stating that Governments, Employers,
Workers and the Office should continue to promote decent work and sustainable
employment in the electronics industry by insisting on trade in the electronics industry to
be based on the principles of fairness and equality in order to lift living standards by
supporting decent employment growth, improving social protections and providing for
fundamental workers’ rights, environmental standards, human rights and democracy. He
recommended governments to ensure that workers representatives/unions in the country
are informed on a regular basis on the number of temporary/agency workers and their
positions. Governments and employers should ensure equality of treatment for all workers
regarding wages, working conditions, OSH, social security/insurance, and other
allowances and benefits, regardless of their employment status. They also should
12 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
encourage investment in training and skills to assure sustainable employment and the
creation of good-quality jobs. The employers and workers should engage in effective social
dialogue/negotiation in order to find alternatives to temporary employment. He stated that
the ILO and governments should promote inclusion of labour standards in all trade
agreements. In addition, he recommended the ILO to:
■ develop an effective implementation of international labour standards relevant to the
electronics industry, especially for precarious workers to receive the same protection
as directly employed regular workers in respect of the right to organize and to bargain
collectively, occupational safety and health, and discrimination;
■ strengthen and build capacity of employers and trade unions to assure sustainable
industrial production and long-term employment prospects at all levels such as
company, industry, national, regional, and international level;
■ promote fair and just labour–management negotiation on tackling the issues of
precarious work caused by the fluctuating demand;
■ conduct research on impact of purchasing practices in the sector on labour rights and
temporary employment;
■ promote social dialogue and identify and develop mechanisms to improve purchasing
practices in order to address temporary employment in the electronics industry;
■ urge governments to legislate against companies being able to dismiss workers on
open-ended direct employment contracts in order to rehire them on precarious
contracts with less favourable working conditions to do the same work.
75. A Worker participant from Indonesia clarified that the flexibility notion in his country was
only about the employment period; consequently all workers should have the same
benefits.
76. The Government group coordinator summarized the discussion of the governments, and
proposed that the ILO organize a similar meeting to discuss the matter in five years and
consider preparing guidelines or a handbook on good practices with regard to temporary
work in the sector. He added that the ILO should promote ratification of Conventions
Nos 175 and 181 and compile good examples of how countries are implementing these
Conventions. Employers should provide training opportunities for temporary workers on
their rights and benefits. He also indicated that Government representatives from Africa
saw the need to have a regional forum on these same topics. Finally, he asked the ILO to
help in putting into place a capacity-building programme dealing with the sector.
77. The Employers’ group coordinator appreciated the Workers’ group’s proposal, which was
clear and complete, and agreed with some proposals such as those calling for protection of
workers and adherence to human rights. However, he disagreed with others, and requested
that the Employers’ group discuss these among themselves and then to react the next day.
78. The representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea described the work of the
national level tripartite dialogue system, launched in 1998, which he said had contributed
to reducing social conflicts through discussion and seeking agreement or recommendations
on key labour issues. The system will be reformed to better represent unorganized
vulnerable workers. Representatives of dispatched or in-house subcontractor workers will
be able to participate in labour–management councils and state their opinions.
79. The representative of the Government of the Philippines asked whether the output of the
meeting would be forwarded to the expert meeting on non-standard forms of employment.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 13
80. The Secretary-General explained that the outcomes would be submitted to the Governing
Body. The Governing Body would ask the Director-General to take the conclusions into
account in future work. The points of consensus would be disseminated but would not be
submitted for approval by the meeting of experts.
Discussion of the draft points of consensus
81. At the closing plenary session, the Forum considered document GDFACE/2014/5, which
included the suggested points of consensus for points for discussion 1–3, drafted by the
Office on the basis of the plenary discussions.
82. The Employers’ group coordinator suggested deleting the words “Whereas not all” in the
first paragraph. He proposed the following text for the first paragraph: “Electronics
products are subject to fluctuations in demand. Short product cycles and fast-changing,
sometimes seasonal, consumer demands, are a reality for parts of the electronics industry.”
A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) suggested that they
should look at the title and delete the phrase “whereas not all electronic products are
subjects to high fluctuations in demand”. The Employers’ group coordinator agreed with
this suggestion, but proposed that paragraph 1 be entirely deleted. A Worker participant
from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) replied that it is a useful statement and
should be kept. The Employers’ group coordinator indicated that fluctuating demand
affects even products that are seen as protected, like vacuum cleaners. However, he would
accept the proposed text. The Forum adopted paragraph 1 as follows: “Short product
cycles and fast-changing, sometimes seasonal, consumer demands, are a reality for parts of
the electronics industry.”
83. The Forum adopted the second proposed paragraph with amendments. The word
“measures” was replaced with “options”. The Workers’ group did not agree to change the
word “adopt” with “explore” as proposed by the Employers’ group, because it did not
represent an action. A phrase “the use of temporary and other forms of employment” was
added and the paragraph was adopted as follows: “Companies can adopt a number of
options to respond to fluctuating demands. Such options include better buyer–supplier
coordination to avoid particularly high peaks in demand, the use of temporary and other
forms of employment, as well as improved forecasting mechanisms to anticipate
demands.”
84. The Forum adopted the Workers’ proposal to delete the proposed third paragraph.
85. The discussion of the proposed fourth and fifth paragraphs highlighted the differences
between the social partners about the perceived risks and benefits of temporary and other
forms of employment, and the Forum decided to reconsider them when discussing the
proposed measures to promote decent work and contribute to a more sustainable industry.
86. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) proposed a new text
for the proposed fourth paragraph, which would appear after the proposed paragraph 5 and
begin with the sentence “Many other options have been negotiated between unions and
employer,” and proposed replacing the word “alternatives” with the word “options” or with
“many other options” that would be used in a new paragraph. The Employers’ group
coordinator proposed combining paragraphs 4 and 5 and introduced by a sentence that
would communicate that “there are a number of options available to deal with fluctuating
demands, such as annualized hour schemes and multiskilling”. Other options would be
established through social dialogue. The Worker participant from IndustriALL Global
Union did not agree, stating that it was identical to the second paragraph, although she
agreed with the language “social dialogue”.
14 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
87. The Employers’ group coordinator suggested including hour schemes and multiskilling. A
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) said that this was a step
backwards, and proposed to address the alternatives through social dialogue. She added
that there were negative consequences and the alternatives needed to be looked at. The
representative of the IOE disagreed with any document that would say that temporary work
was inherently wrong, to which a Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL
Global Union) replied that the group had already acknowledged temporary work as an
option in paragraph 2, and suggested moving this paragraph to the end of the points of
consensus.
88. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), disagreeing with the
Employers’ view that temporary work was just another option among many, stated that, for
her group, temporary work was not always the worst-case scenario, but had massive
implications on the quality of work in the industry; there was therefore a need to consider
the alternatives. If they did not do so, the dialogue would not have achieved anything. The
negative impacts on workers’ rights and working conditions needed to be balanced with
the needs of enterprises, through social dialogue. As temporary work was being overused
in the electronics industry and had negative consequences, the need to find alternatives
through social dialogue had to be reflected in the points of consensus.
89. The Forum adopted the proposed sixth and seventh paragraphs after extensive discussions
and amendments, including the insertion of an intermediate paragraph. The Employers’
group coordinator began the discussion by proposing that paragraph 6 should be amended
to read: “The effects of temporary and other forms of employment on enterprises may
present both benefits and risks. As one measure to address fluctuation, temporary and other
forms of work arrangements are a necessity.” He proposed inserting a new paragraph after
this paragraph, which would read: “Positive benefits may include the ability to right-size
workforce to demand, bring new workers with new skills into the enterprise and stay
competitive – ultimately retaining and creating jobs.” He also proposed that the beginning
of the proposed seventh paragraph should be amended to read: “Negative effects brought
by a change in a company’s workforce may include …”.
90. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) noted that, for
paragraph 6, the Employers’ proposal did not include the wording “for a number of
companies”, asked whether they intended for it to be deleted, and expressed preference for
the original drafting, as it did not hold true in every case. Furthermore, she proposed a
subamendment to the beginning of the proposed seventh paragraph to read “brought by
changes in a company’s workforce” instead of “a change”. The Employers’ group
coordinator accepted this, acknowledged that temporary work was not a necessity for all
companies, and proposed adding “temporary work arrangements are often a necessity for
companies”. Furthermore, since “negative and positive” had been changed to “benefits and
risks”, he proposed changing “positive effects” and “negative effects” to “benefits may
include” and “risks may include”. The Government representative of Poland proposed
deleting “ultimately” from the proposed eighth paragraph. The Employers’ group
coordinator also proposed harmonizing the wording to “temporary and other forms of
employment”.
91. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) requested that the
resulting wording be displayed on the projectors. The representative of the IOE suggested
that all participants should be asked whether they objected to only having English on the
projectors. The Workers’ group coordinator noted that there were many Worker
participants who did not speak English and having the text on screen benefited them. A
Government representative of Poland noted that, since the Forum represented the
electronics industry, it should use technology in order to facilitate the discussion. Finally, a
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) expressed her
disappointment in the ILO’s language policy. The electronics industry was largely based in
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 15
Asia and the Workers’ delegation was also largely from Asia, yet there was no
interpretation available for any Asian languages. That gave participants who did have
interpretation a considerable advantage over the Workers’ group.
92. The adopted paragraphs would read as follows:
“The effects of temporary and other forms of employment on enterprises can present both
benefits and risks. As one measure to address fluctuation, temporary and other forms of
work arrangements are often a necessity for companies.”
“Benefits may include the ability to right-size workforce to demand, bring new workers
with new skills into the enterprise and stay competitive – creating and retaining jobs.”
“Risks brought by changes in a company’s workforce may include: decreased productivity;
possible divulgation of trade secrets and resulting threats to a company’s intellectual
property; as well as high costs for hiring and training of temporary workers.”
93. The Forum discussed whether the text of the proposed eighth and ninth paragraphs should
address risks and benefits that temporary and other forms of employment represented for
enterprises and workers, and decided to finalize them at a later stage, while taking into
account the proposal from the representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea
to refer consistently to “temporary and other forms of employment”.
94. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) proposed deleting the
phrase “Whereas temporary work can provide flexibility for workers, an opportunity for
entrants to find employment and for other workers to build up their skills”, and maintain
the text “a number of challenges are often encountered by workers under temporary
contracts”, as part of the proposed ninth paragraph or stand alone. All testimony from the
Workers’ group had underlined the negative impacts of the “high incidence” of temporary
work, which was the title of the section – not the general impact of such work. These
examples showed that flexibility in temporary work was important, but workers would
rarely prefer temporary to permanent employment. She proposed an additional text to
address Employers’ concerns as follows: “Where temporary and other forms of
employment is agreed upon and justified by the circumstances it can be a tool to deal with
fluctuations in demand”. Her group acknowledged the benefits of temporary work for
employers, but not that workers saw temporary work as a benefit. The Workers’ group
coordinator added that the focus of the discussion should be on fluctuating demand in the
electronics sector and not the general challenges facing the world of work.
95. The Employer group coordinator could not accept a statement about temporary work that
only focused on its challenges, and had provisionally agreed to the new paragraph
proposed by the Workers’ group on the assumption that those effects were going to be
recognized. He argued that voluntary temporary work could be a desirable outcome; other
forms of employment, such as internships or part-time employment often provided
stepping stones or a means of juggling family and work life. Participants from all groups
had recognized that temporary and other forms of employment could offer rewards for
workers in some cases and that the tripartite nature of the Forum required reflecting it in
the text, without using the term “benefits”. He therefore proposed adding a new paragraph
at the start of the section: “Where temporary work is agreed upon and justified by the
circumstances, temporary work can provide a number of positive impacts including
flexibility for workers and opportunity for finding employment and for other workers to
build up their skills”, to be consistent with the previous discussion of both benefits and
risks for enterprises. Later, the group proposed a revised text as follows: “Where
temporary and other forms of employment are justified by the circumstances, they may
provide benefits including flexibility for workers and an opportunity for entrants to find
16 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
employment and for other workers to build up their skills.” The group rejected the
Workers’ proposal to limit the section to “temporary work”.
96. The Chair proposed to park the two paragraphs and move to the next session on measures.
The Employers’ group coordinator asked if this discussion would also cover paragraphs 4
and 5. It was agreed to first discuss paragraphs 10–15.
97. The Forum adopted the proposed paragraph 10 without changes.
98. The Forum adopted the proposed 11th paragraph with the following text proposed by the
Employers’ group: “These measures should include social protection, occupational safety
and health (OSH), cross- and retraining, and they should ensure non-discrimination.” The
Workers’ group preferred this text to the Employers second option to delete the entire
paragraph.
99. The Forum adopted the proposed 12th paragraph with amendments. The Employers’ group
proposed that it should read as follows: “Long-lasting employment relationships are to be
promoted, where possible, and all employment arrangements should be voluntary. All
workers, including temporary workers, should have full access to the FPRW. Sharing of
available information on market development and demand forecasts with workers and their
representatives is particularly helpful for temporary and other forms of workers.” The
Workers’ group, in turn, proposed a subamendment where the last sentence would read as
follows: “Sharing of available information on market development and demand forecasts
with workers and their representatives is particularly helpful for dealing with temporary
and other forms of employment”. The Forum adopted the resulting text.
100. The proposed 13th paragraph was adopted with three amendments, but its final wording
was suspended. The Employers’ group proposed two amendments: (1) to add “by the
Governments” after “should be ensured”; and (2) to add “also” after “corporate social
responsibility” in the second sentence of the paragraph. The Government group
coordinator proposed adding “important” before “role” of CSR. The Secretary-General of
the Forum remarked that the amendments resulted in a factual error, as the paragraph now
suggested that it was the responsibility of governments to ensure respect to the UN
Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights. The discussion was deferred.
101. The proposed 14th paragraph was adopted with an amendment proposed by the
Employers’ group to replace the phrase “outstanding compliance” with “outstanding
efforts”, pointing out that the original phrase was not clear.
102. The proposed 15th paragraph was adopted with three amendments. Two were proposed by
the Employers’ and Government groups: to add “competitiveness and productive
employment”, and to replace “universities” with “educational institutions”. The third,
proposed by the representative of the Government of China, adding “training” after
“educational” to highlight the important role of vocational training institutions.
103. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 16(a) with an amendment proposed by a
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), to add a reference to
the Employment Relationship Recommendation, 2006 (No. 198) at the end. The
representative of the IOE suggested rephrasing the reference for clarity, for which the
Forum subamended the ending phrase as follows: “those Conventions related to FPRW,
and promote Recommendation No. 198”.
104. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 16(b) with an amendment proposed by the
Employers’ group, which was later subamended. The initial Employer proposal would
have changed the subparagraph as follows: “Promote and conduct training to specific
needs in the electronics industry”. The Forum discussed the exact verb that would describe
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 17
the recommended action, with a Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global
Union) supporting the original “adapt” to refer to the work the Office was already doing.
The Employers’ group coordinator countered that FPRW were cross-sectoral, to which the
Workers proposed drafting the subparagraph as follows: “Conduct training on FPRW
specific to the needs in the electronics industry”. The representative of the Government of
China proposed changing the subparagraph into: “promote policy coordination and
