The WFTU has sent a strong delegation to the 55th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (UN CSW55) that takes place in New York, from 22 February to 4 March, 2011.
This year, the main subject of the Conference is Access and participation of women and girls in education, training, science and technology, including for the promotion of women’s equal access to full employment and decent work”.
The attention and the interest of the WFTU for the issues of working women is interpreted in concrete actions such as the development of trade union skills and training programs on gender equality at the workplaces, strengthening the capacity of class-oriented trade unions so as to include gender issues in their collective bargaining. Also to inform working women about their legitimate rights and help them to assure those rights, including legal assistance when presenting claims on violations of the working women’s rights and in the supervision of ILO Conventions, to promote the ratification and implementation of labor standards relevant to gender equality.
The WFTU is preparing the 16th World Trade Union Congress to be held this year in Athens, Greece on April 6-10, where all concerns of workers will openly and democratically be discussed. The working women issues will be discussed by a Women Committee composed of members representing different regions.
This year the WFTU will celebrate the 8th of March in Palestine, where women from different countries will exchange their experiences and views on the promotion of women’s equal access to full employment and decent work.