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GB.274/9/2
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NINTH ITEM ON THE AGENDA
Reports of the Programme, Financial
and Administrative Committee
Second Report: Personnel questions
Contents
Statement of the staff representative
Composition and structure of the staff
Matters relating to the ILO Administrative Tribunal
Childcare facilities in the ILO
1. The Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee met on 9 March and was chaired by Mr. Akao (representative of the Government of Japan, Chairperson of the Governing Body). Mr. Marshall (Employer member, New Zealand) was the Reporter.
Statement of the staff representative
2. The Chairperson of the Staff Union Committee recalled that the Committee had often emphasized the need for a human resources management system that would be completely transparent, make full use of available human resources and recognize the fact that the development of those resources was of fundamental importance to achieving the Organization's objectives. For that reason, the Committee, was anxious to maintain a system guaranteeing equality between men and women, between citizens of developing countries and those from industrialized countries, and between citizens from countries which are major contributors and those that are not. While much had already been done, there was a need, as the Director-General himself had said, to speed up the pace. It was always possible to do better. It was therefore time to look to the future and consider what had not yet been achieved. Some of the observations made by the Director-General regarding equality between women and men in his address on International Women's Day were set out, together with much other information, in a paper drawn up by staff members who acted as focal points on the issue of equality in the ILO's different departments. The remark made by the Director-General concerning the low proportion of women in high-level posts was of great interest to many women employed in the Organization. Although the paper on the composition and structure of the staff showed that there had been improvements, it was a fact that 70 per cent of women recruited by the Organization were recruited at grades P2 and P3, while the figure for men was only 23 per cent. On the other hand, 77 per cent of men in the Organization were recruited at grade P4 or above. To achieve a balance, it would be necessary to take corrective measures, while continuing to maintain high standards of excellence. There was nothing more potentially damaging to women themselves than entrusting responsibilities to women who did not have the necessary competencies. Mr. Brett had indicated the day before that it might now be time to replace competent men with competent women. That was not necessary. It would be sufficient to replace incompetent men with competent women. What was needed to promote equality was a set of positive and specific measures like the crèche project, which the staff hoped very much would be adopted during the present session of the Governing Body. The staff had been delighted by the support given to the project by the Director-General and by the cooperation of the Personnel Department.
3. Another issue of importance for the staff was obviously that of collective bargaining. In this regard, the staff could only welcome the priority which the Director-General intended to give to staff issues and collective bargaining. The staff hoped to be able to resume discussions with the Personnel Department on the basis of a draft prepared by the Staff Union Committee and to come to an agreement on collective bargaining. Attention had to be drawn to the fact that, although the Transition Team report on key activities mentioned consultations with the staff and the Staff Union on a range of questions, including collective bargaining, selection, assessment and staff mobility, those consultations had hitherto focused on these general themes rather than on specific proposals. Similarly, the Programme and Budget proposals for 2000-01 with regard to personnel questions referred to the implementation of training, classification and career development programmes formulated during the previous biennium, i.e the one currently in progress. Since the programmes in question had not yet actually been formulated, this would have to be done during the coming year in consultation with the staff. With regard to methods of selection, it was important to recall that the statutory provisions had been suspended and that the question would need to undergo an evaluation process which would be presented to the Governing Body -- hopefully on the basis of a common position resulting from genuine negotiations with the administration. Classification procedures, including the right to individual reclassification, were still being negotiated. In these and others areas, the discussions had lost momentum as a result of the change in management. However, the Staff Union intended to resume talks as soon as possible in order to ensure that the ILO assumed its rightful place in the field of labour as a leader and an example for the other organizations of the United Nations system.
Composition and structure of the staff
(Eleventh item on the agenda)
4. The Committee took note of a paper(1) containing statistical data on the composition and structure of ILO staff as of 31 December 1998. The paper was submitted to it in accordance with the practice established at the 184th Session of the Governing Body.
