New ILO report: Transforming jobs to end poverty
In May 2016, the International Labour Organization released the annual World Employment and Social Outlook entitled Transforming Jobs to End Poverty. This year, the report is fully focused on the central role played by productive decent employment in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and, in particular, Goal 1: "Ending poverty in all its forms everywhere."
The report starts by documenting trends in poverty around the world while paying close attention to the types of jobs and incomes the poor rely on and the process of structural transformation required to end poverty. It then examines how decent work policies can contribute to the eradication of poverty. In particular, it analyses the poverty reduction role of (i) labour standards and rights; (ii) measures to raise productivity in agriculture, where most of the poor work; and (iii) labour market and social policies.
The main finding of this analysis is that addressing decent work deficits is a necessary condition for ending poverty in all its forms in developed countries as well as in emerging and developing countries. Although the world has made significant progress in reducing poverty, progress has been uneven and is very fragile. While improvements have been significant in China and much of Latin America, the incidence of poverty remains stubbornly high in Africa and parts of Asia. For example, more than 40 per cent of the African population continue to live in extreme poverty.
An underlying feature of the chronic nature of poverty is the persistence of poor quality employment. Without productive jobs, enterprise development, social protection and rights, efforts to reduce poverty will be either incomplete or unsustainable. The report stresses, however, that to be effective in ending poverty, decent work policies need to be adapted to country circumstances.
In particular, six policy directions are considered to address this problem:
1) Low-productivity traps, which lie at the heart of poverty, need to be tackled. This can be done by promoting sustainable enterprises and facilitating transitions from the informal to the formal economy; by tackling job precariousness, and by investing in skills and in lagging sectors.
2) Rights at work should be strengthened: individuals need the rights and the choices to enable them to refuse low-quality forms of work which do not enable them to escape poverty.
3) Well-designed employment and social policies are crucial. Given the high incidence of poverty among children, it is also urgent to strengthen targeted schemes that combine education with income support.
4) Governments' capacity to implement poverty-reducing policies and standards should be reinforced and corruption needs to be tackled.
5) Public resources need to be boosted. A progressive tax base and fair tax treatment of large and small enterprises are important, and a broader distribution of wealth and income would make a significant difference in enabling progress to be made in poverty reduction.
6) A major international effort is needed to promote policies that boost decent work and sustainable enterprises and to achieve the full realization of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Overall, the report shows that productive employment and decent work are central to achieving many of the Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 1 of "ending poverty in all its forms everywhere."
> The full report is available here
> For the report's charts and key messages, click here