The 113th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) took place in Geneva from 3–14 June 2025. The ILC is held annually and serves as the key forum where ILO Member Governments, trade unions and employers set international labour standards and agree on the ILO’s priorities and policies. The ILO announced three key developments at and around the ILC relevant to clients:
- A resolution promoting the shift from informal to formal work
- The development of a new international convention on platform work
- Policy guidelines on decent work in recycling.
We’ve provided a high-level summary of what each of these entails and why they matter.
Resolution on the transition from informal to formal work
On 12 June 2025, the ILC adopted a Resolution on addressing informality and promoting the transition to formality for decent work, to advance implementation of ILO Recommendation No. 204 (2015) on the Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy.
Resolutions are non-binding, meaning that individual member states have discretion on whether they pursue them. However, this resolution signals growing ILO focus on informality in global supply chains.
The resolution calls on governments, employers’ organisations and workers’ organisations (i.e. trade unions) to promote measures related to:
- Good governance, adequate funding, and promotion of fundamental rights
- Creating an enabling environment — simplifying business registration processes and removing administrative barriers to encourage formalisation
- Policy coherence and technical guidance
- Research and data on informality
- Capacity-building for business and trade unions on how to support their members
- Development of a global roadmap on formalisation which can be adapted to national contexts.
The resolution also requests the ILO Director-General to prepare a plan of action by November 2025, and to support implementation through technical assistance, data collection, and policy guidance.
Resolution on decent work in the platform economy
On 13 June 2025, the ILO agreed to draft and adopt a new convention and accompanying recommendation on decent work in the platform economy. Once adopted, this convention would carry the same legal status as existing ILO conventions on topics such as wages and working hours and companies would be expected to treat it similarly in their supply chain programmes. However, it would not be classified as a fundamental convention and therefore would not carry the same elevated status as those covering freedom of association, collective bargaining, occupational safety and health, child labour, forced labour, or non-discrimination.
According to a draft, the convention will likely cover all digital platforms and all platform workers and the following topics:
- Fundamental labour rights – freedom of association and collective bargaining, child labour, forced labour, OSH, and non-discrimination
- Social security
- Remuneration
- Violence & harassment
- Employment relationship and terms of employment
- Use of automated systems to monitor work
- Personal data and privacy
- Protection of migrants and refugees
- Dispute resolution and remedy.
We do not have a clear timeline for when the Convention will be passed. The next step is a second discussion at the ILO’s 114th Session in 2026, where the proposed convention and recommendation on decent work in the platform economy will be negotiated and considered for adoption.
Guidelines on decent work in recycling
On 4 June 2025, the ILO released the Policy guidelines for the promotion of decent work in recycling (the Guidelines). While ILO guidelines do not carry legal force, they nevertheless help shape international expectations for business. Given the ILO’s role as the global authority on labour rights, legislators and regulators are likely to reference these standards when assessing companies’ actions under legislation such as the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD).
The Guidelines outline recommendations for governments, businesses, employer organisations, and trade unions to advance decent work in recycling and related circular economy activities. Topics addressed include investment in infrastructure, formalisation of informal work, cooperation with charitable organisations, fundamental rights at work, social and labour protection, and social dialogue. Although the Guidelines cover the entire recycling sector, they specifically aim to address labour rights risks in labour-intensive and informal segments.
Most of the recommendations are directed towards governments. The recommendations for business are high-level, emphasising respect for labour rights and the need to conduct due diligence on freedom of association and collective bargaining, forced labour, child labour, discrimination, OHS, working hours, wages, and violence and harassment.
The Guidelines were developed through a meeting of experts held in Geneva in May 2025, which included representation from governments, workers’ organisations, and NGOs, including: the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), IndustriALL Global Union, International Alliance of Waste Pickers (IAWP), and International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).