1
SDG AGENDA AND A RIGHT TO
PRODUCTIVE EMPLOYMENT AND
DECENT WORK?
INITIAL REFLECTIONS
Global Dialogue
on Unacceptable Forms of Work
(UFW).
Special Session
Regulating for Decent Work
Conference
ILO, Geneva, 8 July 2015
Gabriele Köhler
UNRISD Senior Research Associate
German UN Association
Woman in Europe for a Common Future
www.gabrielekoehler.net
Outline
1.
2.
3.
4.
Global inequities

Income inequality, indecent work, planetary destruction

Decent work and social protection as one type of policy responses

Policies for ecololgical balance tbd
“Anchors”:

ILO Conventions and recommendations (Judy Fudge and Deirdre McCann)

Human rights conventions and other approaches

the SDGs as an emerging normative framework

and the G77!
From MDGs to SDGs and “post 2015”

The SDGs, decent work and social protection

Decent work down, social protection up
Abolishing unacceptable forms of work in the “beyond 2015” agenda

And how to get there?
2
3
1) Global inequities
 Income
& wealth inequality
 Working poor and vulnerable
employment and its gendered face
 The planetary boundary
Constant US$, 2000
value
Intra and inter-Country Inequality, 2007
Source: Ortiz and Cummins (2011) UNICEF
Source: Ortiz and Cummins. 2011. Global Inequality. UNICEF
5
Using more than one planet
6
7
Policy response?



Decent work

to abolish unacceptable forms of work

To institutionalise work as a source of income, social integration,
and dignity - for people and the earth
Social protection

Minimum income guarantee as the simplest form of social protection

Right to comprehensive social security

Right to all (basic) social services
Sustainability in environmental sense
2) Anchors for decent work and social
protection
8

ILO Conventions and Recommendations (Judy Fudge and Deirdre McCann)

Human rights soft law as an anchor to create policies to abolish
UFW

The SDGs

Recent G77 Declaration
9
ILO-Conventions/Declarations











ILO Philadelphia Declaration 1944
ILO Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization 2008
Convention on social security C102 (1952)
ILO Recommendation on Social Protection for all R202 (2012)
Freedom of association C87 (1948)
Right to organise C98 (1949)
Minimum age C138 (1973)
Worst forms of child labour C 182 (1999)
Convention on homework C177 (1996)
Convention on domestic workers C 189 (2011)
Recommendation on formalising the informal economy (2015)
Key human rights legislation
and declarations (“soft law”)
10

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 1948

International Covenant on economic, social and cultural rights (IESCR) 1964

International Covenant on civil and political rights 1964

Convention on the Eradication of all Forms of Racial Discrimination 1969

CEDAW 1979

UN Declaration on the Right to Development 1986

UN International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and their Families 1990

CRC 1990

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 1996

United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples 2007

Primary health care for all (World Health Assembly 2008)


United Nations General Assembly Resolution on the right to water and sanitation 2010
Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National
Food Security, FAO Committee on World Food Security 2012
General Assembly resolution 68/177 on the right to food 2013

Rights to
decent work and social protection
11
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948):

Article 22: Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security.

Article 23.(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and
favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.(2) Everyone,
without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.(3) Everyone who works
has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an
existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of
social protection.(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection
of his interests.
Rights to
decent work and social protection
CEDAW Article 11
(a) The right to work as an inalienable right of all human beings;
(b) The right to the same employment opportunities, including the application of the same
criteria for selection in matters of employment;
(c) The right to free choice of profession and employment, the right to promotion, job security
and all benefits and conditions of service and the right to receive vocational training and
retraining, including apprenticeships, advanced vocational training and recurrent training;
(d) The right to equal remuneration, including benefits, and to equal treatment in respect of work
of equal value, as well as equality of treatment in the evaluation of the quality of work;
(e) The right to social security, particularly in cases of retirement, unemployment, sickness,
invalidity and old age and other incapacity to work, as well as the right to paid leave;
(f) The right to protection of health and to safety in working conditions, including the
safeguarding of the function of reproduction.
Rights to
decent work and social protection
13
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (1989):
Article 26:

For every child the right to benefit from social security, including social insurance, and
necessary measures to achieve the full realization of this right in accordance with
national law.
Article 32:

right of the child to be protected from economic exploitation and from performing any
work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child's education, or to be
harmful to the child's health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development.