conduct demonstrative/model training”. The Forum did not adopt this proposal, which
suggested that the ILO coordinate policies at a global level and conduct model training to
set examples for other countries, understanding that it did not fit the purpose of this
subparagraph or of the Forum. This text referred to already existing training and not to
other training that may or may not be needed. The representative of the government of
Egypt agreed with removing the part referring to policy coherence, and suggested to
include “conduct tailored model training”. The Chairperson summarized this into the
following: “develop tailored training on FPRW”. The Worker participant from the
IndustriALL Global Union agreed and added to this sentence proposed: “…specific to the
needs in the electronics industry”. The text was adopted as amended.
105. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 16(c) with an amendment proposed by the
representative of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to add the following at
the end of the sentence: “help the constituents to promote the capacity of gathering quality
information in this regard (; and)”.
106. The Forum adopted proposed subparagraph 16(d) with one amendment proposed by a
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), to add “and other forms
of” before the word “employment”. Asked by the representative of the IOE about the
expected outcome of this amendment, a Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL
Global Union) stated that it should lead to a better understanding of purchasing practices
and the relationship with different forms of employment.
107. The representative of the Government of Cameroon proposed holding regional forums
regarding the issues related to consumer countries, at least in Africa, because they were not
addressed by the Forum. Upon inquiry by the Employers’ group coordinator on whether
the issue was about the impacts on consumers or about the impacts of purchasing practices
on the companies and employment, he stressed that there was a domino effect between
production and consumption. Many ILO member States were consumer countries, and he
asked what would happen if enterprises produced goods, but would not be able to sell
them. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) expressed
difficulties understanding how this was related to this Forum and suggested to raise the
issue in another ILO forum, and the representative of the IOE explained that there was a
separate procedure to request sectoral meetings.
108. To address the previous discussion, the representative of the Government of the Republic
of Korea requested a clarification on whether the correct wording was “procurement” or
“purchasing”. After some discussion the wording “purchasing” was retained.
109. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(a) with an amendment, proposed by the
Employers’ group coordinator, to add the words “and policies” after the word
“legislation”.
110. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(b) with three amendments. First, the
Government group coordinator proposed to replace the word “companies” with “social
partners”. Second, the Workers’ group coordinator proposed to add the phrase “and respect
FPRW” at the end. Third, the Forum deleted the word “national”, after the representative
of the Government of China suggested adding “and regional” after “national”. The
Workers’ group coordinator suggested to delete “national” so the term could cover all
levels of legislation. The latter proposal was adopted.
18 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
111. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(c) with one amendment, proposed by
the Government group coordinator, to replace “invest” with the words “encourage public
and private investments”.
112. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(d) with three amendments. The first and
second amendments were proposed by the Workers’ group coordinator, to delete the words
“agency and” and to add, at the end of the sentence, “and other forms of employment”. The
third amendment was proposed by the representative of the Government of the Islamic
Republic of Iran, who suggested adding the words “and reliable” after “relevant”.
113. The Forum adopted a new subparagraph 17(e) proposed by the Workers’ group
coordinator, which would read: “Improve social protection for workers affected by
fluctuating demands.” The Forum also adopted a subamendment proposed by the
Employers’ group coordinator, to add at the end of the sentence the words “where needed”.
114. The Forum adopted a new subparagraph 17(f) proposed by the Workers’ group
coordinator, which would read: “Enforce legislation through sanctions and provide
corrective, developmental and technical advice and create incentives for outstanding
efforts, for example, through mechanisms fostering tripartite collaboration.”
115. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 18(a) with two amendments proposed by
the Employers’ group coordinator, replacing the words “equality of” with “equitable”, and
deleting the words between “workers” and “regardless”, as the focus of the paragraph was
to achieve equitable treatment in a wide number of areas.
116. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 18(b) without amendments.
117. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 18(c) with two amendments, after the
Employers’ group coordinator expressed the group’s initial intent to delete it but instead
suggested to replace the phrase “develop mechanisms to involve brands in fostering
sustainable enterprises in the electronics industry” with a language that the Workers’ group
could propose. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), in
response, proposed to replace the phrase “regulating or finding alternatives to temporary
work” with “jointly explore options in addition to temporary employment or other forms of
employment to address fluctuating demand”, while suggesting that the text deleted from
the draft paragraph be addressed later. The second amendment, proposed by the
representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea, replaced the word “address”
with “respond”. Both amendments were adopted.
118. The Forum did not adopt a proposal by a Worker participant from Switzerland
(IndustriALL Global Union) to add a subparagraph 18(d), which would read: “engage in
social dialogue on how to deal with fluctuation in demand at workplace level”. The
Employers’ group coordinator could not accept the new subparagraph. The representative
of the IOE explained that Employers considered that social dialogue referred to the
industrial relations between workers and management within the company, but
management needed to choose freely how to deal with fluctuation in demand at the
workplace, leaving no space for social dialogue at that level. A Worker participant from
Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) found it hard to understand the Employers’ view
since a multitude of collective agreements had been signed in production areas where
fluctuating demand was typical. The representative of the IOE underlined that social
dialogue on that topic was a condition to be evaluated at the enterprise level and the group
welcomed it, but would not make them mandatory at the workplace. He also rejected the
Workers’ proposal to change the word “engage” with “encourage” and another by the
Government group coordinator to add “where applicable” at the end of the sentence,
saying the term “encourage” lacked clarity. He reiterated that this was a decision to be
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 19
taken at a certain point in time, and that they could neither recommend nor make that
practice mandatory to the world.
119. Turning once again to the proposed 13th paragraph, the Forum agreed to remove the
phrase “by the governments” as proposed by the Secretary-General, to place the text in line
with the United Nations Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights. The following
text was adopted: “The respect for FPRW, as well as for the UN Guiding Principles for
Business and Human Rights, should be ensured throughout the supply chains in the
electronics industry. Corporate social responsibility measures can also play an important
role in promoting decent work.”
120. Turning once again to the proposed fourth and fifth paragraphs, the Forum adopted them
with several amendments. First, the paragraphs were moved to the section on measures to
promote decent work and contribute to a more sustainable industry. After a lengthy
discussion, the paragraph was adopted as:
“If temporary or other forms of employment present challenges, alternative options should
be explored, including:
(a) annualized hours schemes, under which workers might work more hours during
certain periods and be compensated by reduced hours and time off during other
periods;
(b) multiskilling: workers are trained in multiple disciplines that allow them to perform a
larger variety of tasks, thus allowing production to take place with a smaller
workforce without creating production bottlenecks.
Other options may be identified through social dialogue to address these issues.”
121. Turning once again to the proposed eighth and ninth paragraphs, the Forum adopted a
single, combined paragraph with an alternative phrasing, plus a new language to replace
the proposed ninth paragraph. Initially, however, they disagreed.
122. The Chairperson invited the parties to reach an agreement, and the Employers’ group
coordinator stated that there needed to be some wording which expressed that there were
situations in which temporary and other forms of employment had social benefits. He
argued that the wording proposed by the Workers in the previous discussion would be
open to too much interpretation, and that all employment relationships needed to be
voluntary. After a lengthy discussion over temporary employment, when could it be
considered voluntary and when justified. A Worker participant from Switzerland
(IndustriALL Global Union proposed deleting the paragraphs 6–9.
123. The Secretary-General of the Forum said that the option to go back to the original wording
proposed by the Office was available, which the Employers’ group coordinator accepted if
small amendments were made. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL
Global Union) acknowledged that temporary employment could be positive but said it was
negative most of the time. The Employers’ group coordinator stated that he just wanted the
wording to say that there were some benefits of temporary work.
124. After a lengthy discussion, agreement was reached on a revised proposed eighth paragraph,
which would include wording from the proposed ninth paragraph as follows: “A number of
challenges are often encountered by workers under temporary contracts. These include a
lack of employment security and protection of work–life balance, less favourable working
conditions and difficulties for them to exercise their rights at work. Among temporary
workers, those more vulnerable include migrant workers, women workers and young
workers.” A new drafting that would replace the proposed ninth paragraph was agreed to
20 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
read as follows: “Temporary and other forms of work, in certain situations, can provide
flexibility for workers and an open opportunity for entrants to find employment and for
workers to build up their skills.” The Forum adopted these two paragraphs with this
wording.
125. The Forum did not adopt a new subparagraph 18(e) proposed by a Worker participant from
Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) which contained language identical to the
conclusions of the Global Dialogue Forum on Wages and Working Hours in the Textiles,
Clothing, Leather and Footwear Sector. The text would have read as follows: “promote
social dialogue and identify and develop mechanisms to involve buyers in improving
working conditions, productivity and competitiveness”. She also proposed inserting after
paragraph 13 a new paragraph which would read: “Production in the electronics sector is
truly globalized and therefore social dialogue can profit from participation of international
actors, such as buyers.” The representative of the IOE stated that the text of a previous
Global Dialogue Forum was not binding for subsequent meetings, and the Employers’
group coordinator rejected the proposed amendments. A Worker participant from
Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) stated that the Workers would continue to work
with buyers on supply chain issues in the electronics industry but would also like it to be
acknowledged in the Forum. The representative of the Government of the Republic of
Korea questioned why language agreed in other ILO forums, such as the global dialogue
forum for the textiles industry, could not be agreed for the electronics sector. The
Employers’ group coordinator responded that his organization, the EICC, looked forward
to working with the unions, on a voluntary basis, to find strategies to engage buyers in the
entire supply chain to resolve issues concerning temporary employment; but that the
concept of buyers should not be included in this document.
126. The Forum adopted the points of consensus as amended.
127. The Employers’, Workers’ and Government group coordinators, the Secretary-General and
Chairperson of the Forum all expressed their satisfaction with the adoption of the points of
consensus and praised the impressive level of cooperation achieved throughout the
meeting.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 21
Points of consensus 1
Measures taken by enterprises to adapt
to fluctuating demands
128. Short product cycles and fast-changing, sometimes seasonal, consumer demands, are a
reality for parts of the electronics industry.
129. Companies can adopt a number of options to respond to fluctuating demands. Such options
include better buyer-supplier coordination to avoid particularly high peaks in demand, the
use of temporary and other forms of employment, as well as improved forecasting
mechanisms to anticipate demands.
Effects of a high incidence of temporary and other
forms of employment on enterprises
130. The effects of temporary and other forms of employment on enterprises can present both
benefits and risks. As one measure to address fluctuation, temporary and other forms of
work arrangements are often a necessity for companies.
131. Benefits may include the ability to right-size workforce to demand, bring new workers
with new skills into the enterprise and stay competitive – creating and retaining jobs.
132. Risks brought by changes in a company’s workforce may include: decreased productivity;
possible divulgation of trade secrets and resulting threats to a company’s intellectual
property; as well as high costs for hiring and training of temporary workers.
Effects of a high incidence of temporary and
other forms of employment on workers
133. A number of challenges are often encountered by workers under temporary contracts.
These include a lack of employment security and protection of a work–life balance, less
favourable working conditions and difficulties for them to exercise their rights at work.
Among temporary workers, those more vulnerable include migrant workers, women
workers and young workers.
134. Temporary and other forms of employment, in certain situations, provide flexibility for
workers and an opportunity for entrants to find employment and for workers to build up
their skills.
1 These points of consensus were adopted by the Global Dialogue Forum on 11 December 2014. In
accordance with established procedures, they will be submitted to the Governing Body of the ILO
for its consideration.
22 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
Measures to promote decent work and contribute
to a more sustainable industry
135. Measures aimed at adapting the electronics industry to fluctuations in demand should
strive to balance industry concerns for sustainability and the needs of workers. Social
dialogue, which includes collective bargaining, is paramount to promoting decent work
and to develop and implement sustainable measures supported by employers as well as
workers.
136. These measures should include social protection, occupational safety and health (OSH),
cross- and retraining; and they should ensure non-discrimination.
137. If temporary or other forms of employment present challenges, alternative options should
be explored, including:
(a) annualized hours schemes, under which workers might work more hours during
certain periods and be compensated by reduced hours and time off during other
periods;
(b) multiskilling: workers are trained in multiple disciplines that allow them to perform a
larger variety of tasks, thus allowing production to take place with a smaller
workforce without creating production bottlenecks.
Other options may be identified through social dialogue to address these issues.
138. Long-lasting employment relationships are to be promoted, where possible, and all
employment arrangements should be voluntary. All workers, including temporary workers,
should have full access to fundamental principles and rights at work (FPRW). Sharing of
available information on market developments and demand forecasts with workers and
their representatives is particularly helpful for dealing with temporary and other forms of
employment.
139. The respect for FPRW, as well as for the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human
Rights, should be ensured throughout the supply chains in the electronics industry.
Corporate social responsibility measures can also play an important role in promoting
decent work.
140. Labour inspection is central to workplace compliance. Governments should not only
enforce legislation through sanctions, they should also provide corrective, developmental
and technical advice and create incentives for outstanding efforts, for example, through
mechanisms fostering tripartite collaboration.
141. Governments have an important role in creating an enabling environment for sustainable
enterprises. Governments could encourage competitiveness and productive employment in
the industry by helping companies to prioritize research and development and by the
establishment of dual training systems and links between educational and training
institutions and enterprises.
Recommendations for future action by the International
Labour Organization and its Members
In view of the discussion at the Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of
Companies to Deal with Fluctuating Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and Other
Forms of Employment in Electronics the following future action was recommended.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 23
142. The Office should:
(a) promote ratification and effective implementation of relevant international labour
standards, including the Part-Time Work Convention, 1994 (No. 175), and the Private
Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181), as well as those Conventions
related to FPRW; and promote the Employment Relationship Recommendation, 2006
(No. 198);
(b) develop tailored training on FPRW specific to the needs in the electronics industry;
(c) compile and disseminate case studies and good practices on fair measures to adapt to
fluctuations in demand jointly developed by workers and employers; develop their
capacity to implement such measures at all levels; help the constituents to promote
the capacity of gathering quality information in this regard; and
(d) conduct research on the impact of purchasing practices in the electronics sector on
labour rights and temporary and other forms of employment.
143. Governments should:
(a) engage social partners in improving labour legislation and policies to better meet the
needs of companies and workers in the sector;
(b) build the capacity of social partners to better understand and comply with legislation
and respect FPRW;
(c) encourage public and private investments in education, training and skills
development to promote decent work and productive employment;
(d) share relevant and reliable labour market information with employer and worker
organizations on issues such as the use of temporary and other forms of employment;
(e) improve social protection for workers affected by fluctuating demands, where needed;
and
(f) enforce legislation through sanctions and provide corrective, developmental and
technical advice, and create incentives for outstanding efforts, for example, through
mechanisms fostering tripartite collaboration.
144. Employer and worker organizations in the electronics industry should:
(a) promote equitable treatment for all workers, regardless of their employment status;
(b) raise awareness and build capacity on FPRW and promote respect of these principles
and rights throughout the supply chains;
(c) jointly explore options in addition to temporary or other forms of employment to
respond to fluctuating demands; and
(d) promote long-lasting employment relationships, where possible.

GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 25
List of participants
Liste des participants
Lista de participantes

GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 27
Chairperson
Président
Presidente
Mr Douglas L. SUN, First Secretary, United States Mission to the United Nations, Geneva, Switzerland.
Members representing Governments
Membres représentant les gouvernements
Miembros representantes de los gobiernos
ANGOLA
M. Alberto Samy GUIMARÃES, deuxième secrétaire, Mission permanente de la République d’Angola, Genève,
Suisse.
BANGLADESH
Mr Shelley SALEHIN, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Bangladesh, Geneva, Switzerland.
BURUNDI
Honorable Annonciata SENDAZIRASA, ministre de la Fonction publique, du Travail et de la Sécurité sociale,
ministère de la Fonction publique, du Travail et de la Sécurité sociale.
M. Boniface NDAYIRAGIJE, directeur général, Travail et Perfectionnement professionnel.
M. Philippe MINANI, deuxième conseiller, Mission permanente du Burundi, Genève, Suisse.
CAMEROON CAMEROUN CAMERUN
M. Parfait P. ABOUGA NDZANA, chef, Cellule de la coopération technique, ministère du Travail et de la
Sécurité sociale (MINTSS), Yaoundé.
M. Jean MARCEL, chef, Cellule de suivi, ministère de la Recherche scientifique et de l’Innovation.
Mme Suzanne ZAMBA, chef, Service des agréments et du contrôle (MINEFOP), ministère de l’Emploi et de la
Formation professionnelle, Direction de la régulation de la main-d’œuvre, Yaoundé.
CHINA CHINE
Mr Suzhong GAO, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Dongwen DUAN, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Feng TIAN, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Geneva, Switzerland.
CONGO
M. Auxence Léonard OKOMBI, directeur général, Direction générale de la formation qualifiante et de l’emploi,
ministère de l’Enseignement technique, professionnel, de la Formation qualifiante et de l’Emploi, Brazzaville.
M. Bernard MBEMBA, conseiller d’ambassade, Mission permanente du Congo, Genève, Suisse.
28 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
EGYPT EGYPTE EGIPTO
Mr Walid AL-RASHID, First Secretary of the Ministry, Head of the Information Center Public Enterprise,
Information Center Public Business Sector, Ministry of Investment.
IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF
IRAN, RÉPUBLIQUE ISLAMIQUE D’
IRÁN, REPÚBLICA ISLÁMICA DEL
Mr Majid Hossein HOSSIENPOUR, Expert, Department of Employment and Entrepreneurship Development,
Ministry of Cooperatives, Labour and Social Welfare.
IRAQ
Mr Falih H. AL-AMIRI, Technical Deputy Minister, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.
Mr Qusay Mohammed MAHAL, Attaché, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Iraq, Geneva, Switzerland.
KOREA, REPUBLIC OF
CORÉE, RÉPUBLIQUE DE
COREA, REPÚBLICA DE
Mr Sangun CHOI, Labour Attaché, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea, Geneva, Switzerland.
MALAYSIA MALAISIE MALASIA
Mr Ummar Jai Kumar Bin ABDULLAH, Labour Attaché, Permanent Mission of Malaysia, Geneva, Switzerland.
MOZAMBIQUE
Mr. Juvenal Arcanjo DENGO, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Mozambique, Geneva,
Switzerland.
NETHERLANDS PAYS-BAS PAÍSES BAJOS
Ms Janette VERRIJZER, Policy Advisor, Department for International Affairs, Ministry of Social Affairs and
Labour, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Wiebren van DIJK, First Secretary, Permanent Representation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Geneva,
Switzerland.
OMAN OMÁN
Mr Khalid Hamed AL RAWAHI, Ministry of Manpower, Oman.
PHILIPPINES FILIPINAS
Ms Ma. Celeste VALDERRAMA, Labor Attaché, Permanent Mission of the Philippines, Geneva, Switzerland.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 29
POLAND POLOGNE POLONIA
Mr Andrzej JARZEWSKI, Expert, Electronic Economy Department, Ministry of Economy, Warzaw.
Ms Magdalena NOJSEWSKA-DOCHEV, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of Poland, Geneva, Switzerland.
VENEZUELA, BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF
VENEZUELA, RÉPUBLIQUE BOLIVARIENNE DU
VENEZUELA, REPÚBLICA BOLIVARIANA DE
Sr. Carlos Enrique FLORES TORRES, Consejero/Agregado Laboral, Misión Permanente de la República
Bolivariana de Venezuela, Ginebra, Suiza.
ZIMBABWE
Mr Poem MUDYAWABIKWA, Minister Counsellor (Labour Attaché), Permanent Mission of Zimbabwe,
Geneva, Switzerland.
30 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
Members representing the Employers
Membres représentant les employeurs
Miembros representantes de los empleadores
Mr João GIRÃO, Assessor, Associação dos Industriais Metalúrgicos, Metalmecânicos e Afins de Portugal
(AIMMAP), Porto, Portugal.
Mr Billy GRAYSON, Program Director, Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), Alexandria, United
States.
Mr Mohamad Hashem HAJ HASAN, Board Member, Representative of the Engineering, Electrical Industries
Sector, Jordan Chamber of Industry (JCI), Amman, Jordan.
Mr Ilari KALLIO, Legal Advisor, The Federation of Finnish Technology Industries, Helsinki, Finland.
Ms Ana RASOVIC, Economic Affairs Adviser, Montenegrin Employers’ Federation (MEF), Podgorica,
Montenegro.
Sr. Gilberto SÁNCHEZ, Presidente, FERRONIKEL, Caracas, República Bolivariana de Venezuela.
Additional members representing the Employers
Membres additionnels représentant les employeurs
Miembros adicionales representantes de los empleadores
Mr Sandro PETTINEO, Policy Advisor, International Confederation of Private Employment Agencies (CIETT),
Brussels, Belgium.
Members representing the Workers
Membres représentant les travailleurs
Miembros representantes de los trabajadores
Mr Mohd Ridzwan Rama ABDULLAH, Executive Council, Electrical Industry Workers’ Union (EIWU),
Selangor, Malaysia.
Mr Reden ALCANTARA, National President, Metal Workers Alliance of the Philippines (MWAP), Quezon City,
Philippines.
Mr Wan Noorulazhar Mohd HANAFIAH, President, Electronic Industry Employees Union (EIEU), Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia.
Mr Uday MAHALE, General Secretary, Siemens Employees Federation and Siemens Workers Union, Siemens
Ltd, Mumbai, India.
Sr. Adão PEREIRA DE BRITO, Secretario de Organização, Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos de Itu e Região,
Confederação Nacional dos Metalúrgicos (CNM/CUT), São Paulo, Brazil.
Mr Judy WINARNO, Chairperson, Electrical and Electronics Sector, Unions of Federation of Indonesian Metal
Workers’ Union (FSPMI), Jakarta, Indonesia.
Mr Takayuki YAGI, Assistant General Secretary, Japanese Electrical Electric and Information Union (JEIU),
Tokyo, Japan.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 31
Additional members representing the Workers
Membres additionnels représentant les travailleurs
Miembros adicionales representantes de los trabajadores
Ms Jenny HOLDCROFT, Policy Director, IndustriALL Global Union, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Kan MATSUZAKI, Director, ICT, Electrical and Electronics, Shipbuilding and Shipbreaking, Geneva,
Switzerland.
IndustriALL Global Union, Genève, Suisse
M. Philippe SAINT-AUBIN, secrétaire fédéral, Fédération générale des mines et de la métallurgie,
(FGMM CFDT France), Paris, France.
Representatives of non-governmental international organizations
Représentants d’organisations internationales non gouvernementales
Representantes de organizaciones internacionales no gubernamentales
GoodElectronics
Ms Irene SCHIPPER, Senior Researcher, Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO),
Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Mr Charles Héctor FERNÁNDEZ, Coordinator, Workers Hub for Change (WH4C), Amsterdam, Netherlands.
International Organisation of Employers (IOE)
Organisation internationale des employeurs (OIE)
Organización Internacional de Empleadores
M. Jean DEJARDIN, conseiller, Organisation internationale des employeurs (OIE), Genève, Suisse.
International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)
Confédération syndicale international (CSI)
Confederación Sindical Internacional
Ms Esther BUSSER, Assistant Director, ITUC Geneva Office (ITUC-GO), Geneva, Switzerland.
GDFACE/2014/9
Final report of the discussion
Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal
with Fluctuating Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and
Other Forms of Employment in Electronics
(Geneva, 9–11 December 2014)
Sectoral
Policies
DepartmentGeneva, 2015

GDFACE/2014/9
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION
Sectoral Policies Department
Final report of the discussion
Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal
with Fluctuating Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and
Other Forms of Employment in Electronics
(Geneva, 9–11 December 2014)
Geneva, 2015
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE, GENEVA
Copyright © International Labour Organization 2015
First edition 2015
Publications of the International Labour Office enjoy copyright under Protocol 2 of the Universal Copyright
Convention. Nevertheless, short excerpts from them may be reproduced without authorization, on condition that
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Libraries, institutions and other users registered with reproduction rights organizations may make copies in
accordance with the licences issued to them for this purpose. Visit www.ifrro.org to find the reproduction rights
organization in your country.
Final report of the discussion: Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of companies to deal with fluctuating
demands and the incidence of temporary and other forms of employment in electronics, Geneva, 9–11 December
2014, Sectoral Policies Department, International Labour Office, Geneva, 2015.
ISBN 978-92-2-129049-0 (print)
ISBN 978-92-2-129050-6 (Web pdf)
Also available in French: Rapport final de la discussion: Forum de dialogue mondial sur la capacité d’adaptation
des entreprises face aux fluctuations de la demande et l’incidence du travail temporaire et autres formes d’emploi
dans le secteur de l’électronique, Genève, 9-11 décembre 2014, ISBN 978-92-2-229049-9, Geneva, 2015, and in
Spanish: Informe final de la discusión: Foro de diálogo mundial sobre la capacidad de adaptación de las
empresas para hacer frente a la fluctuación de la demanda y al impacto del trabajo temporal y de otras formas de
empleo en el sector de la electrónica, Ginebra, 9-11 de diciembre de 2014, ISBN 978-92-2-329049-8, Geneva,
2015.
labour demand / temporary employment / outsourcing / electronics industry / conference report
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Printed by the International Labour Office, Geneva, Switzerland
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx v
Contents
Page
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1
First point for discussion: How do enterprises adapt to fluctuating demands which
may be caused, among other things, by technological innovation, shorter product
cycles and fast-changing customer demands? ................................................................................... 3
Second point for discussion: Adaptation to fluctuating demands often manifests itself
in high incidence of temporary and other forms of employment. What are the effects
of this situation on the enterprises? What are the effects on the workers? ........................................ 5
Third point for discussion: What solutions could be identified to address the issues
surrounding the use of temporary and other forms of employment to enterprises and
workers and how could decent work be promoted, contributing to a more sustainable industry? .... 7
Fourth point for discussion: Recommendations for future actions by the International Labour
Organization constituents and the International Labour Office with regards to the sector ............... 11
Discussion of the draft points of consensus ...................................................................................... 13
Points of consensus ........................................................................................................................... 21
List of participants ............................................................................................................................. 25

GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 1

Introduction

1. The Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal with Fluctuating
Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and Other Forms of Employment in Electronics
was held at the International Labour Office in Geneva from 9 to 11 December 2014. The
Governing Body of the ILO had proposed the convening of the Forum at its 317th Session
(March 2013) 1 and approved the Forum’s composition at its 320th Session
(March 2014). 2 The Office had prepared an issues paper 3 and suggested points for
discussion, which would serve as a basis for the Forum’s deliberations.

