Visit of the UN SG

The ILO Staff Union takes note that the UN Secretary-General is available to meet staff members “informally” – at a time when they would normally be exercising their right to a work-life balance.

Since February 2019, the Staff Union Committee has officially requested the Director-General to schedule a short formal meeting with the Secretary-General regarding the implications of the United Nations reform on ILO staff, the concerns of the said staff, and the need for a real social dialogue at the level of the common system.

In this year of the ILO centenary, the blatant unavailability and unwillingness to engage in dialogue with the staff representatives is symptomatic of the lack of consideration that the United Nations and its spokesperson show to our staff members, and we can only envision a dark future ahead. In the opinion of the Staff Union, this constitutes an affront to the values promoted by the Organization.

We cannot prevent staff members from attending this event but the Staff Union strongly encourages them to be noticeable by their absence, because they deserve something better than a few banal and unilateral introductory remarks followed by a hypothetical selfie.

For more infomation, see our bulletin No. 1545.