The ILO has developed standards specifically regarding migrant workers in two different political contexts: first, in 1949, in the aftermath of the Second World War and, second, in 1975, in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis.

Knowledge sharing is a key aspect of anti-trafficking and other work against forced labour. Good practices must be documented on a systematic basis. Study tours and international meetings have proved useful for cross-fertilization of experience. Information on forced labour and tools to combat it must be made available in local languages. And where so many international agencies are involved in accordance with their individual mandates, there is a need to establish an inter-agency learning environment where information on effective strategies can be shared.

Social dialogue is defined by the ILO to include all types of negotiation, consultation or simply exchange of information between, or among, representatives of governments, employers and workers, on issues of common interest relating to economic and social policy. It can exist as a tripartite process, with the government as an official party to the dialogue or it may consist of bipartite relations only between labour and management (or trade unions and employers' organisations), with or without indirect government involvement. Consultation can be informal or institutionalised, and often it is a combination of the two. It can take place at the national, regional or at enterprise level. It can be inter-professional, sectoral or a combination of all of these.

The social costs of labour migration in terms of fractured families and communities are without a doubt at least as significant as those related to the more measurable economic costs. The effects are almost never gender-neutral. In parts of South Africa, when a man leaves to work on mines and plantations, the wife left behind effectively becomes the head of a one-parent family. Similarly, in Kerala in India, there are around 1 million “Gulf wives”. On the other hand, when it is the mother who migrates, the consequences for the family can be even more serious. In Sri Lanka, more than half a million women work in the Gulf and elsewhere. This has many implications for the family and community left behind particularly for the children.

What does this mean for action to combat child labour? Experience shows that a combination of economic growth, respect for labour standards, universal education and social protection, together with a better understanding of the needs and rights of children, can bring about a significant reduction in child labour. It tells us that continuous vigilance is needed to sustain improvements in the face of deep and rapid social, economic, and political change.

Crises produce devastating effects on societies, particularly in poor, vulnerable countries. Armed conflicts, natural disasters, financial and economic downtown, and difficult political and social transitions destroy socioeconomic infrastructure, the very means of production, natural and human resources, and vast numbers of jobs. The magnitude, pervasiveness and alarming upward trend of such human tragedies demands a special ILO focus.

Work-related accidents and diseases continue to be a serious problem in both developed and developing countries. The ILO estimates that workers suffer 270 million accidents every year. There are at least 335,000 fatal injuries caused by accidents at work. Further avoidable suffering is caused by 160 million cases of occupational disease. Taking accidents and diseases together, the global estimate of work-related deaths amounts to 2 million per year, and this is probably an underestimate.