ILO

Zack Martin, the owner of Crawler Haulers a trucking company based in Lafayette in Louisiana.
UN News/Daniel Dickinson

FIRST PERSON: ‘You can’t get paid for staring out of the window’ - How I proved my teacher wrong

31 December 2019
Human Rights

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana.  

Captain Tucker Friedman is known as the alligator whisperer in Louisiana.
ILO Photo/John Isaac

FIRST PERSON: Louisiana alligator whisperer’s ‘dream job’

29 December 2019
Human Rights

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana. 

Clarence Martin has been making accordions for 37 years.
ILO Photo/John Isaac

FIRST PERSON: Accordion maker has ‘never had so much fun’

28 December 2019
Human Rights

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana. 

The owner of Swirl Wine Bar and Market New Orleans advises a customer about wine.
ILO/John Isaac

FIRST PERSON: Community helping to heal New Orleans post-Hurricane Katrina

26 December 2019
Women

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana. 

New Orleans-based Kai Bussant repairs and refurbishes hats.
ILO Photo/John Isaac

FIRST PERSON: Feeling the milliner’s vibe

25 December 2019
Women

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana. 

Michelle Gueydan (centre) is a sommelier who works in New Orleans.
ILO Photo/John Isaac

‘Passion and story-telling’ central to wine business

25 December 2019
Interviews

“Passion and story-telling” are two of the key ingredients to become a wine expert according to Michelle Gueydan, a certified sommelier based in New Orleans in the United States. Ms. Gueydan transitioned from politics to event management and then became one of the minority of female sommeliers currently working in the US. 

She spoke to the International Labour Organization (ILO) as part of a photography project to mark the centenary of the establishment of the UN agency. The project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” documents the working life of people across the United States. 

Kevin Cassidy, the Director of the ILO’s office for the United States, sat down with her during a tasting event at a wine bar in New Orleans. 

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9'56"
Demond Melancon, also known as Big Chief, is a Mardi Gras Indian Chief of the Young Seminole Hunters group.
ILO Photo/John Isaac

FIRST PERSON: ‘Big Chief’ and the million beads

24 December 2019
Culture and Education

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana. 

Roseann Rostoker moved to New Orleans in 2010 to open the Red Gravy restaurant.
ILO Photo/John Isaac

FIRST PERSON: Chef’s ‘labour of love’ key ingredient for life in the kitchen

23 December 2019
Women

The International Labour Organization is marking its centenary in 2019 and as part of the commemoration has launched a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience” to document the working life of people across the United States. UN News joined the ILO on a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana.   

Heath Leger (left) works for the family crawfish seafood business
ILO Photo/John Isaac

‘Humanity, quiet dignity’ of workers profiled in US-wide photo project

23 December 2019
Human Rights

A small paddle-boat with two men on board finds its way through a green but muddy field planted with rice on a 120-acre farm in Scott, in the US state of Louisiana. It lurches forward as one of the men plants little metal traps into the mud every ten feet or so.   

Kevin Cassidy, the Director of the ILO Office for the United States (right) meets Emily Sorlien, of the Rhode Island-based Whalers Brewing Company .
ILO Photo/John Isaac

‘Pride and dignity’ of the American worker highlighted in ILO project

22 December 2019
Interviews

What does a crawfish farmer have in common with a taxidermist, or a voodoo priestess, or a long-haul heavy-load truck driver….?  

The answer, according to the Director of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) office for the United States, is a quiet dignity and pride in their job. 

The ILO is currently undertaking a photography project called “Dignity at Work: The American Experience”, which is documenting the jobs of hundreds of American workers in around 100 cities across the United States.  

The ILO, a specialized United Nations agency, which is celebrating its centenary this year, focuses on advancing social justice and promoting decent work not just in the US but across the world. 

Daniel Dickinson spoke to the ILO’s US Director Kevin Cassidy during a visit to the southern US state of Louisiana and asked him to explain what the project is hoping to achieve. 

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