The ILO notes that the number of international discrimination agreements signed between 2000 and 2016 increased compared to the previous year, reaching 115 agreements in 2016. The European Commission has set up a database of transnational corporate agreements, including IFAs and EAs, showing that another 10 IFAs were concluded in 2017 and 8 more AGPIs in 2018. IFAs generally focus on the metallurgy, construction, chemical, food and service sectors, and it is generally assumed that such negotiations are initiated by trade unions. ILO Online: Do these agreements also have an impact on suppliers or affiliated companies? References ^ ILO (2018), International Framework Agreements in the Food, Clothing and Chemicals Retail Sectors: Lessons Learned from Three Case Studies, Geneva. ↑ IndustriALL (2019), IndustriALL suspends global agreement with Volkswagen, 21 January. ↑ Uni Global Union (2018), UNI Global Union and Banco Itaú extend global agreement guaranteeing labour rights, 23 October. ↑ IndustriALL (2014), Guidelines for Global Framework Agreements (GPA), Geneva. ^ ILO (1998), ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, Geneva. ↑ Carrefour (2018), UNI Global Union and Carrefour further strengthen global cooperation, Annecy. ^ Uni Global Union (2018), Global agreement between BNP Paribas and UNI Global Union promotes labour rights, gender equality for the company`s 200,000 workers worldwide, Nyon. Dominique Michel: An international (or global) framework agreement (IFA) is an instrument negotiated between a multinational and a Global Union Federation (GUF) to build an ongoing relationship between the parties and ensure that the company adheres to the same standards in all the countries where it operates.

Sectoral unions in the multinational`s home country are also participating in negotiations on the agreement. Although framework agreements are not corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, they are often mentioned in the CSR debate as they are one of the ways in which companies can express their commitment to adhere to certain principles. However, the specific aspect that distinguishes framework agreements from CSR initiatives is that they result from negotiations with international staff representatives. Framework agreements are therefore one of the possible developments in industrial relations in the era of globalisation. Dominique Michel: Most framework agreements concern the entire supply chain, even if the suppliers are not parties. Companies generally undertake to inform all their subsidiaries, suppliers, contractors and subcontractors of the agreement. If it turns out that a subsidiary or affiliate does not comply with the global agreement, the case can be referred to the headquarters of the multinational, which seeks solutions through dialogue. Dominique Michel: As a recent development in the field of industrial relations, international framework agreements are an interesting subject for the ILO. The Director-General of the ILO witnessed the signing of some of them, such as Chiquita.

Several ILO departments (Social Dialogue Sector, Institute for Labour Studies, Offices for Employers` and Employees` Activities and the Programme for Multinational Enterprises) monitor and analyse these developments. The ILO Tripartite Declaration on Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy is a useful point of reference for enterprises considering the content of these agreements. This declaration contains recommendations on the desirable behaviour of enterprises with regard to employment, equal opportunities and treatment, qualifications, working conditions, occupational safety and health and industrial relations. There are no enforcement mechanisms for IFAs at the global level. Although there were relatively few examples of complaints about an IFA, in January 2019, IndustriALL suspended its global declaration on social rights and labour relations within the Volkswagen Automotive Group because the company refused to allow workers at one of its plants in the United States to join a union. [2] This example shows that all complaints filed often relate to violations of the ifA provisions on freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining. ILO Online: How many companies have signed such agreements so far? France Telecom is the latest company to sign an international framework agreement with a global trade union confederation. The global agreement, signed on 21 December 2006 between the French multinational, Union Network International (UNI) and telecommunications unions around the world, addresses compliance with ILO core standards throughout the group – including the right to join a union and collective bargaining, as well as the absence of discrimination and forced or child labour. ILO Online spoke with Dominique Michel, Team Leader of the ILO`s Programme for Multinational Enterprises, about these global agreements. Dominique Michel: Fifty companies active in different sectors have signed international framework agreements with five global trade union federations. The first was signed in 1988 by the French food multinational Danone, the second in 1995 by the hotel chain ACCOR. It was only in 2000 that the number of agreements signed each year increased to 50 by the end of 2006.

Among them you will find the Swedish furniture company IKEA; the American banana company Chiquita; the German pencil manufacturers Faber-Castell and Staedler; Oil companies in Norway (Statoil), Italy (ENI) and Russia (Lukoil); car manufacturers in Germany and France such as Volkswagen, Daimler-Chrysler, Renault and Peugeot-Citroën; Spanish and French electricity producers Endesa and EDF; Telecommunications companies in Spain (Telefonica) and Greece (OTE) as well as retailers in France (Carrefour) and Sweden (H&M). .