5. Mr. Blondel, speaking on behalf of the Worker members, said that he hoped that in future some additional information would be provided: a comparison by year in order to show general trends, the number of posts and vacancies and the distribution by type of contract, i.e. fixed-term or without limit of time (WLT). He pointed out that more members of the staff were employed on fixed-term contracts than on WLT contracts and wondered if that was a general policy. He also wanted to know whether recruitments were covered by the ordinary budget or came under extra-budgetary funds. Lastly, he hoped that the Office would make a greater effort to promote the employment of women, given that it had taken 34 years -- from 1964 to 1998 -- to double the percentage of women employed. Moreover, as other statistical data showed and as the staff representative had pointed out, women remained largely confined to the lower grades.
6. The representative of the Government of Croatia, speaking on behalf of most countries in central and eastern Europe, noted that Bosnia and Herzegovina was not included on page 12 and that, of the 60 or so countries that were under-represented or not represented at all in non-linguistic posts, more than one-third were in that region. This situation had to be remedied if the ILO was to become the modern and dynamic organization capable of adapting to the needs of its constituents and of the different regions which the Director-General had spoken of on the previous day.
7. The representative of the Government of Germany expressed concern at the adoption of a new criterion, that of mother tongue. While it was true that the criterion was not used by the Personnel Department itself, since there were no provisions relating to this in the Staff Regulations, certain individual departments did apply it. The criterion should be dropped as discriminatory, since it was tantamount to penalizing candidates on grounds of their country of birth. He therefore called on the Director-General and his collaborators to ensure that this "unspoken" criterion was dropped altogether.
8. The representative of the Government of Japan welcomed the number of recruitments -- 20 out of a total of 54 -- indicated in table II of staff members from countries deemed to be inadequately represented, and hoped that the Office would continue its efforts to achieve an appropriate geographical distribution of posts for all member States.
9. The representative of the Government of Austria regretted that there had been scarcely any improvement with regard to the employment of women at the higher grades, although there were now many competent women who were well qualified women for such posts. He therefore welcomed the initiatives announced by the Director-General to remedy the situation.
10. The representative of the Government of Spain wondered about the criteria for determining whether a country was inadequately, adequately or over-represented and said that information should also be provided on the distribution of posts by grade and nationality.
11. Mr. Parrot (Worker member) emphasized the importance of improving the situation of women, which the Director-General was committed to doing. Women made up only 9.1 per cent of officials of grade D2, i.e. two women for every 22 posts. That number had never changed and, indeed, when the total number of posts at that grade had increased, it was the proportion of men that had risen. Similarly, the proportion of women in D1 posts had not changed. While statistics available in other documents showed that 117 women and 208 men had been recruited between 1991 and 1997, almost two-thirds of the women were recruited to posts no higher than grade P3, although more than two-thirds of the men were hired at grade P4 or above. Indeed, the lower the grade, the higher the proportion of women employed in that grade.
12. The representative of the Government of Canada endorsed the previous speaker's remarks and emphasized the importance of achieving progress towards equality between men and women, through both the recruitment and promotion of women to higher grades and the award of WLT contracts.
13. The representative of the Government of Slovakia expressed his concern that no nationals from his country were among the Office staff and hoped that the situation would be rectified.
