International Labour Organization Competitors

The International Monetary Fund has a key position in promoting the health of the world economy. Established in 1944 as a part of the United Nations system, the IMF's primary purpose is to ensure the stability of the international monetary system—the system of exchange rates and international payments that enables countries and their citizens to buy goods and services from each other. This is essential for sustainable economic growth and rising living standards. To maintain stability and prevent crises in the international monetary system, the IMF conducts surveillance of national, regional, and global economic and financial developments. It provides advice to its 190 member countries, encouraging them to adopt policies that foster economic stability, reduce their vulnerability to economic and financial crises, and raise living standards. The IMF also serves as a forum where its global membership can discuss the national, regional, and global consequences of their policies. The IMF makes financing temporarily available to member countries to help them address balance of payments problems—that is, when they find themselves short of foreign exchange to meet their payments to other countries. Finally, the IMF provides countries with training to help them build the expertise and institutions they need for economic stability and growth. Supporting all of these activities is the institution's work in economic research and statistics.

The AFL-CIO represents people who work. We are the umbrella federation for U.S. unions, with 57 unions representing more than 12.5 million working men and women. The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations is an expression of the hopes and aspirations of the working people of America. We resolve to fulfill the yearning of the human spirit for liberty, justice and community; to advance individual and associational freedom; to vanquish oppression, privation and cruelty in all their forms; and to join with all persons, of whatever nationality or faith, who cherish the cause of democracy and the call of solidarity, to grace the planet with these achievements. We dedicate ourselves to improving the lives of working families, bringing fairness and dignity to the workplace and securing social equity in the nation.

The Commission represents and upholds the interests of the EU as a whole, and is independent of national governments. The European Commission prepares legislation for adoption by the Council (representing the member countries) and the Parliament (representing the citizens). It administers the budget and the policy programmes (agriculture, fisheries, research etc.) in cooperation with authorities in the member countries. Visit http://www.europa.eu/ if you want to learn more about the EU, or call the free service number 00 800 6789 10 11 from anywhere in the EU, they speak all 24 official languages. Disclaimer: The European Commission is working to ensure that social networks respect the highest standards of data protection. All users of social networks should be particularly careful about how they disclose their personal information and about how it may be used by third parties and the social network themselves. The presence of the European Commission on LinkedIn does not mean that we endorse or in any way agree with the privacy policy or practices of this professional social media network. Read more about our social media policy → europa.eu/!dyJq74