Albert Thomas (minister)

Thomas, a French socialist who had run munitions production in the First World War, became the first director of the International Labour Office in 1920 and made it far more than a secretariat. He pushed governments to ratify conventions on working hours, night work and unemployment, built its research and inspection role, and defended its three-way structure of governments, employers and workers. The ILO outlived the League of Nations that created it and is the oldest agency in the UN system.