14. A representative of the Director-General (the Director of the Personnel Department) gave some further information in reply to the questions raised. Replying to the observations made by Mr. Blondel, she recalled that members of staff were employed under one of three types of contract: short-term, i.e. contracts of less than 12 months which are not reflected in the table; fixed-term, i.e. of at least one year; and contracts without limit of time, which were normally tantamount to employment until retirement age. The number of WLT posts, also referred to as "permanent" posts, was determined by the programme and budget, which meant that there were only a limited number of such posts. On average, half of all staff members at any one time had permanent contracts. The award of such contracts was based on provisions in the Staff Regulations and depended on seniority, performance, conduct and career prospects; it was the responsibility of the Administrative Committee, which was composed of staff representatives and representatives of the Personnel Department, and depended on the number of posts available under the programme and budget. One could therefore say that the respective proportions of permanent officials and those employed on fixed-term contracts reflected a deliberate policy of the Governing Body, which could, if it so desired, examine the question. With regard to the question of recruitment according to budget source (regular or extra-budgetary) table II showed only staff recruited under the regular budget. Nevertheless, it was possible for established officials to be sent on detachment to work on particular programmes, which explained the presence in table I of officials with permanent contracts among staff financed from extra-budgetary sources. With regard to the non-representation of Bosnia and Herzegovnia to which the representative of Croatia had referred, this was an error which would certainly be corrected. The observation made by the representative of the Government of Germany had been duly noted. The problem to which he had referred did not reflect the policy of the Personnel Department. Such issues were matters for the Selection Board, which endeavoured to eliminate any bias of that kind. The numerous references that had been made to the low proportion of women in the higher-grade posts had of course been duly noted. While the situation was clearly unsatisfactory, as the Director-General had forcefully stated on International Women's Day, the situation could only be rectified through a united effort by the member States, social partners, ILO administration and programme managers. With regard to the question raised by the representative of the Government of Spain concerning geographical distribution, it was worth nothing that, by contrast with other organizations, no account was taken of size of population. While every Member was allocated one or two posts irrespective of its financial contribution, the geographical distribution of posts, i.e. the appropriate range of posts by country, was established every year on the basis of each Member's financial contribution. That information would in future be included in the paper on the composition and structure of the staff, if the Committee wished. The call for collection and publication of data on the distribution of staff by nationality and grade was a sensitive issue given that the personnel policy of the Office was based on the notion of career development and service in the international civil service, i.e., on merit and competence, with due regard for independence and impartiality. It was therefore important to avoid an approach that might lead to questions regarding the geographical distribution by grade. Lastly, the Office had taken due note of the suggestions for improving the paper by incorporating data allowing annual trends and overall staff developments to be identified.
Decisions of the United Nations General A
ssembly on the
report of the International Civil Service Commission
(Twelfth item on the agenda)
15. The Committee noted an Office paper(2) which reported the outcome of the United Nations General Assembly's consideration of the annual report for 1998 prepared by the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC).
16. Mr Blondel recalled that in November 1998, and subject to their approval by the General Assembly, the Governing Body had taken certain decisions in relation to those recommendations in the ICSC report which had financial implications for the Office. He noted that the General Assembly had agreed to the relevant recommendations, but had required more work on other proposals (such as the proposed changes to the language incentive scheme). He also observed that the General Assembly had made a number of new decisions, which were worth identifying. These were the requests made to the ICSC to undertake a further study (in 2001) to identify the highest paid civil service in the context of continuing to apply the Noblemaire principle on Professional staff salaries; and, in 2000, to conduct a comprehensive review and reform of the post adjustment regime applying across the United Nations common system, including in relation to Geneva. He also noted the General Assembly's comments concerning progress made by the ICSC in improving its relations with the organizations and staff bodies and its request for a further report on this matter in 2002.
Pensions questions
(Thirteenth item on the agenda)
Decisions of the United Nations General Assembly on the report
of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board
17. The Committee had before it an Office paper(3) on the report and recommendations of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board which had been considered and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in December 1998.(4) The main items dealt with in the paper concerned the actuarial situation of the Pension Fund, agreement to limited additional benefits for Fund participants, the administrative expenses of the Fund, withdrawal of the World Trade Organization from the Fund, and the transfer agreements between the Fund and the former USSR, Ukrainian SSR and Byelorussian SSR.
18. Mr. Blondel did not wish to revisit decisions that had already been taken. However, the revised cost-sharing arrangements between the Fund and the United Nations secretariat had already been discussed in detail by the ILO Staff Pension Committee as there was concern that the United Nations secretariat had wished to take advantage of the financial health of the Fund to transfer more of its administrative costs to the Fund. Referring to the transfer accords with the former republics of the USSR that had been suspended, Mr. Blondel noted that the number of claims of pensioners had been increasing and that this situation was creating unbearable financial hardship for those individuals. He urged the governments concerned to exert the necessary pressure to ensure that the accords were implemented so that these pensioners could obtain their rightful entitlements.
