ILO Social Protection Floors Recommendation adopted
ILO Social Security Department
The International Labour Conference has adopted a new international labour standard, the Recommendation concerning national floors of social protection (referred to as Social Protection Floors Recommendation, 2012 (No. 202)), with overwhelming majority (453 votes in favour and one abstention) of government, employer and worker delegates of the ILO's 185 member States.
This Recommendation provides guidance to countries in establishing and maintaining national social protection floors as fundamental element of comprehensive social security systems and in developing extension strategies that progressively ensure higher levels of social security to as many people as possible and as soon as possible, reflecting national objectives, economic and fiscal capacities and guided by other ILO social security standards.
This double objective of the Recommendation reflects the International Labour Organization's two-dimensional strategy to the extension of social security coverage, which was adopted by the International Labour Conference in June 2011. Reaffirming that social security is a human right and a social and economic necessity, the Recommendation sets out that countries should establish and maintain national social protection floors. These constitute of a set of nationally-defined basic social security guarantees, including effective access to essential health care and basic income security throughout the life course, that contribute to preventing or alleviating poverty, vulnerability and social exclusion, and building more inclusive societies and economies.
2012-06-15,
by Ivón García