The International Organisation of Employers (IOE) was created in 1920, and represents the interests of business in labour and social policy. It is based in Geneva, Switzerland. At September 2015, the IOE had 153 national employer organisations members in 143 countries. It is involved in the activities of the International Labour Organisation, acting as Secretariat to the Employers' group, as well as representing business in international forums, including the G20 intergovernmental process, on labour and social policy. It describes itself as "the largest network of the private sector in the world" and "the global voice of business".
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History
The International Organisation of Employers was founded in March 1920 in London, where the Governing Body of the International Labour Office had organised a meeting, and was created as the International Organisation of Industrial Employers (IOIE). This meeting of national employers' groups formed an organisation, which held its first General Assembly in October 1920 in Brussels. The first member organisations of the IOIE were the Central Industrial Council of Belgium, the General Council of French Manufacturers, the Federation of British Industries, the Italian Confindustria, the Spanish Employers' Organisation, the Latin American Employers' Organisation, and other, more local organisations.
Governance
The supreme decision-making body of the IOE is the General Council, which brings together delegates from the membership organisations. It meets at least once a year, and is responsible for approving the work of the Management Board, which formulates the general policy direction of the IOE, adopts a plan of action for the next year and assesses the previous year's work. The Secretariat, the body responsible for the day-to-day running of the IOE, is led by the Secretary-General, currently Linda Kromjong, who is accountable to the General Council and the Management Board.
Activities
The IOE is the Secretariat to the Employers' Group of the International Labour Organization's Governing Body, which participates as one of the tripartite constituents of the International Labour Conference, assisting the work of the Group and representing their interests in their absence. According to their website, "the IOE's role is to ensure that the policy interests of employers are reflected in the work and activities of the ILO".
The organisation is also active outside of the ILO and is increasingly engaged in international forums like the G20 meetings, often in collaboration with the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD (BIAC). The IOE is also actively involved with the work of the World Health Organisation, the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Organization for Migration and the World Bank.
Aims
The IOE is a not-for-profit organisation which describes its aims as to:
- Create economic and social environments favourable to free enterprise and a stable market economy.
- Create an international forum for the interests of national employers' organisations on social and labour policy.
- Provide information and advise to members, organise permanent communications between them, and co-ordinate employers' interests at an international level.
- Provide support for autonomous employers' organisations.
- Inform public opinion and advance understanding of employers' arguments.
- Allow employers' organisation to share experience, best practise and information.
Membership organisations
A full list of the IOE's membership organisation, which includes 153 national employers' organisations in 143 countries, is available on their website. Any central employers' organisation may join the IOE, provided its values are compatible, it is a free and voluntary body, and that its country is a member of the ILO.