Introduction to the Conference
The International Labour Conference is the ILO’s highest decision-making body. It meets annually in June, bringing together the tripartite delegations from the Organization’s 185 member States. The Conference is composed of a plenary and of technical committees. The plenary sits in the Assembly Hall of the Palais des Nations. The Conference opens and closes in plenary sitting; during intermediate plenary sittings, all delegates may participate in the discussion of the Reports of the Chairperson of the Governing Body and of the Director-General. The plenary also performs administrative and formal tasks for the Conference and may hold sittings to receive distinguished guests, including Heads of State or Government. The World of Work Summit, during which such guests will address the Conference, will be held in plenary sittings on the morning and afternoon of Thursday, 11 June.
The Conference usually establishes committees to deal with the technical items on its agenda, which this year means items IV, V and VI, of which details are given below. These committees meet concurrently, and work throughout the Conference, before finalizing their reports, conclusions or any instruments they may have drafted, which are then presented to the plenary for adoption.
As ILO member States are aware, the Governing Body of the ILO is continuing its review of the functioning of the Conference with the aim of reforming it. The decisions taken at the 323rd Session of the Governing Body (12–27 March 2015) which affect the 104th Session of the Conference are reflected in this Conference guide, with some details immediately below. Among these was the Governing Body’s decision to request the Office to produce a tentative plan of work for the Conference reducing its length to two weeks, without any reduction of substance. The tentative plan of work has been web-posted on the Conference website since April, and is included in this guide. It will become official after adoption by the Conference Selection Committee, which meets immediately after the opening plenary session of the Conference on Monday, 1 June.
A Conference Daily Bulletin will be published containing the Conference programme of meetings and the list of speakers for the day in plenary. All plenary sittings of the Conference will be broadcast live on the Web.
Agenda of the 104th Session of the
International Labour Conference
Standing items
I. Reports of the Chairperson of the Governing Body and of the Director-General
II. Programme and Budget proposals for 2016–17 and other questions
III. Information and reports on the application of Conventions and Recommendations