Composition of the ILO Staff Pension Committee
(United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board)
19. The Committee examined an Office paper(5) which proposed a procedure to fill the vacancy of a titular International Labour Conference representative on the ILO Staff Pension Committee arising from the recent death of Mr. Chotard.
20. A representative of the Director-General (Director of the Personnel Department) explained the requirements of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund Regulations in relation to the appointment of International Labour Conference representatives on the Staff Pension Committee. The Office had suggested to the Chairperson of the Governing Body and the Officers of the Employers' and Workers' groups that the Chairperson undertake consultations with the Government members of the Governing Body, through their regional coordinators, to seek agreement on a nomination which could be made by resolution to the International Labour Conference this year. It was not a requirement that Mr. Chotard's replacement be a Government member of the Governing Body: the Governing Body could select for the position anybody it had confidence in. However, the Governing Body had agreed in 1992 that Governing Body representation on the Committee should be tripartite, if possible. Finally, she indicated that the Committee could either accept the proposal before it or postpone a decision on a nomination until November so as to enable the necessary consultations to take place. Until the International Labour Conference agreed to a new appointment, Mr. Chotard's position could be filled by a substitute member of the ILO Staff Pension Committee.
21. The Chairperson indicated that he would undertake the necessary consultations with a view to a nomination being submitted to the International Labour Conference in June.
22. Expressing the certainty that Mr. Chotard's successor would be as successful in the position as Mr. Chotard had been, Mr. Blondel supported the proposal and encouraged the Government members to nominate someone who would be able to participate actively in the work of the Staff Pension Committee and undertake related responsibilities.
23. Mr. Marshall, on behalf of the Employer members, also agreed to the proposal.
24. The Committee recommends that the Governing Body request its Officers to make a proposal on its behalf direct to the 87th Session of the International Labour Conference concerning the appointment to the ILO Staff Pension Committee of a person to fill the vacancy left by Mr. Chotard.
Matters relating to the ILO Administrative Tribunal
(Fourteenth item on the agenda)
Apportionment of the costs of the Tribunal
25. The Committee was asked to consider a paper(6) containing proposals on possible ways of improving the distribution of the Tribunal's running costs between the ILO and the other organizations that have accepted the Tribunal's jurisdiction, in accordance with the request made by the Governing Body at its previous session. These proposals are that, from the year 2000, the ILO should cover only the costs of the Registrar, part-time secretarial support and miscellaneous costs, while continuing to participate in the other running costs in proportion to the size of its staff. The ILO would also continue to absorb the shares of other organizations when these are less than $180.
26. Mr. Marshall, recalling that the Employers had been requesting an examination of this question for some time, noted the importance and value of the services provided by the Administrative Tribunal both to the ILO and to other organizations. The proposals contained in the Office document formed a useful basis for considering the question of an improved sharing of the Tribunal's running costs, for example, by offering a way round the difficulties inherent in any solution entailing amendments to the Tribunal's Statute. Even if they did not fully meet the expectations of the Employer members with regard to full cost recovery for the ILO, they were a step in the right direction. For that reason the Employer members supported the proposals contained in paragraph 12 of the document.
27. Mr. Blondel endorsed the proposals contained in paragraph 12. Although they might create an impression that the public service provided by the Tribunal was being privatized, they would allow an appropriate balance to be struck between the ILO's obligation to provide a public service and the obligation of the beneficiary organizations to contribute to the costs to which they give rise.
28. The representative of the Government of the United States, while at this stage endorsing the proposals contained in paragraph 12 (which would cut the share of running costs paid by the ILO from 59 to 45 per cent), noted that they would only mean a limited reduction in the financial burden borne by the ILO (about half a million dollars). Although it was an improvement, it was not in itself sufficient. For that reason, consideration would have to be given in future to the possibility of amending the Tribunal's Statute.
29. The representative of the Government of Japan said that the ILO should assume the cost of the basic services provided by the Tribunal, given that the use of those services by other organizations was a sign of their confidence in the ILO's competence in that area, and that the balance should be assumed by all the organizations. She therefore supported the adoption of paragraph 12.