2. The purpose of the Forum was for tripartite participants to assess the reasons for
companies to choose temporary and other forms of employment, as well as the impact of these forms of employment on the enterprise and the workers.

3. The Chairperson of the Forum was Mr Douglas L. Sun, First Secretary, (United States).
The Government group coordinator was Mr Jarzewski (Poland). The Employers’ and
Workers’ group coordinators were respectively Mr Grayson and Mr Yagi. The Secretary-
General of the Forum was Ms Alette van Leur, Director of the Sectoral Policies
Department (SECTOR), the Executive Secretary was Mr David Seligson, and the
coordinator of secretariat services was Ms May Mi Than Tun.

4. The Forum was attended by 49 participants, including 28 Government representatives and
advisers from 18 member States, as well as ten Worker and seven Employer participants,
and four observers from intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) and international non-
governmental organizations (INGOs).
5. The Secretary-General of the Forum introduced the Chairperson. The Chairperson
explained that electronic products were widely used, and that large factories employed
thousands of workers in the sector. The Forum aimed to reach consensus for future actions
at global, national and local level.
6. The Secretary-General of the Forum underlined that the Forum took place seven years after
the last Forum on the matter. Personal lives had become increasingly dependent on
electronics during that time. The Forum had the aim of proposing solutions on how
companies can adjust to the fluctuation in electronic demand. In order to facilitate the
discussion, four points for discussions had been established. Following the Forum,
two official documents would be produced: a report of points of consensus, including
recommendations for future actions to be undertaken by the ILO and its Members, and the
record of the discussion.
7. The Forum adopted the proposed points of discussion and the draft timetable without
objections.
1 GB.317/POL/5.
2 GB.320/POL/5.
3 ILO: Ups and downs in the electronics industry: Fluctuating production and the use of temporary
and other forms of employment. http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_dialogue/---
sector/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_317267.pdf.
2 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
8. The Executive Secretary of the Forum presented the issues paper. The paper was meant to
facilitate the discussion by providing a glimpse of the industry. The first chapter was
focused on key features, such as the fact that it was a large employer, innovative, fast-
changing, and with many new products. Electronic products were ubiquitous, for instance
in motor vehicles. In 2010 China was the first producer of electronics, whereas the United
States contributed the largest value added, followed by China and Japan; however, supply
chains were more diverse than these lists suggested, with large producers and
manufacturers. The second chapter addressed how companies responded to real production
fluctuations, such as coordination between buyers and suppliers, annualized schemes, and
temporary and other work arrangements. Non-standard forms of employment differed also
from region to region. Five country case studies – China, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico and
Hungary – showcased the current opportunities and challenges in the sector, such as
employment creation for governments; flexibility, cost, quality, and employee turnover for
enterprises; and flexibility, employment security, wages, rights, and collective bargaining
for workers. The third chapter questioned whether recourse to temporary employment was
a stepping stone for permanent employment: some workers preferred temporary work for
its flexibility, even if their careers were at risk; and women were more likely to stay in
temporary employment. Furthermore, these forms of labour were less covered by
collective bargaining. ILO instruments such as the Part-Time Work Convention, 1994
(No. 175); the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181); and the
Employment Relationship Recommendation, 2006 (No. 198), offered some responses to
these challenges.
9. The Employers’ group coordinator welcomed the discussion on the new reality of the
electronic industry, since innovations and rapid changes in production processes had a
great impact on employment. Agreements, laws and workers’ skills would need to be
updated to keep pace with competitiveness. Terms such as non-standard and precarious
work were not adequate and the Forum should focus on the new industrial realities to reach
consensus, so the issues paper would only be a starting point for discussion. While
Chapters 1 and 2 gave a frame of the industrial situation in the electronics industry,
Chapter 3 was not as impartial as desirable, as it seemed to favour the workers. Employers
were dealing with many challenges in the sector and therefore needed to have a flexible
and resilient workforce; temporary employment could represent a key step for economic
progress. Keeping companies sustainable was important in order to provide employment in
places where unemployment rates were high.
10. The Workers’ group coordinator said both unions and workers took strong action against
precariousness and expressed great concern with regards to temporary work as a response
to fluctuations. The numbers of workers in temporary contracts seemed to be higher than
the issues paper suggested. In some cases, workers were not granted the right to join
unions, which was unacceptable. Products with high fluctuations, such as iPhones and PCs,
were just a small part of the industry; many other products, such as air conditioners, copy
and fax machines, did not suffer from such large fluctuations. He reminded the Forum of
the Declaration of Philadelphia’s axiom that labour was not a commodity and pointed to
success stories, like multiskilling and seasonal shifts of workers, which could reduce
problems arising from high fluctuation. Finally, he noted that migrant workers were
sometimes in forced labour and were denied the right to join unions, which could lead to
tragedies.
11. The Government group coordinator greeted the report but wished it had focused more on
African countries. He said the industry was globalized and that new technologies had a big
impact on employment trends and might also cause unemployment. He said the
consumers’ perspective and the employers’ perspective were different but both focused on
learning skills and sharing experiences. Additionally, it was important to promote the idea
of the social responsibility of business and national capacity.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 3
12. A representative from GoodElectronics stated that people sometimes forgot that employees
were human beings and that employment relationships should not respond solely to
fluctuations, because both parties would lose. Many temporary workers suffered from
exploitation. Fluctuating demand could be handled by overtime and other means rather
than through temporary or multiple short-term contracts, or using agency labour. The
increase in temporary employment meant a reduction in the bargaining power of unions.
Also, workers should not be discriminated against in terms of remuneration, and
enterprises should comply with international labour standards. The Forum should also
discuss the issues affecting student workers, internal migrant and immigrant workers, who
were exposed to exploitation. Outsourcing work led to injustices, and employers should
provide workers with adequate social protection.
First point for discussion: How do enterprises
adapt to fluctuating demands which may be
caused, among other things, by technological
innovation, shorter product cycles and fast-
changing customer demands?
13. The Executive Secretary presented the first point for discussion. He said parties may wish
to discuss the characteristics of the industry and different ways to deal with fluctuating
demands.
14. The Workers’ group coordinator noted that opening remarks on the first point for
discussion were going to be made by four Worker participants, which would address four
distinct issues. The Worker participant from Malaysia would discuss a national migration
programme; the Worker participant from the Philippines would discuss the dual training
system; the Worker participant from India would present the negotiation between workers
and employers; and the Worker participant from Indonesia would speak about multi-skilled
workers.
15. A Worker participant from Malaysia stated that contract manufacturers had responded to
fluctuating demands through outsourcing, which had caused an influx of migrant workers
to Malaysia. These workers were afraid they would be deported if they joined the local
union, since this had occurred when a company learned that some workers had joined the
union. This had a chilling effect on union organizing.
16. A Worker participant from the Philippines informed the Forum of the use of the dual
training system. The system had the effect of extending contracts to 18 months, but there
was no technology transfer because the tasks were limited to assembling products.
Students received 50 per cent of the salaries, and the difference was paid to the
universities. Student work increased conditions of exploitation and raised important safety
and health concerns. Some companies employed 16- and 17-year-old students, or did not
provide personal protective equipment (PPE). The system also weakened trade unions’
bargaining power.
17. A Worker participant from India said that his union in Siemens had signed a contract to
reduce wages in Siemens for four years in response to reduced demand. Training and
flexible working hours were important ingredients to address the challenges, and the
workers received the original wages after the four-year period.
18. A Worker participant from Indonesia presented a case where multiskilling allowed a
company to change products and models in a flexible way. The union–management project
introduced a third line of production that increased workers’ skills so less than ten workers
4 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
could perform the work that 50 workers previously had. The agreement provided added
benefits for achieving production goals, kept worker morale high, allowed workers to
enjoy their work and prevented conflicts.
19. The Worker group coordinator, speaking as the Worker participant from Japan, shared the
case of a Japanese manufacturer of air conditioners. Since people purchased most air
conditioners in spring, the trade union and companies reached an agreement to increase
working hours in peak seasons and reduce them in trough seasons.
20. The Employers’ group coordinator stated that the group’s intervention would focus on
collective issues of adapting to fluctuations; however, enterprises were not monoliths but
experience demands differently. Tier 1 enterprises bore the brunt of the fluctuations, but
they worked with other types of manufacturers. There were a number of temporary
workers in this industry, which needed different types of protection. He was pleased to
learn of the different experiences presented by the Worker participants.
21. An Employer participant from Finland stated that employers have little flexibility because
national laws and European Union regulations were very strict. However, trade unions
were showing more flexibility, particularly at the company level, in adapting to workplace
conditions. In Finland, very few workers were on temporary contracts, but it was important
to have the flexibility to employ temporary workers. However, cheap labour was not
always profitable labour.
22. An Employer participant from Portugal presented the example of Portugal, which had very
restrictive labour laws but had become more flexible in the last five years as a result of the
crisis. Both parties understood that flexibility was a question of survival and that they
needed to be prepared to react quickly to market changes.
23. The Employers’ group coordinator, speaking as Employer participant from the United
States, stated that companies recognize that better communication and coordination across
the supply chain was a key tool. His organization, the Electronic Industry Citizenship
Coalition (EICC), provided a forum for this.
24. The Government group coordinator stated that the industry had globalized, in which
process the new technologies may have caused unemployment. Governments had to
consider the consumers’ perspective as well as promoting social responsibility.
25. The Government representative of China asserted that the electronics enterprises should
study the markets, the needs of customers and technological change; should focus on
research and development to develop improved products; and develop expertise and skills
because it was an intelligence-intensive industry.
26. The Government representative of Malaysia reiterated that skill training is important in
order to deal with fluctuations. He stated the need to study the unemployment scheme and
added that, in Malaysia, they are currently studying the policies relating to foreign workers
and the possibilities of having better policies for them, like expanding the safety net.
However, he clarified that the law does allow foreign workers to join existing unions, but
not to form new unions.
27. The Government representative of Cameroon stated that African countries are mostly
consumers of electronic products, although some countries, for example South Africa,
Algeria and Morocco, have also manufacturing of electronics. Governments needed to also
regulate the quality of products and ensure the health and safety of both workers and
consumers. He suggested that the Office organize a forum on these consumer-driven
issues, or regional forums in Africa and other regions. Even from a consumer point of
view, there were jobs-related issues like training and the maintenance of products.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 5
28. The Chairperson thanked the representative from Cameroon for this statement and
suggested to him to bring up this proposal in the fourth point of discussion.
29. The Employer participant from Portugal stated that one of the reasons for the good results
in this sector in Portugal is the dual training system: after the training many students join
the industry and become permanent employees of the companies.
30. A Worker participant from Indonesia described the case of JVC, a car audio company,
where the number of workers fluctuated by 200 between 2008 and 2014. Based on this, an
estimate of 200 temporary workers could be set as a maximum to address fluctuations in
demand. He argued that ways must be found to set limits on the scale of temporary
workers that can be hired.
31. The Workers’ group coordinator considered that the use of temporary workers can increase
companies’ profits in the short term but not in the long run.
32. The Employers’ group coordinator noted the need for better forecasting of demand and
communicating this more effectively down the supply chain to inform temporary workers
in advance of their work prospects.
Second point for discussion: Adaptation to
fluctuating demands often manifests itself in
high incidence of temporary and other forms of
employment. What are the effects of this
situation on the enterprises? What are the
effects on the workers?
33. The Executive Secretary outlined some of the issues that could be discussed, such as the
pros and cons of temporary and other forms of work, the differences across regions and
countries and gender dimensions of temporary work.
34. The Employers’ group coordinator asserted that temporary work needed to be looked at as
a benefit, risk and necessity. Temporary work helped in the retention of full-time jobs and
benefits. Noting the diverse situations of firms and differences in regions, he saw having
flexibility to respond to fluctuating demand as important for profitability. Temporary work
also can bring young skilled people into the workforce, and may lead to permanent
positions. Temporary work also brings to firms specialized expertise or work done by
women who may seek only part-time hours due to responsibilities at home with their
families.
35. He recognized the risks associated with temporary work noting the differences in context
across developing and developed countries. In the developed world the benefits
outweighed the risks. He mentioned risks, in particular in Asia, associated with training
temporary workers who leave for other employment, the possibility of losing intellectual
property, and the problems of workers in exercising their basic rights. Furthermore,
companies do not always understand the risks the workers, for example migrant workers
and students, encounter before entering the factories. He emphasized that temporary
employees have the right to fundamental human rights and that employers’ and workers’
organizations share the responsibility to educate temporary workers about their rights.
36. An Employer participant from Finland considered, referring to the issues paper, that many
temporary workers were interested in acquiring general skills that could apply to diverse
contexts. However, employers expected workers to already possess these general skills and
6 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
instead were prepared to offer company-specific training which, in turn, could involve
them more directly in the firm’s operations. He emphasized that it is the government’s
responsibility to provide for general skills training.
37. The Workers’ group coordinator expressed his surprise at agreeing with many of the points
