The Center for Global Rights served as co-sponsor for a May 10, 2014 conference held at the University of Pennsylvania commemorating the seventieth anniversary of the “Declaration of Philadelphia.” This declaration, offered by the International Labor Organization (ILO), outlined the rights of labor for the postwar era and is still included as an important part of the ILO’s constitution. Titled, The Global Spirit of Philadelphia: The ILO, Economic Security, Political Freedom and Labor Rights in the Twenty-First Century, the event highlighted the origins, context, and continuing prospects of aspirations toward stronger labor standards and economic security for workers. Kari Tapiola, Special Advisor to the ILO Director-General welcomed the guests and Ai-jen Poo, Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, offered an opening keynote. Presenters included Dorothy Sue Cobble of Rutgers University, Earl Brown, Director of Rule of Law and China Departments of the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center, and Fabricio Rodriquez of the Philadelphia Restaurant Opportunities Center, among others. The event attracted labor scholars, practitioners, activists, and trade unionists interested in strengthening dedication to international labor standards the world over.

Conference organizers included the Jill Jensen, CGWR; Michael Merrill, dean of the Harry Van Arsdale Jr. Center for Labor Studies; Francis Ryan of Rutgers University’s School of Management and Labor Relations; and Walter Licht, Annenberg Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania. The Center for Global Workers’ Rights received a generous contribution from the Penn State Democracy Institute, which helped make this event possible.