30. The Committee recommends to the Governing Body that, as from the year 2000, the ILO's contribution to the running costs of the Administrative Tribunal should consist of:
(a) the cost of the Registrar (two Professional work-years), part-time secretarial support (five General Service work-months), and miscellaneous costs;
(b) a share of the other running costs based on the proportion of ILO staff to the total number of staff of organizations that have accepted the Tribunal's jurisdiction;
(c) the running costs chargeable to those organizations whose share is less than $180.
Recognition of the Tribunal's jurisdiction by the
World Trade Organization (WTO)
31. The Committee was asked to consider a document(7) which proposed that the Governing Body should approve the WTO's recognition of the Tribunal's jurisdiction as from 1 January 1999, in accordance with the WTO's request.
32. Mr. Marshall supported the adoption of paragraph 6 of the document. This new instance of acceptance of the Tribunal's jurisdiction was an expression of the recognition of the service provided by the Tribunal.
33. Mr. Blondel also supported the adoption of paragraph 6.
34. The Committee recommends to the Governing Body that it approve the recognition of the Tribunal's jurisdiction by the World Trade Organization, with effect from 1 January 1999.
Childcare facilities in the ILO
(Fifteenth item on the agenda)
35. The Chairperson introduced the item,(8) noting that the proposal for a crèche at the ILO had been placed before the Governing Body in November 1998 for a first discussion.
36. The representative of the Government of Austria maintained his support for a crèche, but regretted that it could not be established within the main building as it would have been considerably less expensive. However, the construction of a new building was acceptable, particularly if it could serve other functions, but he was concerned about the high cost of the proposed building as well as the level of recurrent costs. He also queried whether officials and delegates, particularly those from developing countries, would be in a position to pay the fees identified. All these factors would have to be considered before a decision could be taken.
37. Mr. Blondel, on behalf of the Worker members, stated that a number of consultations had already taken place regarding the idea of a crèche. He wondered whether for safety and health reasons it would be wise to have a crèche in the ILO building. It was no longer time to discuss details; it was now more a political question. Was or was not the ILO, in establishing a crèche, carrying out its social obligations and fulfilling one of the standards it promoted? Would the ILO, which was responsible for addressing social issues, be the last international organization to establish a crèche? It was on the basis of these considerations that a decision had to be made. All proposals could be questioned and one could always try to improve projects. The Governing Body now needed to take a decision and not delay further. He noted that the Workers' group often criticized other organizations, but in this case both the IMF and World Bank provided access to childcare facilities for their staff. Mr. Blondel said that his group insisted that a favourable decision be taken on the crèche proposal.
38. Mr. Marshall, on behalf of the Employer members, stated that his group agreed a decision had to be taken and would support the establishment of a staff crèche. Several questions, however, had to be addressed. First, the location of the crèche had to be examined. The space available on R.1 appeared very well-suited for a crèche. If these premises were required for work on the Provisional Record for some three weeks, could the ILO not find premises to rent for this purpose? Secondly, there was the question of the cost and fee structure. Demand for a crèche could be low if good child care was available elsewhere at a better price. His group had some information about the cost of child care in the vicinity of the ILO and the fees suggested a lower starting-point than those proposed in the paper. In this context also it would be necessary to examine whether it was appropriate to rely on the relevant local collective contract as the basis for crèche staff terms and conditions of employment. A further observation was that a high number of staff seemed to be being proposed to care for a small number of children. Thirdly, filling only 42 places and keeping eight places vacant for the use of delegates seemed an inefficient approach. A crèche should be run at optimal levels; it was not economically viable to keep space available for the children of delegates. If spaces were available at the time of ILO meetings, they could be offered to delegates. Fourthly, as for the running of a crèche, the Employers' group recommended strongly that the ILO not operate the facility or enter into a partnership with civil or community groups, but that a commercial contract be awarded to a professional, competent private sector body, which would be accountable to the ILO for the delivery of quality childcare services. If the room on R.1 could not be used and a building was to be constructed, the relevant costs had to be strictly controlled. A clear budget decision was required in relation to the level of the ILO financial contribution to the crèche; if available funding was exceeded, the crèche budget itself would have to make up the difference.