already made and announced four examples from the European Union, Brazil, Philippines
and India, to illustrate various concerns of the workers.
38. A Worker participant from France, who also chairs the information and communications
technology (ICT) committee of IndustriALL European trade union, mentioned that, while
Europe did not have the same issues as Asian countries, the use of temporary contracts
presented more risks than opportunities. Several countries permitted very temporary
contracts, from zero work hours in the United Kingdom to the situation in Spain where the
workers tendered offers, where the lowest bid is taken by the employer. A more positive
example could be found in Germany, where the use of kurzarbeit linked with training
during the recession improved Germany’s competitiveness.
39. Moreover, prevalence of short work contracts creates problems, such as insecurity in
housing and social protection and less coverage for collective bargaining. He considered
the bipartite discussions in France in 2013 to have improved flexibility in the labour
market through more use of overtime, teamwork and similar measures. He closed by
emphasizing the importance of the EU Directives on fixed-term work (1999) and on
temporary agency work (2008).
40. A Worker participant from Brazil, noting the steady expansion of temporary workers,
considered that companies were using this practice to pay lower benefits, and also as a
means to demobilize union members.
41. A Worker participant from the Philippines noted that precarious forms of work were
widespread in his country. The numbers of contractual workers had doubled or tripled in
some firms. Temporary workers faced lower wages, lack of benefits and social protection,
higher rates of occupational safety and health issues, irregular work hours and income
insecurity. Contracted workers were discouraged or prohibited from joining unions.
Contractual workers avoided unions for fear of losing their jobs. Less than 10 per cent of
the Philippine workforce was unionized as unions have lost their traditional base.
Furthermore, companies also are hiring women workers who are seen as less likely to join
unions.
42. A Worker participant from India expressed that workers are temporary but jobs are
permanent. Many products and jobs had undergone changes and companies preferred to
hire temporary workers in order to reduce costs. The companies made profits and the
workers were affected by low wages due to a lack of unionization.
43. The Government representative of Malaysia noted that temporary work can benefit those
not able to work full time. Malaysia has changed the retirement age to 60 years, and set
that temporary and part-time workers employed for more than two years would be entitled
to retirement benefits at the new age.
44. The representative of the Government of China, referring to paragraph 52 in the issues
paper, clarified that China does not have student workers but instead apprentices. These
apprentices are not in the factories to meet labour demand but to learn.
45. Another representative of the Government of China clarified that the dual training system
consists of classroom learning and practising in factories. The schools provide the
apprentices with insurance for work-related accidents. These apprentices will have work
after graduation.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 7
46. The representative of the Government of the Philippines noted that employment has not
only been affected by the fluctuating demand for electronics but also by technological
innovations. There was an increased need for the industry to introduce new skills and
occupations and for governments and enterprises to develop training to fill skills gaps. The
electronics industry has been an employment growth driver which had led to increased job
growth but also job losses. The need for improved compliance could be partly addressed
by private compliance initiatives and tripartite cooperation.
47. The Employers’ group coordinator considered that demand for electronics was well
reflected in figure 7 of the issues paper, with frequent and wide fluctuations. Governments,
workers and employers should help to smooth out the sharp swings in demand and to
ensure greater reliance on full time labour. He noted that businesses cannot afford to hire
labour at the peaks who then sit idle during the troughs, nor can current workforces be
expected to work overtime as it was against ILO fundamental principles and United
Nations Guiding Principles and not good for health and safety or emotional well-being of
workers. But to reject business when demand peaks would also not increase jobs. He
reconfirmed the Employers’ group’s commitment to respecting human rights under the
United Nations Guiding Principles and the ILO’s fundamental principles but with clear
recognition of the reality of demand.
48. The Workers’ group coordinator emphasized that flexibility should always be freely
chosen by the worker; while flexible work is often unavoidable, the right of temporary
workers to join a union must be ensured. Too often workers are not allowed to join unions
or unions are avoided, which weakens their capacities to effectively negotiate.
49. A Worker participant from France noted that although the industry was characterized by
demand fluctuations for some products due to seasonal factors, this did not apply to the
whole industry and that temporary work was disproportionately used.
50. The Employers’ group coordinator stressed that his group’s position was that temporary
workers should not be prevented from joining a trade union in conformance with the local
law.
Third point for discussion: What solutions could be
identified to address the issues surrounding the use of
temporary and other forms of employment to enterprises
and workers and how could decent work be promoted,
contributing to a more sustainable industry?
51. The Chairperson summarized the preceding discussions: temporary work can be a win–win
formula, which can help businesses adjust to fluctuating demand.
52. The Executive Secretary of the meeting presented the third point for discussion, inviting
participants to explore innovative solutions, against the background of decent work in the
industry. He also informed the Forum that a meeting of experts would take place
February 2015 regarding the theme of non-standard forms of employment.
53. The Workers’ group coordinator underlined that there is not a single solution to the
problem of recourse to temporary and non-standard forms of employment in electronics,
but that case studies can be good examples to consider. However, national laws should
consider the risks and the benefits of temporary and other forms of employment. He called
on six Worker participants to introduce national and international examples.
8 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
54. A Worker participant from Malaysia stated that the best solution to demand fluctuation
would be to promote direct employment. In Malaysia, labour agencies were not regulated
by law until March 2012: thanks to trade union activity, the new law limited the use of
labour contractors in certain sectors. However, the use of agency work breaks the
employment relationship and workers could be organized and covered by collective
bargaining agreements (CBAs) only if they were employed directly by the user enterprise,
and migrant workers could not exercise the freedom of association in practice.
Furthermore, agencies had no real control over working conditions.
55. A Worker participant from the Philippines argued that all workers should have regular
status since the start of their employment relationship. He cited the recent struggle in NXP,
where unions negotiated the regularization of 200 temporary employees. Philippine unions
attempted to extend the CBA and grievance mechanisms to these workers, to organize
them, and to help them organize workers’ associations. He underlined the importance of
education on fundamental labour rights. Philippine unions also engaged in dialogue with
the Government on the issue of precarious work and advocated for the adoption of the
Regular Employment Bill, which would limit labour-only contracting and provide these
employees with security of tenure. Finally, he stated that building alliances at the national,
regional and international level promoted concerted actions to raise the issue of precarious
work and promote decent work. He advocated for negotiating at the local level with the
management to address the effects of business cycles.
56. A Worker participant from Indonesia presented six solutions that had been implemented in
Indonesia. First, union and management in two large industrial areas negotiated a 30 per
cent limit on temporary workers, through mutual communication and respect. Second,
many temporary workers were granted higher salaries than permanent workers, to deter
enterprises from abusing this type of contract. Third, Indonesian law only allowed
employers to outsource certain jobs (not in core sectors such as manufacturing), and many
of these workers had greater security through contracts that were at least one year long; in
addition, employers were required to provide permanent contracts after two consecutive
temporary contracts. Fourth, many temporary workers enjoyed the same working terms
and conditions as their permanent counterparts. Fifth, many employers sought to retain
workers when demand fell, for example assigning them to other work areas; training them
when work is lacking; or keeping them temporarily at home and then rotating them. Sixth,
there was an ongoing discussion to create a special shareholder status for workers, which
would provide some income when unemployed. In addition, laid-off workers were covered
under state- or employer-funded health insurance after the end of their contracts.
57. The Workers’ group coordinator, speaking in his capacity as Worker participant from
Japan, presented two case studies on in-house minimum wages and the use of guidelines
and check-sheets. First, some unions and employers negotiated in-house minimum wages
on the basis of the minimum wage established by the Government at the national or local
level. Second, guidelines and check-sheets had been developed by his union for use at the
local level. Such procedures conferred local responsibility for ensuring decent work
conditions in the field.
58. A Worker participant from India identified three solutions implemented in his company to
provide decent work and develop a sustainable industry. First, a 2004 CBA established that
workers would be recruited at 60 per cent of the wages of existing workers, and raised to
par within four years. In 2010 another CBA established that workers would be recruited at
80 per cent of the wages of existing workers, and raised to par within nine years. Second,
training programmes enabled workers to carry out different tasks within multi-product
enterprises. Third, a company and a union negotiated to give rehiring priority to
40 workers from a closed production plant.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 9
59. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) observed that
negotiations at the local level were very important. However, the use of temporary
employment and agency work often denied workers the opportunity to join unions and
bargain collectively and more needed to be done, particularly by governments, to give
them such access. She welcomed the emphasis that had been made on skills development,
which was an important means of dealing with the consequences of fluctuating demand,
although it was largely incompatible with temporary work. While negotiations at the local
level could succeed, more needed to be done at the global level to recognize the role of
temporary workers and to take them into consideration in overall structures. At a seminar
in Boston in 2012, IndustriALL had been able to discuss the issue of temporary workers
with the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC). In the seminar, the importance
of freedom of association had been recognized, and participants had recognized that
companies should review their hiring practices in relation to temporary workers and look
critically at the sector’s need for such work in correlation with the due diligence
established by the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. There was a
need to work at both the ground and global levels and she welcomed the continuation of
dialogue to seek a balance between business requirements and workers’ rights.
60. The Employers’ group coordinator welcomed the points made by the Worker participants
noting that they did not oppose certain forms of flexibility. His group agreed that all
workers should have freedom of association and collective bargaining rights, in accordance
with local laws; that human rights should be respected regardless of employment status and
that all workers should enjoy the same occupational safety and health standards. A key
point arising out of the discussion was that workers and employers had to work together to
adapt to the market and use all types of forms of work. The discussion should not have a
narrow focus on migrant and agency workers, but rather on workers in vulnerable
situations. His group welcomed solutions based around skill development and the
examples of internal cross-training. Governments, unions and employers all had a
responsibility to train the next generation of workers and to ensure the continuing
development of the current generation. There was a general consensus around the need to
establish strategies to give the flexibility needed by enterprises, while respecting standards.
They all had a responsibility to make temporary workers feel part of their enterprises, and
to educate them on their rights. National laws should also evolve to adapt to an
increasingly fluctuating demand and to take full advantage of all forms of flexible work,
while ensuring the respect and enforcement of the fundamental human rights of all
workers, regardless of union membership. His group supported the point made by the
participant from Indonesia that temporary workers should have the same rights as
permanent workers. He agreed that all temporary workers should receive the minimum
wage, and that negotiations at the local level were an effective way to address issues. In
each of his last three statements, he warned against adopting general rules based on
solutions applied in specific contexts. He also requested clarification of the exact nature of
the check-sheets mentioned by the Worker participant from Japan.
61. An Employer participant from Portugal stated that flexible legislation should be adopted to
enable competitiveness which everyone would know and respect.
62. An Employer participant from Belgium welcomed the Workers’ support for freedom of
association for contract and other workers. He explained that there were funds in
seven countries for training and granting better working conditions for agency workers, for
example to help workers obtain loans and driving licences. There was no real erosion of
collective bargaining rights; rather an evolution of the market and banning of agency work
was not a solution. He urged countries to ratify ILO Convention No. 181 in order to get rid
of abuses linked to agency work.
63. The representative of the Government of Egypt underlined that modifying legislation
needed time. Moreover, rights such as medical schemes and insurances were not foreseen
10 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
by all countries. Therefore, it was not logical to make such schemes mandatory
everywhere. Finally, the issue of temporary work was dependent on demand and supply
and governments could not oblige companies to change temporary work to permanent
work.
64. The representative of the Government of China stressed the importance of a social
protection floor for temporary employees, including medical insurance and occupational
safety and health (OSH) at the workplace. He also stated that flexible opportunities for the
informal sector should be granted, training encouraged and skills and capacity building
improved. He finally observed that vocational qualification systems were important, as
certifications could increase workers’ mobility.
65. The representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea underlined that non-
regular workers were increasing in his country, accounting for 6 million or 33 per cent of
the total national workforce. He stated that the Republic of Korea has undertaken
comprehensive measures to address discrimination against non-regular employees and with
reinforcing the social safety net of vulnerable groups. The three main Korean policies were
related to: (i) strengthening inspection for workplaces for identifying discrimination cases;
(ii) requiring companies with more than 300 workers to improve their status and disclosing
the number of workers under each type of contract; and (iii) promoting education and
counselling activities and voluntary measures in order to reduce discrimination.
66. The Government group coordinator synthesized the discussions held in the Government
group. First, labour relations in electronics should not differ from those of other sectors.
Second, a flexible labour market was important and had significant influence on the
electronics industry because of high demand fluctuations. Third, besides legislation, there
should be a focus on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the struggle against
discrimination. Fourth, skills and vocational training supported the flexibility of the labour
force and contract regularization. Fifth, government policies should ensure the stability of
the ICT sector and facilitate negotiations.
