ISLSSL Regional Congresses
Upcoming Regional Congresses
II African Regional Congress: Gaborone (Botswana), 23-24 November 2020
Main theme: “Decent Work in Modern and Developing Countries: Contemporary Legal and Social Challenges”
More information is available on the Congress website:

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XIII EUROPEAN REGIONAL CONGRESS: LISBON (PORTUGAL), 5-7 MAY 2021
Main theme: “Work and Employment in the Digital Era: Legal Challenges”
More information is available on the Congress website:

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List of past Regional Congresses
XI American Regional Congress: Cordoba (Argentina), 6-7 September 2019
Main theme: “New forms of work and the challenge for social and labour protection”
Core themes:
- “Labour law reinvention in the framework of the global economy”
- “Gender wage equality and its relationship with productivity”
- “Prevention and compensation of occupational diseases and accidents”
- “Labour reforms in the Americas”
More information is available on the Congress website:

XII European Regional Congress: Prague (Czech Republic), 20-22 September 2017
List of themes:
-
- Theme 1: Migrant Workers;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
Kubra Dogan Yenisey
Yves Jorens
Catherine Barnard
Polonca Koncar |
-
- Theme 2: European Works Council;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
Manfred Weiss
Dagmara Skupień
Frederic Turlan
Romuald Jagodziński |
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- Theme 3: New forms of Social Security;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
Jean-Pierre Laborde
Franz Marhold
Jozsef Hajdú
Ulrich Becker |
- Theme 4: The Role of the State in Industrial Relations;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
Stein Evju
Jesus Cruz Villalon
Grega Strban
Petr Hůrka |
More information is available on the Congress website:

http://www.ercprague2017.cz/en/
Report of the Executive Committee Meeting – September 20, 2017
Executive Committee Meeting Report
X American Regional Congress: Panama City (Panama), 26-30 September 2016
List of themes:
- Theme 1: Evolution and transformation of the sources of Labour Law;
Keynote Speakers: |
Lance Compa
Humberto Villasmil |
Discussant: |
Fernando Bolaños |
- Theme 2: Syndicalism in face of the transformation of businesses and the presence of new social actors;
Keynote Speakers: |
Nelson Manrich
Anil Verma |
Discussant: |
Juan Raso-Delgue |
- Theme 3: Social security: how to make it to 2050 with a healthy system, economically and socially;
Keynote Speaker: |
Sergio Velasco |
Discussants: |
Martha Monsalve
Patricia Kurczyn |
XI European Regional Congress: Dublin (Ireland), 17-19 September 2014
List of themes:
-
- Theme 1: Labour Rights and Human Rights;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
The Honorable Mr Justice Donal O’Donnell
Keith Ewing
Janice Bellace
Bernd Waas |
-
- Theme 2: The legal and extra legal remedies against discrimination;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
Kevin Duffy
Sylvaine Laulom
Mark Bell
Silvana Sciarra |
-
- Theme 3: Social security issues and state support for the wage-work bargain;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
Gerry Whyte
Keith Puttick
Christian Welz
Peter Rigney |
-
- Theme 4: Alternative dispute resolution;
Chair:
Keynote Speaker:
Discussants: |
Bill Roche
Alex Colvin
Stein Evju
Mordehai Mironi |
-
- Round Table 1: Whistleblowing;
Chair:
Panellists: |
David Lewis
Bjorn Fasterling
Rik van Steenbergen
Trygstad Sissel
Wim Vandekerckhove |
-
- Round Table 2: Economic crisis and labour law reforms;
Chair:
Panellists: |
Guiseppe Casale
Alberto Pizzoferrato
Jesús Cruz Villalón
Costas Papadimitriou
Michael Doherty
Joana Vasconcelos |
- Round Table 3: Data protection and workplace privacy;
Chair:
Panellists: |
Ken McDonald
Robert Rebhahn
Edit Kajtar
Jose Abrantes
Diego Alonso
Matthew Finkin |
IX American Regional Congress : Guayaquil (Ecuador), 2-4 October 2013
List of themes followed by conference reports:
-
- Keynote speech: Prof. Arturo Bronstein, former Secretary-General and Honorary President of the ISLSSL on “International Human Rights Law and Labour Law”
-
- Workshop: “International Human Rights Law and Labour Law” chaired by Prof. A. Bronstein
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- First Theme: “The role of jurisprudence in the fight against employment discrimination”
General Rapporteur: Prof. Fernando Bolaños (Costa Rica)
First Theme – General Report [in Spanish, English version forthcoming]
-
- Second Theme: “Collective representation of workers: Evolution of legal regimes from a viewpoint of the collective autonomy and freedom of association”
General Rapporteur: Prof. Emilio Morgado (Chile)
Second Theme – General Report [in Spanish, English version forthcoming]
-
- Third Theme: “The self-employed: The legal regime and the extension to the same of rules and institutions of labour law”
General Rapporteur: Prof. Mario Pasco (Peru)
Third Theme – General Report [in Spanish, English version forthcoming]
-
- Round Table: “Public and private pension systems: Advantages and disadvantages for workers”
Chair: Professeur Humberto Villasmil Prieto, President of the ILO Section of the ISLSSL.
