Decent Jobs, Social Justice for All Hold Key to Sustainable Development, Speakers Tell Economic and Social Council as It Opens Integration Segment
With almost 200 million people in the 15 to 24 age group — a figure likely to double in the next three decades — Africa represented an opportunity as well as challenge, the President of Tanzania told the Economic and Social Council today as that body began its 2015 integration session on the theme “Achieving sustainable development through employment creation and decent work for all”.
Delivering a keynote speech, Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete said Africa shared some of the same problems of countries around the world. Almost half of the world’s people were still working in vulnerable conditions without social protection. Of the 37 million jobs created in Africa last year, only 28 per cent were qualified as decent. “This is unacceptable. Work everywhere must be decent,” he said.
Such an abundance of the young in Africa meant employers could find a ready pool of active and hard-working people, he said. But, if those people were to remain unemployed, they could pose political, social and security challenges. Much would depend on the soundness of the economic policies Governments pursued and the investment climate they built. Further, the discourse on sustainable development needed to include social protection, particularly of people working in the informal sector. While protecting the rights of workers, formalization of the informal sector would also expand the tax base.
Many African countries had recorded sustained economic progress in recent years, making the continent one of the world’s fastest growing regions, he said. However, they needed to create more jobs. One way was through the development of self-employment schemes that helped the young acquire the skills and access the capital to start businesses. He said he would appreciate advice and support on that matter from the meeting.
Africa had demonstrated its commitment to economic reform and better management, but, amid all its other challenges, needed help to promote jobs, eradicate poverty and help people lead a decent life. “The pasture is brown on the African side and green on the European side today. Help us make it green on the African side, too,” he said.
Perry Gladstone Christie, Prime Minister of the Bahamas and Chair of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), said the aftermath of the global economic crisis had created a less than favourable environment for small island developing States, which were already confronting challenges from climate change. The key to CARICOM’s success was integrating young people into national economies, he said, stressing the need for a balanced approach. While policies were needed that allowed economic leaders to prosper, it was important to ensure that the unemployed did not through despair give up and surrender to behaviour inimical to development. The focus must be on developing youth’s skills by reviewing the content and focus of education and training schemes, promoting digital literacy and entrepreneurship, and ensuring gender inclusiveness.
With renewed commitment to a global partnership for development, it would be possible to create quality jobs as an integral part of promoting sustainable development in the region, he said, and added that the United Nations was uniquely placed in helping countries in that regard.
Stefan Löfven, Sweden’s Prime Minister, recalling the April 2013 collapse of the factory in Dhaka that killed 1,100 workers, noted that that tragedy was not unique. Indeed, 2 million people died at work every year. “Every day, we see people exposed to terrible risks in their work, we see trade union members persecuted and killed, we see children forced to work in the most cynical and inhumane manner, we see migrants exploited under horrific conditions” in the pursuit of profit, he said, noting that a world built on the exploitation of people was neither ethical nor profitable.
Decent work and respect for fundamental union rights could increase both productivity and promote inclusive growth, he said. If deaths and accidents in the workplace were reduced by just one quarter, resources corresponding to 1 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP) would be created. “Social justice is both ethically right and economically smart,” he said. It was time to make globalization work for everyone. The seeds of a solution were in the meeting of representatives of labour and capital to ensure fair conditions for employers and employees alike to benefit both.
Such a concept would encourage cooperation between social partners that could bring peace in the labour market, promote competition, enhance economic stability and shared prosperity, he said. Towards that end, States should ratify the core International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions, recognizing the right to organize, the right to negotiate and the right to strike. Employers must respect those rights and trade unions must also contribute to the overall development of the company or organization.
In his remarks, Jan Eliasson, Deputy Secretary-General, said that achieving sustainable development through job creation and decent working conditions for all was at the core of the universal agenda to create peaceful, equitable and inclusive societies. Unemployment and underemployment remained high, with decent jobs, good working conditions, access to social protection and freedom of association also remaining out of reach for too many. Many workers were trapped in informal and low-wage jobs, while migrant workers faced the risk of exploitation and discrimination, and women earned less than men and were more likely to hold insecure and dangerous jobs. Those in informal jobs frequently worked in conditions that might violate their basic rights. Special consideration must be given to ensure adequate protection for women and young people, as well as for indigenous peoples and people with disabilities.