39. The representative of the Government of France queried whether the argument that the R.1 area was required for the Provisional Record team was sufficiently compelling not to use the space for a crèche. The Provisional Record team should be able to be housed elsewhere, either in or close to the ILO building. He firmly requested the Office to re-examine these issues. Otherwise, his delegation could approve the crèche proposal.
40. The representative of the Government of Canada stated that her delegation was committed to the principle of setting up a crèche for both staff and delegates, and such a decision should be taken at the present session of the Governing Body. However, further investigation, particularly regarding costs, was required. Was a separate building in fact the most cost-effective, compared with renovation of space within the ILO building? The fee structure also required further clarification.
41. The representative of the Government of Panama noted that his delegation had previously expressed support for a crèche. In his view, it was appropriate that the crèche be outside the main building. There was also the issue of safety and security -- if children were in the main building, it could pose difficulties. As for the contracting of a private entity to run the crèche, this was the only way to proceed in a successful manner, both for children of officials and of delegates.
42. The representative of the Government of the United Kingdom indicated that her Government was committed to the provision of childcare facilities for ILO employees and the development of family-friendly policies. A decision in principle to have a crèche should be taken during this session, but the proposal required further work. She was disappointed that the needs survey which had been prepared was not comprehensive -- could the sixty staff members who had expressed interest in a crèche get childcare elsewhere, for example? The paper also did not make it clear whether the proposal was competitive. Far from being self-financed, the proposed crèche involved considerable capital expenditure and significant recurring costs. She questioned whether cheaper options had been examined: could the 80 people working on the Provisional Record not be housed elsewhere; would subsidies to the employees requiring day-care not be more cost effective? Offering facilities to delegates also appeared problematic: there could be a scramble for places if the option proved popular.
43. The representative of the Government of Namibia agreed with the United Kingdom Government. The needs survey required further work. In addition, in line with the argument of the Employers' group to explore contracting-out and self-financing, the possibility of contracting established childcare facilities to provide a childcare service for ILO staff and delegates should be examined.
44. The representative of the Government of Italy noted the broad agreement that a crèche should be established. While a pre-fabricated unit could be the simplest, it may not be the best approach. It was certainly the most costly. He asked that further examination be lent to whether the facility could be accommodated within the ILO building.
45. The representative of the Government of Japan agreed that the ILO should set an example as an excellent employer. As the Director-General had stated previously, it was necessary to create an environment that would enable ILO staff with family responsibilities to display fully their professional ability. She therefore supported a facility with appropriate subsidies from the budget, on condition that the matters raised by other speakers be studied further.
46. The representative of the Government of the United States strongly supported the concept of an on-site, self-funded childcare facility. Cost, however, was an important consideration. If funds were taken from the programme and budget to build and subsidize a childcare centre, there would be less money available for ILO programmes. A number of important practical concerns required examination. The United States Government had previously indicated that it would carefully consider a proposal for a crèche which required moderate costs for renovations or purchases of equipment; but constructing a building would cost over half a million dollars. His delegation opposed a subsidy for recurrent costs. Furthermore, an ILO crèche had to be kept running as close as possible to 100 per cent capacity. Given the complexity of the issue, decision on the item should be postponed.
47. Mr. Marshall noted the almost unanimous agreement in principle to the provision of a crèche. He had overlooked the apparent interest from other organizations and requested that the Office provide a paper on ways in which such agencies could collaborate in the provision of child care. He had inspected the R.1 facilities, which looked tailor-made for a crèche. The various clubs currently housed in the area could be relocated to other areas within the ILO premises. Capital expenditure could be saved by utilizing the in-house facility.
48. Mr. Blondel noted that it appeared that almost everyone was in favour of a crèche. The Governing Body did not have to solve everything. The details on how a crèche would be run or whether other organizations would participate could be worked out later. Various issues would have to be examined and specialists consulted, and the Director-General would have to make certain decisions, but what was required was that they made a decision that day. The ILO's image would be tarnished if a crèche was not established. Members should declare their support for a crèche, preferably outside of the building for health and safety reasons, and then do what was required to make it a reality in the best and least expensive way possible; he, too, was concerned with costs.
