Ávarp á þingi Alþjóðavinnumálastofnunarinnar

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to start by congratulating you, Mr. President and Vice-Presidents of the conference, on being elected to your posts.

It is now nearly twenty years since I had the opportunity to address the International Labour Conference for the first time. Since then quite a number of things have changed, not least the political landscape in the international arena.

The ILO, under the able leadership of the Director-General Mr. Juvan Somavia and his staff, has certainly identified new tasks and paved the way into this century. The Decent Work Agenda has placed the ILO right at the center in times of globalization and economic integration.

A topic of special interest to Iceland as a fishing nation is the draft convention on work in the fisheries sector . Iceland has actively worked towards the adoption by this conference of an instrument regarding work in the fisheries sector which could achieve wide-spread acceptance. In order to obtain this goal it is necessary to take into account that for various reasons fishing fleets have developed differently from country to country. I hope the proposal for a convention will be passed in a similarly good spirit as the maritime labour convention last year.

Gender equality in the world of work has always been close to my heart. Therefore, I want to thank the Director-General and his staff for the report on equality at work. This publication is well structured, accessible and informative. Although labour participation of women in Iceland is one of the highest in the world there is always room for improvement.

One of the persistent problems facing us is the gender pay gap. Over the years Icelanders have used different tools to try to bridge that gap, some of which are described in the global report. Among others is legislation on paternal leave which includes a provision of a “use it or loose it” right for fathers to three months paternal leave with pay. This legislation has proven to be a success as 90% of fathers utilize it and might by a model to follow for other countries. The main aim of it is to equalize the status of women and men both within the labour market and in their family life.

But the gender pay gap is still there. The new Government, which was elected to power three weeks ago, has decided to develope an action-plan to cut the unexplained gender-based wage difference within the official sector by 50% within the next four years term.

With almost no unemployment in Iceland today and a strong demand for labour we do both need women and men within the labour market. It´s very important for Iceland and every other society to recognize the great human-rescource captured in women as well as in men.

Mr. President,

Let me conclude my statement by referring to one of the reports to the Conference, the General Survey Concerning the Application of Forced Labour. In Europe and North-America an increasing number of women, children and men are victims of trafficking for sexual and labour exploitation. This deplorable development, which stands out as one of the most urgent problems of this century, carries with it a responsibility for all of us.

I thank you.