“In one sentence, the world is caught in an employment crisis,” he said, and youth were bearing the brunt of that crisis. With as many as 73 million looking for work, young people were three times more likely than adults to be jobless. Youth were a priority for the Secretary-General, who had named Ahmad Alhendawi as Envoy for Youth. The High-Level Committee on Programmes of the United Nations Chief Executives Board, currently under ILO leadership, was developing a joint United Nations initiative on youth employment.
Earlier, opening the session, Vladimir Drobnjak, Vice-President of the Council, stressed that social protection schemes fell short of protecting young people, low-wage and low-skilled workers, older persons, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, migrant workers and workers in the informal economy. Full respect for international labour standards and the fundamental principles and rights at work under conditions of non-discrimination, equity, equality, security and dignity was yet to be achieved.
Sustained, inclusive and equitable economic growth should be one that enabled everyone, including the poor, to participate in and benefit from economic opportunities, he said. In addition, it should lead to job creation and income opportunities and be complemented by effective social policies. The balanced integration of the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development involved short-term trade-offs and longer-term benefits. The integrated session would explore what those trade-offs were and how those were being addressed at various levels.
Einar Gunnarsson, Acting President of the General Assembly, said that despite notable progress towards reducing poverty, 200 million people were unemployed worldwide and 900 million workers earn less than $2 a day. Women and youth were disproportionately affected while income inequality continued to worsen in many countries. There needed to be structural transformation towards boosting agricultural productivity and adding value, he said, adding that a fair rules-based trade regime was long overdue. There was encouraging growth in tourism, and given its multiplier effect and linkages and other sectors, priority should be accord to that sector.
As national situations varied, each Government must adopt the right mix of policies, he said. International coordination of policies was critical in technology transfer and capital development, equal pay and gender-sensitive employment. Youth employment must be addressed in the interest of boosting economic, as well as political and social stability. The world was on the cusp of a historic opportunity where everyone could contribute to and benefit from sustainable development.
Offering a perspective from labour, Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, said a world reeling from high debt and price deflation needed a new business model. Unemployment still remained above the pre-crisis level and austerity measures had added to hopelessness and despair, especially among the young. A living minimum wage was a human right, she said, and respecting that should be non-negotiable. “Decent work is at the heart of a genuinely dignified future,” she said.
Daniel Funes de Rioja, President of the International Organization of Employers, said his group strongly believed in the need for a social protection floor. Concrete and measurable targets were a requisite to meaningful change. It was vital to institute structural reforms that would increase labour mobility and to ensure greater coherence between education and training and market demands. Occupational health and safety was a long-time priority for employers, he said, adding that existing tools and instruments must be promoted while instilling a culture of safety within organizations and aligning management with other business operations.
In the ensuing panel discussion, participants discussed ways to boost sustainable global economic growth and the role and limits of monetary, fiscal and trade policies in creating decent jobs.
Two panel discussions were held in the afternoon, the first of which discussed the social and political consequences of widening income inequality and solutions such as wage policy, collective bargaining and social protection floors. The second panel discussion featured a variety of strategies being implemented at the local and sectoral levels to tackle sustainable development challenges with decent work solutions.
The Council will meet again at 10 a.m. Tuesday, 31 March, to continue its integration session.
Panel I
Before the morning panel discussion, titled “The ‘Big Think’ on Jobs and Growth”, a short video was shown, which pointed out that 201 million people were unemployed, which was 31 million more than had been before the economic crisis, and included some 74 million young people. The video also called, among other things, for rethinking monetary policy.
Moderated by Richard Quest, International Anchor and Report, CNN, the panel featured Marianne Thyssen, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs, Skills and Mobility; Guy Ryder, Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO); Min Zhu, Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF); and Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Laureate and Professor of Economics, Columbia University. The panel took the form of a conversation, initially among the panellists, and then opening up to include all delegates in the room.