67. The representative of the Government of the Philippines gave examples from her country.
First, strong labour compliance was important: the Philippines had increased the number of
labour inspectors and trained them properly in recent years, and compliance with labour
laws was incentivized, for example with certificates of compliance or even a presidential
certificate of excellence in labour compliance. Second, new laws were being drafted
through social dialogue in the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council, which resulted
in faster adoptions. Third, social dialogue continued to be active at national and regional
level, through particular initiatives such as the tripartite council for electronics, aimed at
discussing specific sectoral issues. Finally the Philippine Government brought more
support and capacity building in developing dispute resolution skills.
68. The representative of the Government of China stressed that labour inspection should play
an important role. He referred to the Philippine statement and added that China recently
initiated wage consultations with social partners.
69. The Workers’ group coordinator, speaking in his capacity as Worker participant from
Japan, underlined that check-sheets were verifications within the companies, at the field
level, to ensure that the right things were done at the right time and place, to maintain good
labour relations. They should also be completed by workers and not only by companies.
Prodded for more information by the Employers’ group coordinator, he explained that the
term “check-sheet” was invented in Japan and that they promoted uniform standards for
them, focusing on key points including wages and other issues. Many studies had been
carried out. The Chairperson intervened stating that he probably referred to what was
called “checklists” in the United States.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 11
70. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) reminded the
Employers that fundamental principles and rights at work (FPRW) are universal, and not
restricted by national laws.
71. The Employers’ group coordinator responded to five points raised by other participants.
First, he supported the use of checklists, but preferred validated audit programmes, which
would consider all key human rights along with management systems, ethics and
environmental responsibility. Second, he stated that all parties who had ratified human
rights Conventions should work to abide by them. The representative of the International
Organisation of Employers (IOE) clarified that FPRW were binding on all member States
by virtue of their membership in the ILO. The Employers’ group coordinator continued
with his third point, welcoming the extension of social insurance and other protections to
temporary workers by the Governments of China and the Republic of Korea, but not
supporting the use of quotas on temporary labour and limits on the duration of temporary
labour situations: these were best decided by workers and enterprises rather than through
legislation. Fourth, most employers did not mind disclosing the numbers of workers
employed in temporary and other forms of work, but others considered it as part of their
corporate strategy. Fifth, the group welcomed the ideas from the Philippines, especially the
concept of partnerships to encourage corrective action and incentivize excellent
performance. That was preferable to only policing, which could stimulate lying, falsifying
records, and bribing.
Fourth point for discussion: Recommendations
for future actions by the International Labour
Organization constituents and the International
Labour Office with regards to the sector
72. The Chairperson thanked the participants for the good work done concerning point No. 3
during the morning session before opening point four for discussion on recommendations
for future actions.
73. The Employers’ group coordinator restated the importance of tripartite negotiations to
addressing rights and protection issues affecting temporary workers, and the role of the
Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181), in guiding these initiatives. He
recommended that the ILO proactively promote its ratification and implementation. He
recommended that the ILO continue its research on flexible work and generating insights
through country cases, which show the importance of the cooperation between employers
and workers. Training workers in their fundamental rights is a shared responsibility
between the three parties, with a role also for the ILO to play. He concluded by
encouraging governments to adapt the legislation to facilitate the new challenges in terms
of flexibility but also to apply systematically the law.
74. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) proposed a number of
recommendations to be considered. He opened by stating that Governments, Employers,
Workers and the Office should continue to promote decent work and sustainable
employment in the electronics industry by insisting on trade in the electronics industry to
be based on the principles of fairness and equality in order to lift living standards by
supporting decent employment growth, improving social protections and providing for
fundamental workers’ rights, environmental standards, human rights and democracy. He
recommended governments to ensure that workers representatives/unions in the country
are informed on a regular basis on the number of temporary/agency workers and their
positions. Governments and employers should ensure equality of treatment for all workers
regarding wages, working conditions, OSH, social security/insurance, and other
allowances and benefits, regardless of their employment status. They also should
12 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
encourage investment in training and skills to assure sustainable employment and the
creation of good-quality jobs. The employers and workers should engage in effective social
dialogue/negotiation in order to find alternatives to temporary employment. He stated that
the ILO and governments should promote inclusion of labour standards in all trade
agreements. In addition, he recommended the ILO to:
■ develop an effective implementation of international labour standards relevant to the
electronics industry, especially for precarious workers to receive the same protection
as directly employed regular workers in respect of the right to organize and to bargain
collectively, occupational safety and health, and discrimination;
■ strengthen and build capacity of employers and trade unions to assure sustainable
industrial production and long-term employment prospects at all levels such as
company, industry, national, regional, and international level;
■ promote fair and just labour–management negotiation on tackling the issues of
precarious work caused by the fluctuating demand;
■ conduct research on impact of purchasing practices in the sector on labour rights and
temporary employment;
■ promote social dialogue and identify and develop mechanisms to improve purchasing
practices in order to address temporary employment in the electronics industry;
■ urge governments to legislate against companies being able to dismiss workers on
open-ended direct employment contracts in order to rehire them on precarious
contracts with less favourable working conditions to do the same work.
75. A Worker participant from Indonesia clarified that the flexibility notion in his country was
only about the employment period; consequently all workers should have the same
benefits.
76. The Government group coordinator summarized the discussion of the governments, and
proposed that the ILO organize a similar meeting to discuss the matter in five years and
consider preparing guidelines or a handbook on good practices with regard to temporary
work in the sector. He added that the ILO should promote ratification of Conventions
Nos 175 and 181 and compile good examples of how countries are implementing these
Conventions. Employers should provide training opportunities for temporary workers on
their rights and benefits. He also indicated that Government representatives from Africa
saw the need to have a regional forum on these same topics. Finally, he asked the ILO to
help in putting into place a capacity-building programme dealing with the sector.
77. The Employers’ group coordinator appreciated the Workers’ group’s proposal, which was
clear and complete, and agreed with some proposals such as those calling for protection of
workers and adherence to human rights. However, he disagreed with others, and requested
that the Employers’ group discuss these among themselves and then to react the next day.
78. The representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea described the work of the
national level tripartite dialogue system, launched in 1998, which he said had contributed
to reducing social conflicts through discussion and seeking agreement or recommendations
on key labour issues. The system will be reformed to better represent unorganized
vulnerable workers. Representatives of dispatched or in-house subcontractor workers will
be able to participate in labour–management councils and state their opinions.
79. The representative of the Government of the Philippines asked whether the output of the
meeting would be forwarded to the expert meeting on non-standard forms of employment.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 13
80. The Secretary-General explained that the outcomes would be submitted to the Governing
Body. The Governing Body would ask the Director-General to take the conclusions into
account in future work. The points of consensus would be disseminated but would not be
submitted for approval by the meeting of experts.
Discussion of the draft points of consensus
81. At the closing plenary session, the Forum considered document GDFACE/2014/5, which
included the suggested points of consensus for points for discussion 1–3, drafted by the
Office on the basis of the plenary discussions.
82. The Employers’ group coordinator suggested deleting the words “Whereas not all” in the
first paragraph. He proposed the following text for the first paragraph: “Electronics
products are subject to fluctuations in demand. Short product cycles and fast-changing,
sometimes seasonal, consumer demands, are a reality for parts of the electronics industry.”
A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) suggested that they
should look at the title and delete the phrase “whereas not all electronic products are
subjects to high fluctuations in demand”. The Employers’ group coordinator agreed with
this suggestion, but proposed that paragraph 1 be entirely deleted. A Worker participant
from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) replied that it is a useful statement and
should be kept. The Employers’ group coordinator indicated that fluctuating demand
affects even products that are seen as protected, like vacuum cleaners. However, he would
accept the proposed text. The Forum adopted paragraph 1 as follows: “Short product
cycles and fast-changing, sometimes seasonal, consumer demands, are a reality for parts of
the electronics industry.”
83. The Forum adopted the second proposed paragraph with amendments. The word
“measures” was replaced with “options”. The Workers’ group did not agree to change the
word “adopt” with “explore” as proposed by the Employers’ group, because it did not
represent an action. A phrase “the use of temporary and other forms of employment” was
added and the paragraph was adopted as follows: “Companies can adopt a number of
options to respond to fluctuating demands. Such options include better buyer–supplier
coordination to avoid particularly high peaks in demand, the use of temporary and other
forms of employment, as well as improved forecasting mechanisms to anticipate
demands.”
84. The Forum adopted the Workers’ proposal to delete the proposed third paragraph.
85. The discussion of the proposed fourth and fifth paragraphs highlighted the differences
between the social partners about the perceived risks and benefits of temporary and other
forms of employment, and the Forum decided to reconsider them when discussing the
proposed measures to promote decent work and contribute to a more sustainable industry.
86. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) proposed a new text
for the proposed fourth paragraph, which would appear after the proposed paragraph 5 and
begin with the sentence “Many other options have been negotiated between unions and
employer,” and proposed replacing the word “alternatives” with the word “options” or with
“many other options” that would be used in a new paragraph. The Employers’ group
coordinator proposed combining paragraphs 4 and 5 and introduced by a sentence that
would communicate that “there are a number of options available to deal with fluctuating
demands, such as annualized hour schemes and multiskilling”. Other options would be
established through social dialogue. The Worker participant from IndustriALL Global
Union did not agree, stating that it was identical to the second paragraph, although she
agreed with the language “social dialogue”.
14 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
87. The Employers’ group coordinator suggested including hour schemes and multiskilling. A
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) said that this was a step
backwards, and proposed to address the alternatives through social dialogue. She added
that there were negative consequences and the alternatives needed to be looked at. The
representative of the IOE disagreed with any document that would say that temporary work
was inherently wrong, to which a Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL
Global Union) replied that the group had already acknowledged temporary work as an
option in paragraph 2, and suggested moving this paragraph to the end of the points of
consensus.
88. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), disagreeing with the
Employers’ view that temporary work was just another option among many, stated that, for
her group, temporary work was not always the worst-case scenario, but had massive
implications on the quality of work in the industry; there was therefore a need to consider
the alternatives. If they did not do so, the dialogue would not have achieved anything. The
negative impacts on workers’ rights and working conditions needed to be balanced with
the needs of enterprises, through social dialogue. As temporary work was being overused
in the electronics industry and had negative consequences, the need to find alternatives
through social dialogue had to be reflected in the points of consensus.
89. The Forum adopted the proposed sixth and seventh paragraphs after extensive discussions
and amendments, including the insertion of an intermediate paragraph. The Employers’
group coordinator began the discussion by proposing that paragraph 6 should be amended
to read: “The effects of temporary and other forms of employment on enterprises may
present both benefits and risks. As one measure to address fluctuation, temporary and other
forms of work arrangements are a necessity.” He proposed inserting a new paragraph after
this paragraph, which would read: “Positive benefits may include the ability to right-size
workforce to demand, bring new workers with new skills into the enterprise and stay
competitive – ultimately retaining and creating jobs.” He also proposed that the beginning
of the proposed seventh paragraph should be amended to read: “Negative effects brought
by a change in a company’s workforce may include …”.
90. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) noted that, for
paragraph 6, the Employers’ proposal did not include the wording “for a number of
companies”, asked whether they intended for it to be deleted, and expressed preference for
the original drafting, as it did not hold true in every case. Furthermore, she proposed a
subamendment to the beginning of the proposed seventh paragraph to read “brought by
changes in a company’s workforce” instead of “a change”. The Employers’ group
coordinator accepted this, acknowledged that temporary work was not a necessity for all
companies, and proposed adding “temporary work arrangements are often a necessity for
companies”. Furthermore, since “negative and positive” had been changed to “benefits and
risks”, he proposed changing “positive effects” and “negative effects” to “benefits may
include” and “risks may include”. The Government representative of Poland proposed
deleting “ultimately” from the proposed eighth paragraph. The Employers’ group
coordinator also proposed harmonizing the wording to “temporary and other forms of
employment”.
91. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) requested that the
resulting wording be displayed on the projectors. The representative of the IOE suggested
that all participants should be asked whether they objected to only having English on the
projectors. The Workers’ group coordinator noted that there were many Worker
participants who did not speak English and having the text on screen benefited them. A
Government representative of Poland noted that, since the Forum represented the
electronics industry, it should use technology in order to facilitate the discussion. Finally, a
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) expressed her
disappointment in the ILO’s language policy. The electronics industry was largely based in
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 15
Asia and the Workers’ delegation was also largely from Asia, yet there was no
interpretation available for any Asian languages. That gave participants who did have
interpretation a considerable advantage over the Workers’ group.

