Full text: The work of the International Labor Organization

126 INTERNATIONAL LABOR ORGANIZATION 
world, therefore, in addition to the linguistic, racial and 
political obstacles, make international action difficult. 
An examination of the structure and operation of the Inter- 
national Labor Organization shows that it has all the weak. 
nesses inherent in international cooperation. The complaints 
of small nations and of non-European countries against the 
existing constitution of the Governing Body have been re- 
current. The equitable representation of all the member 
states on the staff of the International Labor Office has con. 
stituted a complicated and delicate problem. The lack of a 
single universal language has necessitated the translation of 
documents and reports and of the speeches at the annual 
conferences. Differences in political systems and social 
structures of the member nations have given rise to contro- 
versies which at times have threatened the existence of the 
Organization. In fact, all the disturbing factors associated 
with internationalism have played their part in impeding the 
work of the International Labor Organization. 
But, in addition to those obstacles common to all forms of 
international cooperation, the International Labor Organiza- 
tion has encountered other difficulties arising out of the 
nature of the problems with which it has dealt. The primary 
objective of the Organization has been the improvement 
throughout the world of the working conditions of wage 
earners. To achieve this purpose, it was considered necessary 
at the outset to secure the combined support of the employ- 
ers, the workers and the governmental authorities of the 
various nations. This inclusion of the employers’ and 
workers’ groups has introduced a number of problems. No 
method appears to have been devised for securing the satis- 
factory representation of these groups, particularly that of 
the workers. The worker delegates at the sessions of the 
Conference have been almost uniformly selected by the labor 
organizations in their respective countries. Attempts, as 
in the case of Japan, where a relatively small proportion of 
the wage earners are trade union members, to introduce 
representation of the unorganized employees have encoun- 
tered opposition. The existence of rival unions in a number 
of countries has also produced conflicts which have made it 
difficult for the International Labor Organization to secure
	        
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