49. The representative of the Director-General (the Treasurer and Financial Comptroller) drew attention to the paragraph in the paper which suggested that the cost of the construction of the proposed crèche be financed from savings under Part I of the budget in 1999. As inflation levels were lower than foreseen, there were savings available under the budget which could be applied to this purpose. If a decision to build a facility was not taken until November 1999, there would be problems in financing the construction in 2000.
50. A representative of the Director-General (Director of the Personnel Department) responded to issues raised during the discussion. In terms of the cost of the crèche for officials, the levels of net take-home pay for staff at lower levels indicated that ILO staff could afford the crèche fees proposed. Staff had also expressed interest in an ILO crèche twice over a four-year period. There were cheaper crèches in Geneva, but the ILO, in setting up a crèche, would want to respect the collective agreement. In spite of high costs and staff ratios, the ILO would want to follow what it considered to be best employer practice. In any case, these questions could be discussed by the management committee. The major issue was one of location. She regretted and apologized for the lack of details on this aspect. In November 1998 the Governing Body had requested financial details. Examinations had been made and divergent views expressed. The Staff Union's architects estimated that renovations could be made for US$150,000, while the Office's architects estimated that such work, including the relocation of clubs to other areas, would cost in the order of Sw.frs.500,000 or about US$340,000. The presentation of these details would have made the paper clearer. On this basis, the difference in costs between constructing an outside facility and refurbishing the R.1 area was not as great as originally supposed. This had led to the consideration of whether a crèche facility was in fact wanted within the building. Here the question of the Provisional Record became relevant. As regards recurrent costs, running a crèche without a subsidy, were the ILO to respect the collective agreement, was not possible. Crèches were expensive. An ILO crèche could not be self-financing. The Employers' group's views on the management of the crèche were valid; the current proposal did not exclude consideration of any of the options raised. The proposal suggested that an association, set up on a legal basis, decide on the modalities of establishing the crèche. This could include contracting out the provision of childcare services. It could also include deciding on how many places should be available for the children of delegates and whether and on what basis the children of WHO and WIPO officials might secure places in the crèche.
51. A representative of the Director-General (Director of the Relations and Meetings Department) said that the paper could have created the impression that the idea of converting the R.1 area had not been retained because it would have created a problem for the Provisional Record team. As had been explained, this was not the case: had the difference in cost estimates between the first and the revised estimates been greater, a relocation of the Provisional Record team would have been examined. But the cost difference between converting R.1 and building a new facility was not great when the requirements of a crèche in accordance with Swiss law were taken into consideration. Were a decision taken to build an outside facility, the Provisional Record team would continue to be located where it was. Were conversion of the R.1 facility to a crèche to be envisaged, relocation of the team would be necessary.
52. Mr. Marshall reiterated the Employers' group's support for childcare facilities. The group was only concerned that the best way to move forward be found. It was regrettable that the secretariat's explanations had not been in the documentation. However, even if a decision in principle were taken that day, a decision regarding the approach ought to be taken in November. The costs were substantial. One did not spend money if one was not comfortable, even if the costs could be covered from savings. The Governing Body had to act responsibly and ensure the best outcome. The Committee could agree in principle as a group and look at the practical delivery at a later stage.
53. Mr. Brett, on behalf of the Worker members, stated that it would be a pity if the children for whom they were discussing the idea of a crèche grew up before a facility was built; the idea that the crèche be outsourced suggested that ILO staff were not capable of running a crèche. It was wrong to make the staff and children victims because of the drafting of the paper or because of the arguments presented. It was simple: the money was there. Could the Governing Body not trust the Director-General and the Office to manage the finances effectively and the Staff Union to represent their members and say that a crèche be established at the earliest possible time?
54. The Chairperson noted that almost all members had spoken in favour of the establishment of a crèche, but not all had felt confident to approve the proposal. He proposed, as a basis for achieving consensus, that there be agreement in principle to establish childcare facilities, but that the Office be asked for further elaboration and that the Governing Body consider the matter again in November 1999.
