GENEVA (ILO News) - Employer, worker and government representatives at the Governing Body of the International Labour Organization (ILO) today welcomed the report of the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization as a "balanced" and "coherent" analysis of the social impact of globalization.
Ministers of labour, representatives of worker and employer organizations and international agencies expressed widespread appreciation for the Commission's work, variously describing the report as "ground breaking" and "a landmark" in the debate on globalization.
"The developing countries have long-advocated a realistic rather than an idealistic approach to globalization and we view this report as a step in that direction," said the delegate from Pakistan.
A Fair Globalization: Creating Opportunities for All was issued in February by the World Commission and reflected two years of wide-ranging debate over the social aspects of globalization. The report called for an "urgent rethink" of current policies and institutions of the governance of globalization. The World Commission ( Note 1) was co-chaired by President Tarja Halonen of Finland and President Benjamin William Mkapa of Tanzania.
President Mkapa presented the report to the ILO's Working Party on the Social Dimension of Globalization, the first time an African Head of State has addressed the ILO's Governing Body. In his comments, he said, "the potential of globalization for good or bad is immense. It is a force with many positive aspects that can be harnessed for humanity's collective well being, but some of its elements have to be tamed for the sake of our common civility and existence…"
ILO Director-General Juan Somavia emphasized that the World Commission reflected the wide diversity of opinion on globalization but their report had identified a common approach and agreement on realistic proposals for action. "We deliberately brought together a non-like-minded group of eminent people and their report shows that dialogue can be a creative force for urgently needed change" Mr. Somavia said.
During the two-day discussion, delegates and participants from international organizations highlighted many aspects of the report as providing important contributions to thinking and policy development in the ILO and elsewhere, as well as specific proposals to ensure the benefits of globalization are to be more fairly distributed. The report's recommendation that decent work be a global goal was endorsed by all speakers.
The Employers' spokesperson highlighted that the report recognizes that the benefits of globalization depend on respect for universally shared values and principles in the context of market economies and democracy. Similarly, the Workers' spokesperson noted that during the debate practically all speakers had endorsed the Commission's strong emphasis on the importance of Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work to the building of a fair globalization.
Canadian Minister of Labour Ms. Claudette Bradshaw said, "We accept the simple economic principle that those who produce the products and services in the economy should also be able to consume them". Several delegates quoted a sentence in the report, which came from a consultation in the Philippines, that, "There is no point to a globalization that reduces the price of a child's shoes, but costs the father his job".
The Korean delegate said: "As a country directly hit and suffering from the financial crisis in the late 1990s, Korea concurs with the Commission on its observations on the need for social protection, creation of decent work and open social dialogue, among others".
Delegates also expressed widespread support for the report's emphasis on better, more democratic and more accountable governance at both national and global levels. Several delegates argued that action at national and international levels had to proceed in tandem. The focus on meeting people's needs and aspirations at the local level was also highlighted.
Gerd Andres, Parliamentary Secretary of State in the German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Labour, supported "the calls of the World Commission for decent work for all. Workers with decent work can leave poverty behind them, feed their family, provide education and training for their children, improve their position in society and become fully aware of their cultural and social rights and exercise their rights to political participation. The further we move down this path, the less fear there will be of the economic repercussions of globalization."
As the French delegate said, "Globalization cannot be cut up into slices". Therefore, the reports' call for greater policy coherence in the multilateral system was widely welcomed. Among its suggestions was a "Policy Coherence Initiative" among international organizations to deal with the key issues of growth, investment and employment. In this context, the representative of the World Bank said the report "will serve us all well in the international community".
The South African delegate commended the Commission for reiterating the importance of multilateralism and said "multilateralism and the role of the United Nations, of which the ILO is an essential part, are more important for those of us who come from countries where the majority of our people face the daily challenges of poverty and deprivation". The US delegate referred to a special role for the ILO in the process of dialogue on the social dimension of globalization "to put a human face on what is often regarded as the impersonal process of globalization".
The representative of the European Commission welcomed the report's emphasis on reform of global governance. She said "given the current imbalance in the international system, which focuses more on economic than on social issues and in which trade and economic organizations have more power, there is a need to strengthen the social dimension and to improve coordination between organizations and all stakeholders."
Several other issues raised in the report received favourable comments, including the emphasis on social dialogue and the building of consensus which had been the hallmark of the Commission's own work. The Brazilian minister of Labour, Ricardo Berzoini commented, that his government "confers considerable value on the exercise undertaken by the ILO. There is no stronger tool for promoting changes than dialogue. "
Many delegates supported the call for fair rules for trade and finance, as well as reform of the global financial architecture. Many speakers highlighted the serious negative impact of industrial countries' agricultural subsidies on developing countries and the need for greater market access.
The need to increase development assistance also received widespread support. Many speakers underscored the significance of debt relief and increased ODA to overcome inequality both within and between countries and to eradicate poverty.
The need to address the impact of increasing migration for work on the migrants themselves and origin and host countries through multilateral dialogue and other initiatives was highlighted. Many delegates looked forward to the upcoming discussions in the International Labour Conference on migration.
Delegates said they looked forward to proposals Mr. Somavia is to present to the International Labour Conference in June on ILO follow-up action and to the further consultations with the ILO's tripartite constituents.
Note 1 - A Fair Globalization: Creating Opportunities for All, World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization, International Labour Office, Geneva 2004, ISBN 92-2-115426-2.