92. The adopted paragraphs would read as follows:
“The effects of temporary and other forms of employment on enterprises can present both
benefits and risks. As one measure to address fluctuation, temporary and other forms of
work arrangements are often a necessity for companies.”
“Benefits may include the ability to right-size workforce to demand, bring new workers
with new skills into the enterprise and stay competitive – creating and retaining jobs.”
“Risks brought by changes in a company’s workforce may include: decreased productivity;
possible divulgation of trade secrets and resulting threats to a company’s intellectual
property; as well as high costs for hiring and training of temporary workers.”
93. The Forum discussed whether the text of the proposed eighth and ninth paragraphs should
address risks and benefits that temporary and other forms of employment represented for
enterprises and workers, and decided to finalize them at a later stage, while taking into
account the proposal from the representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea
to refer consistently to “temporary and other forms of employment”.
94. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) proposed deleting the
phrase “Whereas temporary work can provide flexibility for workers, an opportunity for
entrants to find employment and for other workers to build up their skills”, and maintain
the text “a number of challenges are often encountered by workers under temporary
contracts”, as part of the proposed ninth paragraph or stand alone. All testimony from the
Workers’ group had underlined the negative impacts of the “high incidence” of temporary
work, which was the title of the section – not the general impact of such work. These
examples showed that flexibility in temporary work was important, but workers would
rarely prefer temporary to permanent employment. She proposed an additional text to
address Employers’ concerns as follows: “Where temporary and other forms of
employment is agreed upon and justified by the circumstances it can be a tool to deal with
fluctuations in demand”. Her group acknowledged the benefits of temporary work for
employers, but not that workers saw temporary work as a benefit. The Workers’ group
coordinator added that the focus of the discussion should be on fluctuating demand in the
electronics sector and not the general challenges facing the world of work.
95. The Employer group coordinator could not accept a statement about temporary work that
only focused on its challenges, and had provisionally agreed to the new paragraph
proposed by the Workers’ group on the assumption that those effects were going to be
recognized. He argued that voluntary temporary work could be a desirable outcome; other
forms of employment, such as internships or part-time employment often provided
stepping stones or a means of juggling family and work life. Participants from all groups
had recognized that temporary and other forms of employment could offer rewards for
workers in some cases and that the tripartite nature of the Forum required reflecting it in
the text, without using the term “benefits”. He therefore proposed adding a new paragraph
at the start of the section: “Where temporary work is agreed upon and justified by the
circumstances, temporary work can provide a number of positive impacts including
flexibility for workers and opportunity for finding employment and for other workers to
build up their skills”, to be consistent with the previous discussion of both benefits and
risks for enterprises. Later, the group proposed a revised text as follows: “Where
temporary and other forms of employment are justified by the circumstances, they may
provide benefits including flexibility for workers and an opportunity for entrants to find
16 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
employment and for other workers to build up their skills.” The group rejected the
Workers’ proposal to limit the section to “temporary work”.
96. The Chair proposed to park the two paragraphs and move to the next session on measures.
The Employers’ group coordinator asked if this discussion would also cover paragraphs 4
and 5. It was agreed to first discuss paragraphs 10–15.
97. The Forum adopted the proposed paragraph 10 without changes.
98. The Forum adopted the proposed 11th paragraph with the following text proposed by the
Employers’ group: “These measures should include social protection, occupational safety
and health (OSH), cross- and retraining, and they should ensure non-discrimination.” The
Workers’ group preferred this text to the Employers second option to delete the entire
paragraph.
99. The Forum adopted the proposed 12th paragraph with amendments. The Employers’ group
proposed that it should read as follows: “Long-lasting employment relationships are to be
promoted, where possible, and all employment arrangements should be voluntary. All
workers, including temporary workers, should have full access to the FPRW. Sharing of
available information on market development and demand forecasts with workers and their
representatives is particularly helpful for temporary and other forms of workers.” The
Workers’ group, in turn, proposed a subamendment where the last sentence would read as
follows: “Sharing of available information on market development and demand forecasts
with workers and their representatives is particularly helpful for dealing with temporary
and other forms of employment”. The Forum adopted the resulting text.
100. The proposed 13th paragraph was adopted with three amendments, but its final wording
was suspended. The Employers’ group proposed two amendments: (1) to add “by the
Governments” after “should be ensured”; and (2) to add “also” after “corporate social
responsibility” in the second sentence of the paragraph. The Government group
coordinator proposed adding “important” before “role” of CSR. The Secretary-General of
the Forum remarked that the amendments resulted in a factual error, as the paragraph now
suggested that it was the responsibility of governments to ensure respect to the UN
Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights. The discussion was deferred.
101. The proposed 14th paragraph was adopted with an amendment proposed by the
Employers’ group to replace the phrase “outstanding compliance” with “outstanding
efforts”, pointing out that the original phrase was not clear.
102. The proposed 15th paragraph was adopted with three amendments. Two were proposed by
the Employers’ and Government groups: to add “competitiveness and productive
employment”, and to replace “universities” with “educational institutions”. The third,
proposed by the representative of the Government of China, adding “training” after
“educational” to highlight the important role of vocational training institutions.
103. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 16(a) with an amendment proposed by a
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), to add a reference to
the Employment Relationship Recommendation, 2006 (No. 198) at the end. The
representative of the IOE suggested rephrasing the reference for clarity, for which the
Forum subamended the ending phrase as follows: “those Conventions related to FPRW,
and promote Recommendation No. 198”.
104. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 16(b) with an amendment proposed by the
Employers’ group, which was later subamended. The initial Employer proposal would
have changed the subparagraph as follows: “Promote and conduct training to specific
needs in the electronics industry”. The Forum discussed the exact verb that would describe
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 17
the recommended action, with a Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global
Union) supporting the original “adapt” to refer to the work the Office was already doing.
The Employers’ group coordinator countered that FPRW were cross-sectoral, to which the
Workers proposed drafting the subparagraph as follows: “Conduct training on FPRW
specific to the needs in the electronics industry”. The representative of the Government of
China proposed changing the subparagraph into: “promote policy coordination and
conduct demonstrative/model training”. The Forum did not adopt this proposal, which
suggested that the ILO coordinate policies at a global level and conduct model training to
set examples for other countries, understanding that it did not fit the purpose of this
subparagraph or of the Forum. This text referred to already existing training and not to
other training that may or may not be needed. The representative of the government of
Egypt agreed with removing the part referring to policy coherence, and suggested to
include “conduct tailored model training”. The Chairperson summarized this into the
following: “develop tailored training on FPRW”. The Worker participant from the
IndustriALL Global Union agreed and added to this sentence proposed: “…specific to the
needs in the electronics industry”. The text was adopted as amended.
105. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 16(c) with an amendment proposed by the
representative of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to add the following at
the end of the sentence: “help the constituents to promote the capacity of gathering quality
information in this regard (; and)”.
106. The Forum adopted proposed subparagraph 16(d) with one amendment proposed by a
Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), to add “and other forms
of” before the word “employment”. Asked by the representative of the IOE about the
expected outcome of this amendment, a Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL
Global Union) stated that it should lead to a better understanding of purchasing practices
and the relationship with different forms of employment.
107. The representative of the Government of Cameroon proposed holding regional forums
regarding the issues related to consumer countries, at least in Africa, because they were not
addressed by the Forum. Upon inquiry by the Employers’ group coordinator on whether
the issue was about the impacts on consumers or about the impacts of purchasing practices
on the companies and employment, he stressed that there was a domino effect between
production and consumption. Many ILO member States were consumer countries, and he
asked what would happen if enterprises produced goods, but would not be able to sell
them. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) expressed
difficulties understanding how this was related to this Forum and suggested to raise the
issue in another ILO forum, and the representative of the IOE explained that there was a
separate procedure to request sectoral meetings.
108. To address the previous discussion, the representative of the Government of the Republic
of Korea requested a clarification on whether the correct wording was “procurement” or
“purchasing”. After some discussion the wording “purchasing” was retained.
109. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(a) with an amendment, proposed by the
Employers’ group coordinator, to add the words “and policies” after the word
“legislation”.
110. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(b) with three amendments. First, the
Government group coordinator proposed to replace the word “companies” with “social
partners”. Second, the Workers’ group coordinator proposed to add the phrase “and respect
FPRW” at the end. Third, the Forum deleted the word “national”, after the representative
of the Government of China suggested adding “and regional” after “national”. The
Workers’ group coordinator suggested to delete “national” so the term could cover all
levels of legislation. The latter proposal was adopted.
18 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
111. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(c) with one amendment, proposed by
the Government group coordinator, to replace “invest” with the words “encourage public
and private investments”.
112. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 17(d) with three amendments. The first and
second amendments were proposed by the Workers’ group coordinator, to delete the words
“agency and” and to add, at the end of the sentence, “and other forms of employment”. The
third amendment was proposed by the representative of the Government of the Islamic
Republic of Iran, who suggested adding the words “and reliable” after “relevant”.
113. The Forum adopted a new subparagraph 17(e) proposed by the Workers’ group
coordinator, which would read: “Improve social protection for workers affected by
fluctuating demands.” The Forum also adopted a subamendment proposed by the
Employers’ group coordinator, to add at the end of the sentence the words “where needed”.
114. The Forum adopted a new subparagraph 17(f) proposed by the Workers’ group
coordinator, which would read: “Enforce legislation through sanctions and provide
corrective, developmental and technical advice and create incentives for outstanding
efforts, for example, through mechanisms fostering tripartite collaboration.”
115. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 18(a) with two amendments proposed by
the Employers’ group coordinator, replacing the words “equality of” with “equitable”, and
deleting the words between “workers” and “regardless”, as the focus of the paragraph was
to achieve equitable treatment in a wide number of areas.
116. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 18(b) without amendments.
117. The Forum adopted the proposed subparagraph 18(c) with two amendments, after the
Employers’ group coordinator expressed the group’s initial intent to delete it but instead
suggested to replace the phrase “develop mechanisms to involve brands in fostering
sustainable enterprises in the electronics industry” with a language that the Workers’ group
could propose. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union), in
response, proposed to replace the phrase “regulating or finding alternatives to temporary
work” with “jointly explore options in addition to temporary employment or other forms of
employment to address fluctuating demand”, while suggesting that the text deleted from
the draft paragraph be addressed later. The second amendment, proposed by the
representative of the Government of the Republic of Korea, replaced the word “address”
with “respond”. Both amendments were adopted.
118. The Forum did not adopt a proposal by a Worker participant from Switzerland
(IndustriALL Global Union) to add a subparagraph 18(d), which would read: “engage in
social dialogue on how to deal with fluctuation in demand at workplace level”. The
Employers’ group coordinator could not accept the new subparagraph. The representative
of the IOE explained that Employers considered that social dialogue referred to the
industrial relations between workers and management within the company, but
management needed to choose freely how to deal with fluctuation in demand at the
workplace, leaving no space for social dialogue at that level. A Worker participant from
Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) found it hard to understand the Employers’ view
since a multitude of collective agreements had been signed in production areas where
fluctuating demand was typical. The representative of the IOE underlined that social
dialogue on that topic was a condition to be evaluated at the enterprise level and the group
welcomed it, but would not make them mandatory at the workplace. He also rejected the
Workers’ proposal to change the word “engage” with “encourage” and another by the
Government group coordinator to add “where applicable” at the end of the sentence,
saying the term “encourage” lacked clarity. He reiterated that this was a decision to be
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 19
taken at a certain point in time, and that they could neither recommend nor make that
practice mandatory to the world.
119. Turning once again to the proposed 13th paragraph, the Forum agreed to remove the
phrase “by the governments” as proposed by the Secretary-General, to place the text in line
with the United Nations Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights. The following
text was adopted: “The respect for FPRW, as well as for the UN Guiding Principles for
Business and Human Rights, should be ensured throughout the supply chains in the
electronics industry. Corporate social responsibility measures can also play an important
role in promoting decent work.”
120. Turning once again to the proposed fourth and fifth paragraphs, the Forum adopted them
with several amendments. First, the paragraphs were moved to the section on measures to
promote decent work and contribute to a more sustainable industry. After a lengthy
discussion, the paragraph was adopted as:
“If temporary or other forms of employment present challenges, alternative options should
be explored, including:
(a) annualized hours schemes, under which workers might work more hours during
certain periods and be compensated by reduced hours and time off during other
periods;
(b) multiskilling: workers are trained in multiple disciplines that allow them to perform a
larger variety of tasks, thus allowing production to take place with a smaller
workforce without creating production bottlenecks.
Other options may be identified through social dialogue to address these issues.”
121. Turning once again to the proposed eighth and ninth paragraphs, the Forum adopted a
single, combined paragraph with an alternative phrasing, plus a new language to replace
the proposed ninth paragraph. Initially, however, they disagreed.
122. The Chairperson invited the parties to reach an agreement, and the Employers’ group
coordinator stated that there needed to be some wording which expressed that there were
situations in which temporary and other forms of employment had social benefits. He
argued that the wording proposed by the Workers in the previous discussion would be
open to too much interpretation, and that all employment relationships needed to be
voluntary. After a lengthy discussion over temporary employment, when could it be
considered voluntary and when justified. A Worker participant from Switzerland
(IndustriALL Global Union proposed deleting the paragraphs 6–9.
123. The Secretary-General of the Forum said that the option to go back to the original wording
proposed by the Office was available, which the Employers’ group coordinator accepted if
small amendments were made. A Worker participant from Switzerland (IndustriALL
Global Union) acknowledged that temporary employment could be positive but said it was
negative most of the time. The Employers’ group coordinator stated that he just wanted the
wording to say that there were some benefits of temporary work.
124. After a lengthy discussion, agreement was reached on a revised proposed eighth paragraph,
which would include wording from the proposed ninth paragraph as follows: “A number of
challenges are often encountered by workers under temporary contracts. These include a
lack of employment security and protection of work–life balance, less favourable working
conditions and difficulties for them to exercise their rights at work. Among temporary
workers, those more vulnerable include migrant workers, women workers and young
workers.” A new drafting that would replace the proposed ninth paragraph was agreed to
20 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
read as follows: “Temporary and other forms of work, in certain situations, can provide
flexibility for workers and an open opportunity for entrants to find employment and for
workers to build up their skills.” The Forum adopted these two paragraphs with this
wording.
125. The Forum did not adopt a new subparagraph 18(e) proposed by a Worker participant from
Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) which contained language identical to the
conclusions of the Global Dialogue Forum on Wages and Working Hours in the Textiles,
Clothing, Leather and Footwear Sector. The text would have read as follows: “promote
social dialogue and identify and develop mechanisms to involve buyers in improving
working conditions, productivity and competitiveness”. She also proposed inserting after
paragraph 13 a new paragraph which would read: “Production in the electronics sector is
truly globalized and therefore social dialogue can profit from participation of international
actors, such as buyers.” The representative of the IOE stated that the text of a previous
Global Dialogue Forum was not binding for subsequent meetings, and the Employers’
group coordinator rejected the proposed amendments. A Worker participant from
Switzerland (IndustriALL Global Union) stated that the Workers would continue to work
with buyers on supply chain issues in the electronics industry but would also like it to be
acknowledged in the Forum. The representative of the Government of the Republic of
Korea questioned why language agreed in other ILO forums, such as the global dialogue
forum for the textiles industry, could not be agreed for the electronics sector. The
Employers’ group coordinator responded that his organization, the EICC, looked forward
to working with the unions, on a voluntary basis, to find strategies to engage buyers in the
entire supply chain to resolve issues concerning temporary employment; but that the
concept of buyers should not be included in this document.
126. The Forum adopted the points of consensus as amended.
127. The Employers’, Workers’ and Government group coordinators, the Secretary-General and
Chairperson of the Forum all expressed their satisfaction with the adoption of the points of
consensus and praised the impressive level of cooperation achieved throughout the
meeting.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 21
Points of consensus 1
Measures taken by enterprises to adapt
to fluctuating demands
128. Short product cycles and fast-changing, sometimes seasonal, consumer demands, are a
reality for parts of the electronics industry.
129. Companies can adopt a number of options to respond to fluctuating demands. Such options
include better buyer-supplier coordination to avoid particularly high peaks in demand, the
use of temporary and other forms of employment, as well as improved forecasting
mechanisms to anticipate demands.
Effects of a high incidence of temporary and other
forms of employment on enterprises
130. The effects of temporary and other forms of employment on enterprises can present both
benefits and risks. As one measure to address fluctuation, temporary and other forms of
work arrangements are often a necessity for companies.
131. Benefits may include the ability to right-size workforce to demand, bring new workers
with new skills into the enterprise and stay competitive – creating and retaining jobs.
132. Risks brought by changes in a company’s workforce may include: decreased productivity;
possible divulgation of trade secrets and resulting threats to a company’s intellectual
property; as well as high costs for hiring and training of temporary workers.
Effects of a high incidence of temporary and
other forms of employment on workers
133. A number of challenges are often encountered by workers under temporary contracts.
These include a lack of employment security and protection of a work–life balance, less
favourable working conditions and difficulties for them to exercise their rights at work.
Among temporary workers, those more vulnerable include migrant workers, women
workers and young workers.
134. Temporary and other forms of employment, in certain situations, provide flexibility for
workers and an opportunity for entrants to find employment and for workers to build up
their skills.
1 These points of consensus were adopted by the Global Dialogue Forum on 11 December 2014. In
accordance with established procedures, they will be submitted to the Governing Body of the ILO
for its consideration.
22 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
Measures to promote decent work and contribute
to a more sustainable industry
135. Measures aimed at adapting the electronics industry to fluctuations in demand should
strive to balance industry concerns for sustainability and the needs of workers. Social
dialogue, which includes collective bargaining, is paramount to promoting decent work
and to develop and implement sustainable measures supported by employers as well as
workers.
136. These measures should include social protection, occupational safety and health (OSH),
cross- and retraining; and they should ensure non-discrimination.
137. If temporary or other forms of employment present challenges, alternative options should
be explored, including:
(a) annualized hours schemes, under which workers might work more hours during
certain periods and be compensated by reduced hours and time off during other
periods;
(b) multiskilling: workers are trained in multiple disciplines that allow them to perform a
larger variety of tasks, thus allowing production to take place with a smaller
workforce without creating production bottlenecks.
Other options may be identified through social dialogue to address these issues.
138. Long-lasting employment relationships are to be promoted, where possible, and all
employment arrangements should be voluntary. All workers, including temporary workers,
should have full access to fundamental principles and rights at work (FPRW). Sharing of
available information on market developments and demand forecasts with workers and
their representatives is particularly helpful for dealing with temporary and other forms of
employment.
139. The respect for FPRW, as well as for the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human
Rights, should be ensured throughout the supply chains in the electronics industry.
Corporate social responsibility measures can also play an important role in promoting
decent work.
140. Labour inspection is central to workplace compliance. Governments should not only
enforce legislation through sanctions, they should also provide corrective, developmental
and technical advice and create incentives for outstanding efforts, for example, through
mechanisms fostering tripartite collaboration.
141. Governments have an important role in creating an enabling environment for sustainable
enterprises. Governments could encourage competitiveness and productive employment in
the industry by helping companies to prioritize research and development and by the
establishment of dual training systems and links between educational and training
institutions and enterprises.