55. Mr. Blondel noted that the issue of the crèche had been discussed a number of times. It was difficult for people to find places in crèches in Geneva and for this reason staff had asked for a crèche and were ready to make financial efforts to sustain it. If a decision were prolonged until November there would be discontent. If the Governing Body got the process going and took a decision so that the Director-General could take the initiative, it would set in train a process to respond to the various issues raised. A few governments had been in favour of making the taking of a decision conditional on further examination of various issues, but the majority had expressed their agreement in principle to establish a crèche. This view was echoed by the Employers, while the view of the Workers was evident. The Committee could take a decision to establish a crèche in principle at the present session.
56. The Director-General noted that there was agreement to the establishment of a crèche in the ILO. However, the Employers' group and certain Government representatives had raised a number of reasonable, practical and, in some cases, compelling issues that required further examination. This analysis should be undertaken with a view to revising the current crèche proposal to give it a firmer foundation and, hopefully, to make it acceptable to everyone. He had also concluded from the various statements that there was agreement for some level of financial commitment from the Office to a crèche. In the light of these conclusions, the Director-General proposed a practical process to maintain momentum on the issue. He asked that the Governing Body authorize him to undertake the necessary additional work on the proposal and to consult within the Governing Body to seek to establish whether consensus on an approach could be found. He would consult with the Officers of the Governing Body on how this process might be expedited. If consensus could not be achieved, he would report on that basis. If agreement was possible, he would ask for authority to implement the proposal later in 1999 using available funds, which might not be available during the next biennium. In the meantime, he encouraged Government representatives to consult at home on the outcome of the present discussion and to seek further instructions.
57. Mr. Marshall thanked the Director-General for his practical approach. The Employers would accept it as a workable means of seeking to resolve the matter. To assist the process, if the cost structures were as they had been presented, it would be useful to start the process of planning and seeking consent from local authorities in respect of the building arrangements.
58. The representative of the Government of the United States expressed appreciation for the Director-General's practical approach. It had taken the State Department 12 years to establish a childcare facility, and he was sympathetic to the Workers' concerns that November was far off. He favoured accepting the Director-General's proposal and asked for further discussion in June.
59. The representative of the Government of Italy stated that it was clear that the Governing Body favoured a crèche and did not want to wait until November to reach a decision. He fully supported the Director-General's proposal and his willingness to take risks. He could, having taken note of all viewpoints, report on what he had concluded in June.
60. Mr. Blondel thanked the Director-General for his proposal and was in favour of discussing the matter again in June. If a document were provided well in advance, discussions would be possible to advance the crèche proposal.
61. The representative of the Government of Canada supported the Director-General's proposal and agreed that the issue should be discussed in June. She supported the Employers' suggestion that planning begin.
62. The Chairperson concluded that the Committee had accepted the idea of a crèche. He called on the Director-General to consult with members and seek a consensus on the proposal. The issue would be taken up by the Governing Body in June, by which time the Director-General would have submitted a document covering the various issues raised so that a decision could be taken quickly.
63. The Committee recommends that the Governing Body --
(a) agree in principle to establish a childcare facility on the ILO premises, pending further examination of a more detailed proposal by the Governing Body at its 275th Session in June 1999;
(b) request the Director-General to submit a revised proposal for the childcare facilities to the 275th Session of the Governing Body, including a more detailed presentation of the cost structures, construction options and other material arrangements;
(c) request the Director-General to undertake immediately the necessary planning activities for the childcare facilities pending a Governing Body discussion in June.
Geneva, 12 March 1999.
(Signed) S. Marshall, Reporter.
Points for decision:
Paragraph 24;
Paragraph 30;
Paragraph 34;
Paragraph 63.
1. GB.274/PFA/11 and GB.274/PFA/11(Corr.1).
4. United Nations General Assembly, Official Records, 53rd Session, Supplement No. 9 (A/53/9), United Nations General Assembly Resolution 53/210 of 18 Dec. 1998.