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The United Nations labour agency has appointed a senior official from the Trump administration as its deputy director general, ending an eight-month vacancy, even as Washington has accumulated more than 173 million Swiss francs in unpaid dues over the past two years.
The International Labour Organisation announced this week that Sheng Li, a high-ranking official at the US Department of Labor, will lead the agency's "policy cluster," overseeing five policy departments. The appointment fills a post vacant since last September, when Celeste Drake, also a US national, departed the role.
The deputy director general position has historically been held by an American, reflecting Washington's status as the ILO's largest donor, having covered roughly 22 percent of the agency's budget in recent years.
But with the United States having failed to pay its 2024 and 2025 contributions, the ILO's staff union has questioned the wisdom of honoring that tradition.
"We are still awaiting clarification regarding the reasons for this decision, particularly in light of certain unanswered questions concerning US contributions," union chief Severine Deboos said.
As of April 24, US arrears stood at more than 173 million Swiss francs, equivalent to approximately $220 million. Washington will also owe its 2026 contribution, amounting to an additional 84 million francs.
The ILO acknowledged the situation, noting that the United States "remains in arrears, as are many other member states," and said the shortfalls have "impacted the ILO's cash flow," adding that the agency is actively pressing member states to settle outstanding payments.
The appointment comes after months of tension between the Geneva-based agency and the Trump administration. The prospect that Nels Nordquist, a former senior economic adviser to President Donald Trump, might be named to the post sparked alarm within the ILO.
In a memo published last August, the administration characterized the organization as one that "works to unionise foreign workers and punish US corporate interests abroad," though that language, along with a decision to cut $107 million in ILO funding, later disappeared from the document without explanation.
The ILO, founded in 1919 and now a specialized UN agency, sets international labor standards, promotes workers' rights, and coordinates employment policy across its 187 member states.
Like many UN bodies, the ILO is undergoing significant reform, with plans to eliminate roughly 120 positions by 2029, a number that could grow by several hundred if deeper savings are required, according to agency documents.
ILO Director General Gilbert Houngbo said last May that the closure of approximately 50 US-funded projects had already forced the agency to lay off around 200 of its roughly 3,500 global staff members.
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