- Round Table: “Forms of social protection of the workers in the coming decades from a legal and financial viewpoint and proposals for a solution”
Chair: Prof. Jean Michel Servais, Honorary President of the ISLSSL.
X European Regional Congress: Seville (Spain), 21-23 September 2011
List of themes:
- Labour law and industrial relations in the light of the economic and social changes
- Collective bargaining rights in a globalized economy
- Social protection of the unemployed
- Round Table: Public and private employment services as intermediaries in the hiring of workers
- Round Table: Groups of people who risk labour and social protection
- Workshop: The role of the judiciary vis-à-vis the changes in labour law
- Workshop: Interruptions and suspensions of the employment relationship
VIII American Regional Congress: Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), 25-28 May 2010
List of themes:
- Current situation and the future of public and private pension systems in the light of the worldwide crisis
- Public and private systems of settlement of individual and collective labor disputes
- The protection of worker’s privacy at the workplace
- Round Table: The so-called “news forms of employment” and their impact on:
- individual employments relations
- collective labour relations
- the social protection of workers concerned
- Round Table: The use of international law by national courts in the adjudication of labour disputes
IX European Regional Congress: Freiburg (Germany), 16-19 September 2008
List of themes:
- Implementation of the equal treatment principle in employment and occupation in the EU and EEC Member States
- Status and protection of migrant workers
- The impact of demographic trends/developments on pension schemes in Europe
- Round Table: The impact of information and communication technologies in the field of labour law
- Round Table: The employer’s responsibilities in complex corporate structures
- Workshop: Systems of law enforcement under labour law
- Workshop: Qualification and training of lawyers and legal advisors in the field of labour law
VII American Regional Congress VII: Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic), 31 October - 2 November 2007
List of themes:
- The impact of employer economic difficulties on the contract of employment
- Protection against anti-union discrimination
- Workers’ protection in case of illness
- Round Table: What’s new in labour law. Regional perspectives?
Asian Regional Congress VIII: Taipei (Taiwan), 31 October - 3 November 2005
List of themes:
- The participation of women in the labour market – toward the goal of gender equality in employment in the 21st century
- The impetus for economic restructuring and the protection of workers’ rights
- The Asian experiences on the old-age security or pension system
- Round Table: The impact of globalisation on work patterns and labour relations
European Regional Congress VIII: Bologna (Italy), 21-23 September 2005
List of themes:
- Family allowances
- Processes of social law making and implementation within the European Union
- Transfer of undertakings: A delicate compromise among individual protection, labour market and economic development
- Round Table: The new boundaries of employee information and consultation
- Round Table: Challenges in labour law and collective bargaining in Central European countries arising out of their integration into the European Union
- Workshop: The respective role of trade union, workers’ representatives, public authorities and other stakeholders in transfers takeovers or other transformations in the structure or size of the enterprise
- Workshop: Alternative dispute resolution in labour law
VI American Regional Congress: Querétaro (Mexico), 17 September 2004
List of themes:
- Special labour relations
- Internationalization of labour and employment relations within the framework of the Free Trade Agreement for the Americas
- Social accountability of multinational enterprises: Voluntary codes of labour practices and their private monitoring
- Round Table: Evolution and recent trends of the labour law in Europe, North America and Latin America
- Round Table: Social security law: Public service or privatization?
Report on the VI American Regional Congress, Mexico 2004 (in Spanish)
II Ibero-American Meeting on Labour Justice: Montevideo (Uruguay), 2 September 2003
List of themes:
- How to speed up the procedures in labour litigation?
- Case law criteria to determine the existence of an employment relationship
VII European Regional Congress: Stockholm (Sweden) 4-6 September 2002
List of themes:
- The autonomy of the collective agreement
- Justifications for sex discrimination in the working life
- Freedom of movement and transfer of social security rights
VII Asian Regional Congress: Manila (Philippines), 22-24 November 2001
List of themes:
- The right to work: Jobs vs. labour standards
- Re-examining the role of trade unions in society with emphasis in the informal sector
- The protection of children in labour law
- Round Table: Globalization: Its effects/impact on the international and national labour standards and social security
V American Regional Congress: Lima (Peru), 16-19 September 2001
List of themes:
- Individual labour contracts current issues: The boundaries between dependent and independent work
- Basic rights and international commerce: Synchronization between economic efficiency and social protection
- Relations between individual and collective labour rights and the social security
- Round Table: New forms of work and the labour law
- Debate: Recent evolutions of the labour law in the European Union
VI European Regional Congress: Warsaw (Poland), 13-17 September 1999
List of themes:
- Social dialogue – economic interdependence and labour law
- Wage employment and self-employment
- Reforms of social security systems
- Round Table: Prospects of the European Union and the Council of Europe’s labour law
I Ibero-American Meeting on Labour Justice: San José (Costa Rica), 24-25 June 1999
List of themes:
- The principle of celerity in labour litigation
- Legal assistance to workers
- The principles of procedural labour law
IV American Regional Congress: Santiago (Chile), 11-13 November 1998
List of themes:
- Globalization and individual labour law
- Globalization and collective bargaining
- Administrative and financial issues in social security
- Round Table: The Labour Clause, the Social Charter and ILO standards in integration and free-trade schemes
V European Regional Congress: Leiden (Netherlands), 18-21 September 1996
List of themes:
- The future of labour law
- The future of the dismissal law
- The future of the social security law
- Panel Discussion: Labour law: Further separation from civil law?
