Labour standards and socially inclusive globalisation

The issue of international labour standards has come to the forefront again following the global crisis with the concern as to how to make globalization fairer. The research under this theme explores two sets of issues.

The first aspect of the research

1. reviews national implementation of International Labour Standards (ILS),
2. identifies how ILS benefit workers in informal economies,
3. examines anti-crisis measures that have linked financial aid and assistance with labour standards, and
4. explores the potential impacts of ILS through trade agreements.

The second aspect of the research relates to

1. the challenges and opportunities in the areas of public and private governance, including ways of establishing and strengthening social dialogue actors and institutions, in order to address effectively crises and transitions generated in the context of globalization; and
2. the relevance of social dialogue and labour law in paving the way towards appropriate socio-economic regulation in times of crisis and beyond. A particular focus is on the impacts of policy reforms on European industrial relations following the public debt crisis and austerity plans, and on the impact of the “Arab Spring” on social dialogue actors and institutions in the Middle East and North African region, as well as the relevance of sound industrial and labour-management relations in addressing these two crises.

EU-ILO-ITC Research workshop on The governance of policy reforms in Europe: Social dialogue actors and institutions in times of economic downturn and austerity, 28 & 29 May 2012, Geneva, ILO, Room XI

The research workshop, organised with the support of the European Union, debated the impact of the crisis and austerity on labour market actors and institutions in Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Italy, and Spain, where policy reforms and austerity plans have triggered serious impacts on social dialogue and labour law.