Recommendations for future action by the International Labour Organization and its Members

In view of the discussion at the Global Dialogue Forum on the Adaptability of Companies to Deal with Fluctuating Demands and the Incidence of Temporary and Other Forms of Employment in Electronics the following future action was recommended.

142. The Office should:

(a) promote ratification and effective implementation of relevant international labour standards, including the Part-Time Work Convention, 1994 (No. 175), and the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181), as well as those Conventions related to FPRW; and promote the Employment Relationship Recommendation, 2006 (No. 198);

(b) develop tailored training on FPRW specific to the needs in the electronics industry;

(c) compile and disseminate case studies and good practices on fair measures to adapt to fluctuations in demand jointly developed by workers and employers; develop their capacity to implement such measures at all levels; help the constituents to promote the capacity of gathering quality information in this regard; and

(d) conduct research on the impact of purchasing practices in the electronics sector on
labour rights and temporary and other forms of employment.

143. Governments should:

(a) engage social partners in improving labour legislation and policies to better meet the needs of companies and workers in the sector;

(b) build the capacity of social partners to better understand and comply with legislation and respect FPRW;

(c) encourage public and private investments in education, training and skills development to promote decent work and productive employment;

(d) share relevant and reliable labour market information with employer and worker organizations on issues such as the use of temporary and other forms of employment;

(e) improve social protection for workers affected by fluctuating demands, where needed;and

(f) enforce legislation through sanctions and provide corrective, developmental and technical advice, and create incentives for outstanding efforts, for example, through mechanisms fostering tripartite collaboration.

144. Employer and worker organizations in the electronics industry should:

(a) promote equitable treatment for all workers, regardless of their employment status;

(b) raise awareness and build capacity on FPRW and promote respect of these principles and rights throughout the supply chains;

(c) jointly explore options in addition to temporary or other forms of employment to respond to fluctuating demands; and

(d) promote long-lasting employment relationships, where possible.

GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 25
List of participants
Liste des participants
Lista de participantes

GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 27
Chairperson
Président
Presidente
Mr Douglas L. SUN, First Secretary, United States Mission to the United Nations, Geneva, Switzerland.
Members representing Governments
Membres représentant les gouvernements
Miembros representantes de los gobiernos
ANGOLA
M. Alberto Samy GUIMARÃES, deuxième secrétaire, Mission permanente de la République d’Angola, Genève,
Suisse.
BANGLADESH
Mr Shelley SALEHIN, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Bangladesh, Geneva, Switzerland.
BURUNDI
Honorable Annonciata SENDAZIRASA, ministre de la Fonction publique, du Travail et de la Sécurité sociale,
ministère de la Fonction publique, du Travail et de la Sécurité sociale.
M. Boniface NDAYIRAGIJE, directeur général, Travail et Perfectionnement professionnel.
M. Philippe MINANI, deuxième conseiller, Mission permanente du Burundi, Genève, Suisse.
CAMEROON CAMEROUN CAMERUN
M. Parfait P. ABOUGA NDZANA, chef, Cellule de la coopération technique, ministère du Travail et de la
Sécurité sociale (MINTSS), Yaoundé.
M. Jean MARCEL, chef, Cellule de suivi, ministère de la Recherche scientifique et de l’Innovation.
Mme Suzanne ZAMBA, chef, Service des agréments et du contrôle (MINEFOP), ministère de l’Emploi et de la
Formation professionnelle, Direction de la régulation de la main-d’œuvre, Yaoundé.
CHINA CHINE
Mr Suzhong GAO, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Dongwen DUAN, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Feng TIAN, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Geneva, Switzerland.
CONGO
M. Auxence Léonard OKOMBI, directeur général, Direction générale de la formation qualifiante et de l’emploi,
ministère de l’Enseignement technique, professionnel, de la Formation qualifiante et de l’Emploi, Brazzaville.
M. Bernard MBEMBA, conseiller d’ambassade, Mission permanente du Congo, Genève, Suisse.
28 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
EGYPT EGYPTE EGIPTO
Mr Walid AL-RASHID, First Secretary of the Ministry, Head of the Information Center Public Enterprise,
Information Center Public Business Sector, Ministry of Investment.
IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF
IRAN, RÉPUBLIQUE ISLAMIQUE D’
IRÁN, REPÚBLICA ISLÁMICA DEL
Mr Majid Hossein HOSSIENPOUR, Expert, Department of Employment and Entrepreneurship Development,
Ministry of Cooperatives, Labour and Social Welfare.
IRAQ
Mr Falih H. AL-AMIRI, Technical Deputy Minister, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.
Mr Qusay Mohammed MAHAL, Attaché, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Iraq, Geneva, Switzerland.
KOREA, REPUBLIC OF
CORÉE, RÉPUBLIQUE DE
COREA, REPÚBLICA DE
Mr Sangun CHOI, Labour Attaché, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea, Geneva, Switzerland.
MALAYSIA MALAISIE MALASIA
Mr Ummar Jai Kumar Bin ABDULLAH, Labour Attaché, Permanent Mission of Malaysia, Geneva, Switzerland.
MOZAMBIQUE
Mr. Juvenal Arcanjo DENGO, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of the Republic of Mozambique, Geneva,
Switzerland.
NETHERLANDS PAYS-BAS PAÍSES BAJOS
Ms Janette VERRIJZER, Policy Advisor, Department for International Affairs, Ministry of Social Affairs and
Labour, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Wiebren van DIJK, First Secretary, Permanent Representation of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Geneva,
Switzerland.
OMAN OMÁN
Mr Khalid Hamed AL RAWAHI, Ministry of Manpower, Oman.
PHILIPPINES FILIPINAS
Ms Ma. Celeste VALDERRAMA, Labor Attaché, Permanent Mission of the Philippines, Geneva, Switzerland.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 29
POLAND POLOGNE POLONIA
Mr Andrzej JARZEWSKI, Expert, Electronic Economy Department, Ministry of Economy, Warzaw.
Ms Magdalena NOJSEWSKA-DOCHEV, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of Poland, Geneva, Switzerland.
VENEZUELA, BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF
VENEZUELA, RÉPUBLIQUE BOLIVARIENNE DU
VENEZUELA, REPÚBLICA BOLIVARIANA DE
Sr. Carlos Enrique FLORES TORRES, Consejero/Agregado Laboral, Misión Permanente de la República
Bolivariana de Venezuela, Ginebra, Suiza.
ZIMBABWE
Mr Poem MUDYAWABIKWA, Minister Counsellor (Labour Attaché), Permanent Mission of Zimbabwe,
Geneva, Switzerland.
30 GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx
Members representing the Employers
Membres représentant les employeurs
Miembros representantes de los empleadores
Mr João GIRÃO, Assessor, Associação dos Industriais Metalúrgicos, Metalmecânicos e Afins de Portugal
(AIMMAP), Porto, Portugal.
Mr Billy GRAYSON, Program Director, Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), Alexandria, United
States.
Mr Mohamad Hashem HAJ HASAN, Board Member, Representative of the Engineering, Electrical Industries
Sector, Jordan Chamber of Industry (JCI), Amman, Jordan.
Mr Ilari KALLIO, Legal Advisor, The Federation of Finnish Technology Industries, Helsinki, Finland.
Ms Ana RASOVIC, Economic Affairs Adviser, Montenegrin Employers’ Federation (MEF), Podgorica,
Montenegro.
Sr. Gilberto SÁNCHEZ, Presidente, FERRONIKEL, Caracas, República Bolivariana de Venezuela.
Additional members representing the Employers
Membres additionnels représentant les employeurs
Miembros adicionales representantes de los empleadores
Mr Sandro PETTINEO, Policy Advisor, International Confederation of Private Employment Agencies (CIETT),
Brussels, Belgium.
Members representing the Workers
Membres représentant les travailleurs
Miembros representantes de los trabajadores
Mr Mohd Ridzwan Rama ABDULLAH, Executive Council, Electrical Industry Workers’ Union (EIWU),
Selangor, Malaysia.
Mr Reden ALCANTARA, National President, Metal Workers Alliance of the Philippines (MWAP), Quezon City,
Philippines.
Mr Wan Noorulazhar Mohd HANAFIAH, President, Electronic Industry Employees Union (EIEU), Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia.
Mr Uday MAHALE, General Secretary, Siemens Employees Federation and Siemens Workers Union, Siemens
Ltd, Mumbai, India.
Sr. Adão PEREIRA DE BRITO, Secretario de Organização, Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos de Itu e Região,
Confederação Nacional dos Metalúrgicos (CNM/CUT), São Paulo, Brazil.
Mr Judy WINARNO, Chairperson, Electrical and Electronics Sector, Unions of Federation of Indonesian Metal
Workers’ Union (FSPMI), Jakarta, Indonesia.
Mr Takayuki YAGI, Assistant General Secretary, Japanese Electrical Electric and Information Union (JEIU),
Tokyo, Japan.
GDFACE-FR-[SECTO-150129-1]-En.docx 31
Additional members representing the Workers
Membres additionnels représentant les travailleurs
Miembros adicionales representantes de los trabajadores
Ms Jenny HOLDCROFT, Policy Director, IndustriALL Global Union, Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr Kan MATSUZAKI, Director, ICT, Electrical and Electronics, Shipbuilding and Shipbreaking, Geneva,
Switzerland.
IndustriALL Global Union, Genève, Suisse
M. Philippe SAINT-AUBIN, secrétaire fédéral, Fédération générale des mines et de la métallurgie,
(FGMM CFDT France), Paris, France.
Representatives of non-governmental international organizations
Représentants d’organisations internationales non gouvernementales
Representantes de organizaciones internacionales no gubernamentales
GoodElectronics
Ms Irene SCHIPPER, Senior Researcher, Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO),
Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Mr Charles Héctor FERNÁNDEZ, Coordinator, Workers Hub for Change (WH4C), Amsterdam, Netherlands.
International Organisation of Employers (IOE)
Organisation internationale des employeurs (OIE)
Organización Internacional de Empleadores
M. Jean DEJARDIN, conseiller, Organisation internationale des employeurs (OIE), Genève, Suisse.
International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)
Confédération syndicale international (CSI)
Confederación Sindical Internacional
Ms Esther BUSSER, Assistant Director, ITUC Geneva Office (ITUC-GO), Geneva, Switzerland.