VI Asian Regional Congress: Hobart (Australia), 11-14 February 1996
List of themes:
- Technological changes and social protection
- The labour policy issues for the old-age worker
- Law and the protection of non-regular workers
- Panel Discussion: The impact of economic globalization on labour standards
III American Regional Congress: Montreal (Canada), 24-27 May 1995
List of themes:
- The employee’s right to privacy
- The future of collective bargaining and new forms of employment
- Health care: Public and/or private systems?
- Panel Discussion: The labour law aspects of the regional economic integration
IV European Regional Congress: Brussels (Belgium), 7-9 September 1993
List of themes:
- Labour law and developments in Europe:
- with reference to the sole European Market
- with reference to the change from a centralised to a market economy
- Labour law in small and medium-sized undertakings: Flexibility or adjustment
- The role of social security in the struggle against unemployment
- Panel Discussion: Those excluded from labour law and social security
I African Regional Congress: Tunis (Tunisia), 18-19 April 1991
List of themes:
- The origins of labour law in Africa
- Principles of labour law and African realities
- Role and functions of the state in industrial relations in Africa
- Problems of medical insurance in Africa
V Asian Regional Congress: Tokyo (Japan), 26-29 March 1990
List of themes:
- Statutory regulation of wages in Asian countries
- Dismissal procedures and termination benefits in Asian countries
- Settlement of labour disputes in Asian countries
- Panel Discussion: Investment and labour law: Foreign enterprises and industrial relations in Asia
II American Regional Congress: San José (Costa Rica), 5-9 March 1990
List of themes:
- The settlement of collective labour disputes in the public sector and services
- Social protection vis-à-vis illness, invalidity, old age and death
- Individual labour disputes: Settlement by courts or collective agreements
- Social consequences of structural adjustment policies
- Panel Discussion: The purposes of labour law
III European Regional Congress: Paris (France), 13-15 September 1989
List of themes:
- Trends towards deregulation and their impact on the theory of the sources of labour law
- Legislative and judicial modifications concerning trade union activities and the freedom of strike
- New forms of recruitment and precarious employment relations
- Restructuring of enterprises and its impact on employment
- Flexibilisation of working time
- Respective role of public authorities and private initiative in social security policy
I American Regional Congress: Buenos Aires (Argentina), 27-30 April 1987
List of themes:
- The role of collective agreements in the national economy
- Prevention of anti-union practices
- The impact of new technologies on conditions of work and employment
- The protection of workers’ claims in crises of enterprises through social security machinery
IV Asian Regional Congress: Singapore (Singapore), 3-6 February 1987
List of themes:
- The legal status of workers’ and employers’ organizations
- Labour law aspects of safety and health protection
- The situation of the worker in case of sickness
- The publication of labour laws in Asian countries
- Panel Discussion: The general theory of labour law: Recent developments in ideas about the functions of labour law
II European Regional Congress: Jesolo (Italy), 8-10 September 1986
List of themes:
- Technological change and the employment relationship
- Hiring procedures
- Employers’ responsibility regarding occupational accidents
III Asian Regional Congress III: Bangkok (Thailand), 8-11 January 1985
List of themes:
- Labour relations in the public sector of the economy, with particular reference to workers’ rights and responsibilities
- Child labour
- Old-age benefit schemes
- Panel Discussion: Asian approach to labour relations
I European Regional Congress: Szeged (Hungary), 19-21 September 1984
List of themes:
- Methods of comparative labour laws
- Conflict of laws in labour law
- Current problems of retirement
II Asian Regional Congress: Seoul (Korea), 14-16 September 1983
List of themes:
- Labour relations in essential services
- Employment injuries: Benefits and rehabilitation
- New forms and aspects of atypical employment relations
I Asian Regional Congress: Manila (Philippines), 16-19 December 1980
List of themes:
- Settlement of labour disputes
- Codification of labour law
- The position of women in labour law and social security