How International Labour Law is Actually Enforced and why it Matters

This article identifies increasing reliance on international labour law, in both quantity and quality, within a wide array of enforcement routes that are external to the International Labour Organization (ILO). These findings prompt the re-thinking of international labour law enforcement. Rather than the common dichotomy between the ILO’s traditional enforcement, which is often criticised as ineffective, and external mechanisms, which are often seen as a problematic compromise due to their divergence from international labour law, we can start thinking of a middle ground that is becoming more and more effective. The ILO according to this view relies, in practice, on other actors to enforce its norms, and it does so rather effectively through its normative influence, authority, and expertise, through which it is able to embody the understanding of what should be considered as the appropriate behaviour in global labour markets. Spotlighting these emerging processes and thinking of ways to enhance these existing connections between the ILO and ‘external’ actors can thus expand our current toolkit for enforcing international labour standards. More generally, the ILO’s experience can be relevant to other international organizations in achieving greater coherence across numerous transnational enforcement regimes and their harmonisation with treaty objectives.