Provide for a minimum age or minimum ages for admission to employment;

Provide for appropriate regulation of the hours and conditions of employment;
Right to
decent work and social protection
14
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) (2006):
Article 27 -1

right of persons with disabilities to work, on an equal basis with others; this includes the right to the opportunity to
gain a living by work freely chosen or accepted in a labour market and work environment that is open, inclusive and
accessible to persons with disabilities. States Parties shall safeguard and promote the realization of the right to work,
including for those who acquire a disability during the course of employment, by taking appropriate steps, including
through legislation, to, inter alia:

Prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability with regard to all matters concerning all forms of employment,
including conditions of recruitment, hiring and employment, continuance of employment, career advancement
and safe and healthy working conditions;

Protect the rights of persons with disabilities, on an equal basis with others, to just and favourable conditions of work,
including equal opportunities and equal remuneration for work of equal value, safe and healthy working conditions,
including protection from harassment, and the redress of grievances;

Ensure that persons with disabilities are able to exercise their labour and trade union rights on an equal basis with
others;
Article 28(b)

To ensure access by persons with disabilities, in particular women and girls with disabilities and older persons with
disabilities, to social protection programmes and poverty reduction programmes.
Special Rapporteurs under the OHCHR
Independent,
15
detailed surveys and research
Outspoken positions
Advocacy
Special Rapporteurs under the OHCHR
16
Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights

“…Extreme poverty can be a cause of specific human rights violations, for instance because the poor
are forced to work in environments that are unsafe and unhealthy. At the same time, poverty can also
be a consequence of human rights violations, for instance when children are unable to escape poverty
because the State does not provide adequate access to education.

…The elimination of extreme poverty should thus not be seen as a question of charity, but as a pressing
human rights issue. Its persistence in countries that can afford to eliminate it amounts to a clear violation
of fundamental human rights.”
Special Rapporteur on Contemporary forms of slavery

“…includes but is not limited to issues such as: debt bondage, serfdom, forced labour, child slavery,
sexual slavery, forced or early marriages and the sale of wives. As a legally permitted labour system,
traditional slavery has been abolished everywhere, but it has not been completely stamped out.“
Special Rapporteurs under the OHCHR
17
Special Rapporteur on the Sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography
“…sexual exploitation of children online; sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism,
including in the context of major sports events; child prostitution, child pornography and
child trafficking for sale and sexual exploitation; and sale of children for the purpose of
illegal adoption, transfer of organs, child marriage and forced labour…”
Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable
standard of physical and mental health
“…The right to health is a broad concept that can be broken down into more specific
entitlements such as the rights to: maternal, child and reproductive health; healthy
workplace and natural environments; the prevention, treatment and control of diseases,
including access to essential medicines; access to safe and potable water…“
18
Special Rapporteurs under the OHCHR
Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants
Article 25
Migrant workers shall enjoy treatment not less favourable than that which applies to nationals of the State
of employment in respect of remuneration
Article 27
With respect to social security, migrant workers and members of their families shall enjoy in the State of
employment the same treatment granted to nationals in so far as they fulfil the requirements provided
for by the applicable legislation of that State and the applicable bilateral and multilateral treaties..
Article 28
Migrant workers and members of their families shall have the right to receive any medical care that is
urgently required for the preservation of their life or the avoidance of irreparable harm to their health
on the basis of equality of treatment with nationals of the State concerned.
OHCHR Working Group on the issue of human rights
and transnational corporations and other business
enterprises
19

Aims to promote and implement Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights

These Guiding Principles are grounded in recognition of: (a) States’ existing
obligations to respect, protect and fulfil human rights and fundamental
freedoms; (b) The role of business enterprises as specialized organs of society
performing specialized functions, required to comply with all applicable laws and
to respect human rights; (c) The need for rights and obligations to be matched to
appropriate and effective remedies when breached.

