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This website focuses on issues regarding social protection in Asia and the activities done by the Network on Social Protection Rights (INSP!R) and its members. It is under the editorial oversight from the Asia Steering Committee, composed out of members from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Cambodia, Indonesia and Philippines. It is meant to foster dialogue and share experiences.
The articles describe challenges and achievements to improve the right to social protection to workers in the region, with a specific focus to gender, youth and informal workers.

22 January 2019

100-year-old ILO prepares for the future

Geneva, January 22, 2019 - The International Labor Organization (ILO) officially launched its centenary with the presentation of the final report of the Global Commission on the Future of Work. As the name suggests, this Commission focused on the Future of Work. Former World Solidarity Chairman and until recently, chairman of the Board of Directors of the ILO, Luc Cortebeeck, also participated in this Committee.

The ILO, when blowing its 100th candle, aims to do 2 things. On the one hand, it looks back on the past as the only tripartite organization in the UN system, where governments, trade unions and employers jointly set out guidelines for social policies worldwide. On the other hand, it wants to look ahead: what challenges do we face in the world of work and what answer can the ILO offer? The Global Commission has focused on this key question since October 2017. Its analysis and recommendations can be found in the report 'Work for a brighter future'.

Struggling to coop with many profound transitions
The world is changing. More and more people feel the consequences of these changes and find it very difficult to coop. For starters, decent work and social protection are very unevenly distributed. The vast majority of the active labor force, 2 billion people, have to survive in the informal economy. While 36% of employees work more than 48 hours per week, there is a growing group of people who have no or insufficient work. In addition, universal social protection is still a distant dream for 71% of the world's population that has no or insufficient coverage.

These inequalities are further exacerbated by a number of transitions. Our planet is rapidly reaching the limits of its capacity; people are increasingly confronted with climate change and are unprepared to manage. Demographic evolution also indicates that we face a trend of aging everywhere, while in some parts of the world, a huge group of young people will enter the labor market. Digitization and robotisation are a final transition that, if not regulated by clear policies, involves many risks. Platforms and apps that are virtual employers, such as Uber and Deliveroo, put a strong pressure on the flexibilisation of our employment conditions.

A people-oriented investment agenda
The recommendations of the Commission start from the assumption that the social contract, as expressed in the ILO constitution, must be revived. "No lasting peace without social justice" wrote the founding fathers of the ILO as early as 1919. This remains very relevant today. To render the social contract more dynamic and to strengthen it, people have to be put back at the center. The Commission therefore proposes investments in three major areas:

  1. Investing in people and their skills. For example, there must be a real redistribution of the unpaid care tasks in the household, so that women can benefit of the same opportunities on the labor market as men. The development of universal social protection systems, which effectively protect people from birth to old age, is also extremely important.
  2. Investing in the institutions of work, which today are not inclusive enough because many employees are not represented by these institutions. Both employers' organizations and trade unions are called to reach out to the employers and employees who work in the informal economy. Trade unions can network with other civil society organizations. But organizing in the formal economy remains an immense challenge. The rising uncertainty and digital platforms mean that a whole segment of employees do not have access to labor rights. Following the example of the 'social protection floor', a 'universal employment guarantee' must grant a number of basic labor rights to everyone, regardless of their status. This, of course, concerns freedom of association, the right to collective bargaining, the prohibition of child and forced labor, but also the right to a decent living wage, a reduction of working hours and safety and health at work.
  3. Investing in decent and sustainable work, especially in those sectors where there is a lot of potential. Up to 475 million jobs could be created by 2030 in the care economy, and therefore in public services (such as child care centers, care for the elderly, care for people with disabilities, etc.). There are many opportunities in the green economy in the development and realization of sustainable energy facilities, agricultural techniques, building techniques, and so on. The rural economy needs an upgrade of local agriculture, where the property rights of small farmers are respected, their access to the market is facilitated and they can count on support in terms of their farming techniques. Finally, heavy investments must also be made in infrastructure, both physical (roads, schools, hospitals, training centers, etc.) and social and digital. There are many opportunities in the green economy, developing sustainable energy facilities, agricultural techniques, building techniques, and so on. The rural economy needs an upgrade of local agriculture, where the property rights of small farmers are respected, their access to the market is facilitated and they can count on support in terms of farming techniques. Finally, substantial investments need to be made in infrastructure, both physical (roads, schools, hospitals, training centers, etc.) and social and digital.

The Commission is aware that such investments require funds. These resources are available, we just want to find ways to tap into them. This requires courage to rethink thoroughly tax policies and to effectively combat tax avoidance and evasion. The Oxfam International report stated that there have never been so many empires (the 26 richest people in the world have as much wealth as the 3.8 billion poorest). In the meantime, tax rates are decreasing for companies and assets are being hidden in tax havens. Thus, developing countries are losing out on 170USD billion every year!

The power of people together
Do we really want to invest in people and put them at the heart of all our policy choices? For World Solidarity, our member organisations in Belgium and our partners in the Network on the Right to Social Protection, the answer is obvious: of course! From our experience, knowledge and expertise, we certainly have something to contribute to the discussions that are now starting up amid the member states of the ILO. More than ever, we as social movements, as a midfield, have to claim our place at the table. It is our role to ensure the voices of those people are heard.

Reema Nanavaty, the Former Secretary General, of the Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) in India,  talks about the importance of the Global Commission on the Future of Work’s report and what it will mean for the ILO and the world of work. She will also speak on this topic during the upcoming ANRSP meeting end of February 2019 in Kathmandu focusing on the Future of Work and Labor Markets.

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