IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/brjirl/v59y2021i3p874-898.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

From a ‘Moral Commentator’ to a ‘Determined Actor’? How the International Labour Organization (ILO) Orchestrates the Field of International Industrial Relations

Author

Listed:
  • Huw Thomas
  • Peter Turnbull

Abstract

Collective action on the part of the International Labour Organization (ILO) has always been dependent on the ability of the International Labour Office, the permanent secretariat of the ILO, to orchestrate a consensus between the Organization's tripartite constituents of Government, Employer and Worker representatives. This consensus fell with the Berlin Wall, prompting the Office to bypass states by engaging with external interactants in order to promote international labour standards and decent work. Most recently, in order to shift the emphasis from ‘moral commentary’ to ‘determined action’, the Office has reverted to managing states, albeit in the face of determined Employer counter‐framing. Employer opposition, supported by several member States, cannot be underestimated, as any orchestration within the international industrial relations field is contingent on concerted action.

Suggested Citation

  • Huw Thomas & Peter Turnbull, 2021. "From a ‘Moral Commentator’ to a ‘Determined Actor’? How the International Labour Organization (ILO) Orchestrates the Field of International Industrial Relations," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 59(3), pages 874-898, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:59:y:2021:i:3:p:874-898
    DOI: 10.1111/bjir.12578
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/bjir.12578
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/bjir.12578?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lucio Baccaro & Valentina Mele, 2012. "Pathology of Path Dependency? The ILO and the Challenge of New Governance," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 65(2), pages 195-224, April.
    2. Antony Alcock, 1971. "History of the International Labour Organisation," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-1-349-01136-0, October.
    3. Kerry RITTICH, 2015. "The ILO: Challenges in times of crisis," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 154(1), pages 85-90, March.
    4. Janice R. BELLACE, 2014. "The ILO and the right to strike," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 153(1), pages 29-70, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Huw Thomas, 2021. "A ‘Decent Cuppa’: Worker Power and Consumer Power in the Sri Lankan Tea Sector," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 59(1), pages 114-138, March.
    2. Tonia NOVITZ, 2020. "Engagement with sustainability at the International Labour Organization and wider implications for collective worker voice," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 159(4), pages 463-482, December.
    3. Christoph Knill & Louisa Bayerlein & Jan Enkler & Stephan Grohs, 2019. "Bureaucratic influence and administrative styles in international organizations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 14(1), pages 83-106, March.
    4. Perri 6 & Eva Heims & Martha Prevezer, 2023. "How did international economic regulation survive the last period of deglobalization?," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 17(1), pages 272-289, January.
    5. Baccini, Leonardo & Koenig-Archibugi, Mathias, 2014. "Why do states commit to international labor standards?: interdependent ratification of core ILO conventions, 1948-2009," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 57665, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Huw Thomas & Mark Anner, 2023. "Dissensus and Deadlock in the Evolution of Labour Governance: Global Supply Chains and the International Labour Organization (ILO)," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 184(1), pages 33-49, April.
    7. Gregory Jackson & Virginia Doellgast & Lucio Baccaro, 2018. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Labour Standards: Bridging Business Management and Employment Relations Perspectives," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 56(1), pages 3-13, March.
    8. Ruth DUKES & Judy FUDGE & Guy MUNDLAK, 2021. "Labour law in the 100 years of the International Labour Review," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 160(4), pages 66-77, December.
    9. Virginia Doellgast & Matthew Bidwell & Alexander J. S. Colvin, 2021. "New Directions in Employment Relations Theory: Understanding Fragmentation, Identity, and Legitimacy," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 74(3), pages 555-579, May.
    10. Gregory Jackson & Sarosh Kuruvilla & Carola Frege, 2013. "Across Boundaries: The Global Challenges Facing Workers and Employment Research 50th Anniversary Special Issue," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 51(3), pages 425-439, September.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:59:y:2021:i:3:p:874-898. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/lsepsuk.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.