Burmese Migrant Worker Issues Placed On Agenda As U.N. Labor Organization Convenes

March 7, 2008 10:44 a.m. EST

Geneva, Switzerland (AHN) - Forced labor in Burma, officially known as Myanmar, freedom of association and discrimination against migrant workers are among the issues to be addressed at the policy meeting of the United Nation's labor organization that opens on Thursday in Geneva.

The Governing Body of the International Labor Office (ILO) meets three times a year in March, June and November, and takes decisions on policy, budget and the agenda of its International Labor Conference.

The meeting scheduled from 6-20 March is expected to discuss action against forced labor in Myanmar in the light of a recent ILO mission to the country, among other issues.

It will also review progress in countries which have not yet ratified all fundamental Conventions on freedom of association and collective bargaining, forced and child labor and discrimination.

On 17 March, Robert B. Zoellick, President of the World Bank, will address the Working Party on the Social Dimension of Globalization, speaking on the topic, "The Challenge of Making Globalization Inclusive."