These Guiding Principles apply to all States and to all business enterprises, both
transnational and others, regardless of their size, sector, location, ownership and
structure
3. From MDGs to SDGs and post 20
2015
•full employment
•social protection
•participation
Rio+20 The Future We Want
24
We reaffirm the importance of supporting developing
countries in their efforts to eradicate poverty and
promote empowerment of the poor and people in
vulnerable situations, enhancing productive
capacity, developing sustainable agriculture and
promoting full and productive employment and
decent work for all, complemented by effective
social policies, including social protection floors
Outcome document 2012
25
Main recommendations from the post-2015 global consultation

a stand-alone goal on employment in the post-2015 agenda

from the quantity to the quality of growth

combining economic growth with the creation of decent jobs for the poor and most vulnerable

Addressing the structural causes of unemployment and promoting economic diversification

governments must be responsible for driving structural transformation through coherent policies.

Governments to develop economic sectors with high capacity to generate employment

Industrial policy to be brought back into the development agenda

Expanding social protection systems

Strengthening social dialogue and the voice of workers

Complementing ODA with reforms in the international trade, finance and technology transfer systems
2012
Proposed Sustainable Development Goals
(version 30 June 2014)
1.
End poverty everywhere
2.
End hunger, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
3.
Attain healthy lives for all
4.
Provide quality education and life-long learning opportunities for all
5.
Attain gender equality, empower women and girls everywhere
6.
Ensure availability and sustainable use of water and sanitation for all
7.
Ensure sustainable energy for all
8.
Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full
and productive employment and decent work for all
26
Proposed Sustainable Development
Goals (version 30 June 2014)
27
9) Promote sustainable infrastructure and industrialization and foster innovation
10) Reduce inequality within and between countries
11) Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe and sustainable
12) Promote sustainable consumption and production patterns
13) Tackle climate change and its impacts
14) Conserve and promote sustainable use of oceans, seas and marine resources
15) Protect and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, halt desertification, land
degradation and biodiversity loss
17) Achieve peaceful and inclusive societies, access to justice for all, and effective and
capable institutions
17) Strengthen the means of implementation and the global partnership for sustainable
development
Goal 1. End poverty in all its forms
everywhere
28

1.1 By 2030, eradicate extreme poverty for all people everywhere,
currently measured as people living on less than $1.25 a day

1.2 By 2030, reduce at least by half the proportion of men, women and
children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to
national definitions

1.3 Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and
measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial
coverage of the poor and the vulnerable
Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and
empower all women and girls
29
 5.4
Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the
provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the
promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as
nationally appropriate
 5.5
Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for
leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life
Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable
economic growth, full and productive employment
and decent work for all (30 June 2014)
30
8.3 Promote development-oriented policies that support productive
activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation,
and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and
medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services
8.4 By 2030 achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all
women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities,
and equal pay for work of equal value
8.5 By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all
women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities,
and equal pay for work of equal value
8.6 By 2020, substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment,
education or training
Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable
economic growth, full and productive employment
and decent work for all (30 June 2014)
31
8.7
Take immediate and effective measures to secure the prohibition and elimination of the
worst forms of child labour, eradicate forced labour and, by 2025, end child labour in all its
forms, including the recruitment and use of child soldiers
8.8
Protect labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers,
including migrant workers, in particular women migrants, and those in precarious employment
8.9
By 2030, devise and implement policies to promote sustainable tourism that creates jobs
and promotes local culture and products
Goal 9. Build resilient infrastructure,
promote inclusive and sustainable
industrialization and foster innovation

9.3 Increase the access of small-scale industrial and
other enterprises, in particular in developing countries,
to financial services, including affordable credit, and
their integration into value chains and markets
32
Goal 10 Reduce inequality within and
among countries
33

10.2 By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political
inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion
or economic or other status

10.3 Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including by
eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices and promoting
appropriate legislation, policies and action in this regard

10.4 Adopt policies, especially fiscal, wage and social protection policies, and
progressively achieve greater equality
Goal 10 Reduce inequality within and
among countries
34

10.7 Facilitate orderly, safe, regular and responsible migration and mobility of people,
including through the implementation of planned and well-managed migration policies