In introductory remarks, Council Vice-President VLADIMIR DROBNJAK said that panel would provide an overview of the current global economy and discuss effective frameworks that supported inclusive and well-balanced growth with full employment. Asked by the moderator to comment on how bad things were post-recession, Mr. RYDER said: “We’re not growing quickly enough to stem the tide of growing unemployment.” The number one priority should be to create jobs; that was not happening because the economy had been growing more slowly since the recession. Mr. STIGLITZ said that was the result of weak global demand due to poor policies in Europe and weak policies in the United States. Mr. ZHU said that policies had to move to the supply side, while Ms. THYSSEN noted that the new European Commission had job creation at the heart of policy, but in a growth-friendly manner. She said labour markets must be changed to focus on people. The European Union’s new investment plan would focus investment in the real economy.
The discussion touched on the lack of aggregate demand and how to create it. Mr. ZHU said demand could be created through supply. He noted that $1.9 trillion had been spent on expansion and that the same increase on the demand would result in an extra $1.9 trillion in spending. Mr. STIGLITZ called for redistribution of wealth, such as that which occurred with lower oil prices and redistribution within countries through changes to tax policies, as well as for wealthy countries to borrow at the current negative interest rates to invest in assets. Such moves that would help the economy in both the long and short run. All agreed that tax policy was important. Some called for cross-border policies as Europe was doing with regard to enterprises that worked across borders. Mr. ZHU called for progressive policies, while Mr. STIGLITZ said environmental and carbon taxes could provide funds for investment.
Asked by Viet Nam’s representative about systemic global trade measures to create jobs in developing countries, Mr. STIGLITZ said that the Development Round should have addressed escalating tariffs and noted the harm done to them by agricultural subsidies in the West. Mr. RYDER, responding to a question from Germany’s representative on advice to developing countries, said they should develop in a more sustainable manner. He also noted that, while Africa had experienced excellent aggregate growth, it was not translating into job growth. Mr. STIGLITZ said that developing countries must be allowed to have their own development policies, including industrial policies. To South Africa’s question on how to address inequality, panellists suggested a wealth of measures, in addition to tax policies, among them unionization and a reworking of legislation.
Also participating in the discussion was the Prime Minister of Sweden and representatives of Japan, Sweden, Trinidad and Tobago, Norway and Argentina.
The General Secretaries of the UNI Global Union and the International Trade Union Confederation also spoke.
Panel II
The afternoon meeting began with a panel discussion on the topic “Mind the gap: how widening inequalities undermine development”. Moderated by Matthew Bishop, Globalization Editor of The Economist, the panel featured Alfonso Navarrete Prida, Minister for Labour and Social Welfare of Mexico; Hu Xiaoyi, Vice-Minister for Human Resources and Social Security of China; Stephanie Seguino, Professor, Department of Economics of the University of Vermont, United States; and Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation.
Mr. BISHOP opened the discussion by asking how policies around work should be addressing inequality in the sustainable development goals.
Mr. NAVARRETE said that work policies were the only way to reduce inequality. Mexico had recognized the scale of the problem and was implementing reforms to ensure that young people were educated to enter the world of globalization and that technology would reach the most remote areas, as well as introducing monetary reforms, among others. In addition, the energy base was moving to sustainable resources and labour policies would make recruitment more flexible while respecting the rights of workers.
Responding to a question on the minimum wage and moving people from the informal to the formal economy, he said that the goal should be to create a higher level of overall well-being, which happened when people moved from the informal to the formal economy. All public policies must result in the creation of jobs.
Mr. HU said that inequality undermined development. The primary solution was work. Relating China’s experience of the past three decades, he said the initial focus had been to increase productivity. Wealth had been created, but had also caused an imbalance in employment opportunities, education and income, among others, with greater opportunities in eastern and coastal areas than in the west. Much of the rural workforce had moved to urban areas in the East, which was unsustainable. A series of new initiatives, such as the “Great Development Plan” for the West, encouraged companies to move west, leading to the return of the population and greater development opportunities in those areas.
He agreed that full employment should be the policy goal of every country, noting that unemployment, especially youth unemployment led to social instability. But, the focus must be quality, as well as quantity. Noting the transformation from brick and mortar to online jobs, he said that, wherever the jobs were, they must provide relative stability, predictability of income and social protection. He stressed the role of Government in ensuring balanced development including through social protections, which, in China, had come after economic growth. Asked for advice to developing countries on which should come first or whether the two goals should be tackled together, he said that the judgement must be made in light of conditions on the ground.
