“Skills, decent work and development: Transitions to job-rich Growth” - Statement by Jose M. Salazar-Xirinachs
Statement by Jose M. Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Director for Employment Sector of the ILO delivered at the Third International Congress on Technical and Vocational Education and Training an event organized by the UNESCO (15 May 2012)

'Not an ordinary May 1st', says ILO chief
Opinion piece delivered for May 1st, 2012 by ILO Director-General Juan Somavia.
Tens of thousands of people around the world are taking to the streets today to mark May 1st. What else is new? Well, plenty.  (1 May 2012)

Message by Juan Somavia Director-General of the ILO on the occasion of World Day for Safety and Health at Work
On this World Day for Safety and Health at Work it is timely to focus on the opportunity to promote safer and healthier workplaces as part of decent work strategies in the transition to a greener economy. The Rio +20 Summit will address the challenge of ensuring that sustainable development is built on economic growth and social equity as well as environmental protection. Realizing this vision of sustainable development requires integrated and mutually reinforcing policy approaches bringing together the needs of people and the planet, linking growth and fairness. READ MORE (25 April 2012)

Zooming in on the safety and health dimension of greening the economy

The shift towards a green economy
The 21st century presents humanity with growing challenges to protect natural resources and life support systems. The shift to a green economy is perceived as a way to reconcile the world’s economic and social needs with environmental sustainability, and is likely to resemble no other transition in human history. The promotion of green jobs is central to this transition.

Message by Juan Somavia, Director-General of the ILO on the occasion of the International Monetary and Financial Committee and Development Committee
The global employment outlook for 2012 and 2013 is bleak. Growth is slowing in developing and emerging economies, many of which must maintain a brisk pace of expansion to meet the demand for decent jobs from a growing working age population. A number of the largest advanced economies face the legacy of a major crisis in the main centres of finance which includes levels of unemployment and inequality not seen since the Great Depression. READ MORE