Health services sector
Health services are fundamental to society and the economy, with health care recognized as a basic human right essential for safeguarding the health and safety of populations. There is no health care without health workers. Securing employment and decent working conditions for health workers are essential strategies to ensure equal access to quality health services and to address global health workforce shortages. The UN High-level Commission on Health Employment and Economic Growth (HEEG) recognized the health sector’s economic importance and emphasized urgent investments in a strong health workforce, which also serve as an effective strategy for job creation.
The ILO promotes decent working conditions and labour relations in the health sector, through rights at work, employment opportunities, social health protection, sectoral labour standards and social dialogue, including through joint initiatives such as the ILO-OECD-WHO Working for Health Programme.
ILO-OECD-WHO Working for Health Programme (W4H)
Standards and tools
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Tools
- HealthWISE - Work Improvement in Health Services
- WHO-ILO-UNAIDS policy guidelines on improving health workers’ access to HIV & TB prevention, treatment, care and support
- Joint ILO/WHO guidelines on health services and HIV/AIDS
- Framework guidelines for addressing workplace violence in the health sector: The training manual
- Assessing employment effects for the health and care workforce: a guiding framework
Caring for those who care
Resources
Manual
Occupational safety and health in public health emergencies: A manual for protecting health workers and responders
Policy brief
Decent Working Time for Nursing Personnel: Critical for Worker Well-being and Quality Care
Working paper
The future of work in the health sector
Labour Migration
In their own voices: opportunities and obstacles on the path taken by migrant health-care workers from the Philippines
Migrant health professionals and skilled workers
Promoting Decent Work Across Borders: A Project for Migrant Health Professionals and Skilled Workers
Promoting decent work across borders
Promoting decent work across borders: A project for migrant health professionals and skilled workers: Fact sheet
Occupational safety and health in the health services sector
COVID-19
Events
Tripartite technical workshop for the SADC region on Investing in the health workforce: employment and decent work in the health sector
Tripartite Meeting on Improving Employment and Working Conditions in Health Services
Third Global Forum on Human Resources for Health
News
WHO, African Union Development Agency, and the International Labour Organization join forces to safeguard health workers in Africa
Health Services
Tripartite meeting highlights the importance of improving health sector employment and working conditions
71th UN General Assembly
UN Commission: New Investments in Global Health Workforce Will Create Jobs and Drive Economic Growth
All publications
Working for Health - Seminar 1 - Highlights
Report
Algorithmic Management practices in regular workplaces: case studies in logistics and healthcare
What labour force survey data can tell us about the workforce in the health and social care sector