Ms. BURROW said that many smaller countries, such as Portugal or Moldova, whose economies were based on small and medium-sized business, had been stymied in policies they’d wanted to implement by large foreign corporations, who threatened to pull out should those policies be adopted. The focus needed to be on the “bottom of the pyramid”, rather than on the wealthy. The economy should be structured to facilitate and serve dignified lives. A focus on the very rich was really a focus on a system where some amassed great wealth, while wages fell. “You must explode the myth that growth itself will grow jobs,” she said.
Noting that collective bargaining had fallen to 67 per cent in the private sector, she said that social protections, minimum wages and collective bargaining rights were needed. What was lacking was a focus on wages and distribution. Sixty per cent of global wealth was captured in the supply chain. The floor from which competition would no longer be unfair needed to be identified. If inequality were not reduced, people would be more and more disgruntled. Quality jobs and green jobs were needed. “Do you really want our sons and daughters to work in insecure, unsafe, impoverished environments, or do we want to recognize that workers must live in dignity and support their families?”, she asked. “If we can’t get together and have those discussions on a tripartite basis, the model is not sustainable.”
Ms. SEGUINO noted that labour was a produced commodity. Workers did not show up without a huge investment put into them, particularly by women. Inequality resulted in insufficient investment in children and led to lower productivity. Inequality also led to social conflict, and countries in conflict did not attract investment. Thus, the growth of wealth inequality also bred political inequality. It was becoming increasingly difficult to promote social protection, which she preferred to call “social infrastructure spending”. She also raised the problem of demand. If wages were declining, you were redistributing income from those who spent much of their income to those who spent a much smaller portion. When there was insufficient demand to stimulate growth, corporations invested in financial speculation, which did very little to promote well-being.
Full employment should be a primary goal of countries, she said. There were “massive amounts” of human resources that were unutilized or underutilized. Among many innovative policies that could help, she said that central banks could offer loan guarantees allowing private banks to lend to marginalized groups, which, in many instances, would also bring informal sector firms into the formal sector, providing greater social protections. Further, gender inequality could be alleviated through infrastructure spending with a range of policies available to Governments that was more extensive than what had previously been discussed. One way to address inequality of opportunity, which was part of the inequality of wealth and well-being, was to tax high-income groups in a way that created societal benefits. Jobs were important to giving meaning to lives. All policies needed to focus on employment and the quality of jobs.
Also speaking was the representative of the Grey Panthers.
Following the second panel discussion, the Council heard a report back from country-level consultations on “Achieving sustainable development through employment creation and decent work for all”. The reports were presented by Hanif Dhakiri, Minister for Manpower of Indonesia; and María Emma Mejía Vélez, Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations and Vice-President of the Economic and Social Council.
Panel III
The day’s third panel discussion was entitled, “Voices from the real economy”. Moderated by Michael Shank, Director of Media Strategy, Climate Nexus, and Senior Fellow, JustJobs Network, it featured Nomvuzo Shabalala, Deputy Mayor of Durban, South Africa; Sanjay Kumar, Director, Self-Employed Women’s Association, Bharat, India; Vicenta Trotman, Community leader and member, Administrative Board of Rural Water Supply, Ngäbe-Buglé indigenous territory of the Ño-Kribo region, Panama; and Paul Hazen, Executive Director, Overseas Cooperative Development Council, International Cooperative Alliance, United States.
In a first round of questions, Mr. SHANK asked the panellists to share real-world experiences in the field of employment from their communities and sectors, and asked how the United Nations focus on sustainable development would affect them.
In response, Ms. SHABALALA said that her city, Durban, faced a number of challenges related to employment. Nevertheless, it was striving to be one of the world’s most liveable cities by 2030. Creating sustainable livelihoods for its citizens, providing proper services and creating decent jobs were among the city’s priorities in that respect, she said, adding that current strategies to create sustainable jobs included tourism promotion.
Mr. KUMAR said that his trade union, the Self-Employed Women’s Association, was one of the largest around the world with almost 2 million members. About 50 per cent of India’s employment was in the informal sector, where risks were high. As an example of work being done in his community, he said that the Association had made legislative strides in protecting the livelihoods of millions of street vendors. The Association also worked with construction workers, attempting to provide them with benefits, and tried to provide domestic workers with employment security and other forms of social protection.
