International Labour Organization (ILO) 2017 global media competition on labour migration ($4,000 USD Prize)

Application Deadline: 27 October 2017

The international competition aims at encouraging quality reporting on labour migration.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is launching a global media competition to recognize exemplary media coverage on labour migration.

The objective is to encourage quality reporting on labour migration. Such reporting is all the more significant as media often promotes a toxic public narrative based on nationality, national origin, gender and migratory status misperceptions, reinforcing prejudice, intolerance and stigmatization against migrant workers and their families.

While not overlooking the negative aspects (e.g. often a hard reality of exploitation and violation of human and labour rights), applicants are also encouraged to highlight the positive contribution of migrant workers to countries of origin, transit, and destination as well as the key aspects such as their fair recruitment.

The 2017 global media competition on labour migration is organized by the International Labour Organization in collaboration with the International Trade Union Confederation, the International Organization of Employers, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Federation of Journalists, Equal Times, Solidarity Center, Human Rights Watch, and Migrant Forum in Asia, as well as the International Training Centre of the ILO. This year’s competition is organized with the support of the EU funded project “Global Action to Improve the Recruitment Framework of Labour Migration (REFRAME ) and the SDC funded project “Integrated Programme on Fair Recruitment” (FAIR )”

The competition starts on 31 July 2017 and closes on 27 October 2017. Professional journalists are invited to submit a maximum of two entries, one per each of the two following categories:

• Written articles (online or print articles)
• Media Production (photo journalism, audio, video)

Articles should not exceed 8000 words and videos/multimedia should not be longer than 10 minutes. Submissions must have been published between 1 January 2015 and 27 October 2016 to qualify.

Entries submitted should address either one of the following 2 thematic areas: (i) Labour migration aspects (migrant workers’ contribution to the social and economic development of countries of origin and destination, the protection of their labour rights, the recognition of their skills, their labour market integration, their social protection, migrant workers in an irregular situation, their working conditions (particularly their wages, working time and occupational safety and health, migrant workers in the informal economy, their trade union rights, forced labour, child labour, and trafficking situations); or (ii) Fair recruitment of migrant workers (guided by the General Principles and Operational Guidelines on Fair Recruitment ).

Refugees and displaced persons, where they are employed as workers outside their own countries, are considered migrant workers. As such, submissions covering international migrant workers and refugees (participating in labour markets outside their own countries) will be accepted.

Prizes

A total of four winners (one per category, per thematic area) will receive $1,000 USD each. Winning entries will be featured on ILO website and widely promoted as an example of good journalism.

Requirements

To enter the competition, please fill in the online entry form  before 27 October 2017 (latest 23:59, Central European Time). Entries are accepted in three languages: English, French, and Spanish. Entries in other languages will be accepted provided that the applicant presents a faithful translation in one of the three languages mentioned above. Winners will be officially announced on 18 December to mark International Migrants Day. For further enquiries, please contact: Labour-Migration-Media-Competition@ilo.org 

Judgement Criteria

A panel of 5 distinguished judges will evaluate the top ten entries from each of the above-mentioned two categories. The decision of the ILO and judges on all matters relating to the contest is final, and no correspondence will be entered into at any stage. The ILO encourages entries that cover different aspects of labour migration and, as much as possible, reflect views of various concerned parties: government, employers, and trade unions’ organisations, migrant workers.

For More Information:

Visit the Official Webpage of the ILO 2017 global media competition on labour migration