10.C By 2030, reduce to less than 3 per cent the transaction costs of migrant remittances
and eliminate remittance corridors with costs higher than 5 per cent
G-77 2014:
Santa Cruz- Outcome Document:
New World Order und buen vivir
35
G77 & China: Declaration of Santa Cruz
36
“23. We recognize the progress achieved in sustainable
development at the regional, national, sub-national and local
levels and we reaffirm the importance of supporting developing
countries in their efforts to eradicate poverty by empowering the
poor and people in vulnerable situations, promoting developing
sustainable agriculture as well as full and productive
employment and decent work for all, complemented by
effective social policies, including social protection floors.”
2014
June
4)
Decent work down, social protection up
 Social
37
protection and health insurance are
protective, re-distributive objectives, not very costly
and en vogue
 The right to decent work challenges the logic of the
capitalist system
 full employment and decent work would require
genuine political, economic, social and ecological
transformation
38
Social protection up
Social protection and health insurance are
protective
2. Not very costly
3. Currently en vogue
4. Urgent and doable
5. Need to be linked to re-distributive objectives
6. Do not un-seat capitalist order
1.
39
Establishing the right to decent work
1.
productive assets and wealth would need to be restructured
2.
production chains would need to be equitable and sustainable
3.
existing gender- and class-biased distribution of remunerative work would need to shift
4.
existing gender- and class-biased distribution of care work would need to radically change
5.
time budgets would need to be renegotiated
6.
consumption and production patterns would need to be radically altered
7.
the share of remuneration in GDP would need to be increased
8.
The share of value added in lower income countries would need to be increased
9.
education and skills training would need to be re-organised
10. the
informal economy would need to be formalised
IT CALLS INTO QUESTION THE SYSTEM OF CAPITALISM
4) Abolishing unacceptable forms of work in
“beyond 2015” agenda
But
how to get there???
40
Abolishing unacceptable forms of work in 41
“beyond 2015” agenda

Keep social protection movement strong and implement social
protection floors –

Rally around decent work

Use ILO Recommendation on formalising the informal sector

Build in the environmentalist movement

Use all pertaining ILO Conventions & Recommendations, as well as
the human rights instruments, and the SDGs, and progressive
statements from governments
Abolishing unacceptable forms of work in 42
“beyond 2015” agenda
powerful
progressive civil society, including
trade union and informal workers
organisations, political activists, and
academics
progressive governments
visionary and empowered UN
Some sources:
43

Alberto D. Cimadamore, Bob Deacon, Sigmund Grønmo, Gabriele Koehler, Gro Therese Lie, Karen O’Brien, Isabel Ortiz, Thomas Pogge, Asuncion St. Clair,
2013. Poverty & the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): a critical assessment and a look forward. CROP Poverty Brief.
http://www.crop.org/ViewFile.aspx?id=423

Alberto Cimadamore, Gabriele Koehler and Thomas Pogge, 2015. “Poverty and the Millennium Development Goals: A critical look forward” London: ZED
Books. To be published December 2015

Judy Fudge, Deirdre McCann 2014 Unacceptable Forms of Work (UFW): A Global and Comparative Study. Study prepared for the International Labour Office,
October 2014, revised 11 December 2014

Naomi Klein. This changes everything. Capitalism vs. the Climate. London, Penguin.

ILO 2014. World Social Protection Report. www.ilo.org

Richard Jolly, Tom Weiss, The “Third” United Nations . UN Intellectual History Project. Briefing note 3. 2009. http://www.unhistory.org/briefing/3ThirdUN.pdf.

Gabriele Koehler 2015. Seven Decades of Development and Now What? In JID 2015…

Isabel Ortiz and Matthew Cummins. 2011. Beyond the Bottom Billion, Global Inequality. UNICEF. w.unicef.org/socialpolicy/index_58230.html

Isabel Ortiz, Sara Burke Mohamed Berrada Hernán Cortés . 2013. World Protests 2006-13. New York: IPD and FES.
http://policydialogue.org/files/publications/World_Protests_2006-2013-Complete_and_Final_4282014.pdf

UN Development Group 2012. GROWTH AND EMPLOYMENT IN THE POST-2015 AGENDA MESSAGES FROM A GLOBAL CONSULTATION
http://www.worldwewant2015.org/node/392756

UNRISD 2010. COMBATING POVERTY AND INEQUALITY. Structural Change, Social Policy and Politics. Geneva. ISBN 978-92-9085-076-2
http://www.unrisd.org/unrisd/website/document.nsf/(httpAuxPages)/92B1D5057F43149CC125779600434441?OpenDocument&panel=additional