Ms. TROTMAN said that, in her community, there were 3,000 students whose parents were unemployed, and who frequently dropped out of school at an early age. Employment and decent work in harmony with sustainable employment were an issue of great concern. Indigenous communities were the most affected; therefore, she proposed the creation of policies which included marginalized communities in development plans and presented clear targets. The food production industry was one possible example.
Mr. HAZEN said that half the world’s population relied on a cooperative in their daily life. Cooperatives were well suited to implement the sustainable development goals, as they brought the formal and informal employment sectors together. The global cooperative movement sought to create decent, sustainable jobs and long-term employment. As an example, he pointed to subsistence farming, where cooperatives were a good way to bring farmers into the global marketplace.
In a second round of questions, Mr. SHANK asked the panellists what policies were needed from the public and private sectors in order to create decent work and achieve sustainable development.
Responding, Ms. SHABALALA said that her city was working to avoid fragmented development plans, and instead sought to integrate all of its policies. Some examples included a policy protecting workers in the informal economy, a job-creation strategy focused on declining industries, an “empowerment charter” aimed at radical economic transformation and enterprise development and a spatial development plan.
Mr. KUMAR said that policies should help to formalize informal jobs. Contrary to popular belief labour regulation did not lead to informality. To help formalize the informal economy, business registration procedures needed to be simplified and benefits and safety nets — such as paid sick leave — needed to be provided. Incentives should be created for formalization, as well as for socially responsible employment practices in general.
Ms. TROTMAN said that much support was needed from both the private and public sectors in order to build the capacities of the population and create more employment. Scholarships should be provided to low-income students, and child labour needed to be eradicated.
Mr. HAZEN said that cooperatives needed an enabling environment, fair laws and access to credit. Cooperatives could not be excluded from public policy. Nevertheless, Governments must not interfere with the operation of cooperatives or use them for political purposes, as had happened in the past.
In a final round of questions, Mr. SHANK raised the question of sustainable development goal eight on decent work, and asked how relevant that goal — and work-related targets across all the sustainable development goals — were to the experience of the panellists. How could those goals be achieved without threatening the achievement of other sustainable development goals?
Ms. SHABALALA said that achieving goal eight could be difficult in the short term, but could be achieved in the medium to long term. She reiterated that tourism was a major component of achieving that target. Durban was in the process of finalizing a strategy on cooperatives which would include the views of the public, and the South African Government had a national youth employment framework in place.
Mr. KUMAR said that it was important to recognize that slums were the site of considerable economic activity, and that many people across the world worked from home. Public spaces were needed by other workers. Radical thinking was needed in order to meet these needs. In that respect, he presented a number of amendments that could be included in sustainable development goal eight.
Ms. TROTMAN said that achieving goal eight would depend on the policies and strategies implemented throughout the process. People needed to be empowered. By way of an example, she pointed to a United Nations project for the governance of water and sanitation that had taken place in her community, as well as a radio communication project. Decent work policies, including at the global level, needed to focus on youth and women.
Mr. HAZEN said that the cooperative business model was synonymous with sustainable development. Reaching size and scale would be critical to achieve sustainable development goal targets related to employment. In that respect, the cooperative movement would be a good private-sector partner and would help Governments achieve the size and scale needed to achieve goal eight.
The representative of Argentina then took the floor to ask why the title of the panel was “Voices from the real economy”. The “virtual” economy was also very real, she said. She also asked what the private sector, the State and social movements should do to resolve the human rights violations of informal labour.
Ms. SHABALALA responded that the title of the panel encouraged panellists to share their “real” experiences with job creation and employment. She said that her city had built relationships with banks, enabling potential and existing small business owners to achieve sustainable financing. Long-term, sustainable jobs also needed to be created in order to segue out of the informal labour.
Mr. KUMAR responded that Governments only thought of taxation when they considered formalizing the informal economy. However, there were so many negative aspects of informal work that true formalization was necessary.
Mr. HAZEN said that, in some countries with the best models, cooperatives created their own financial systems.