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Workers Rights@ (80)

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Is forced labour an isolated problem in developing countries?

'The 2005 report of the International Labour Office, "A Global Alliance against Forced Labour", estimates that a minimum of 12.3 million people in the world work as forced labour. This Development Viewpoint by Jens Lerche contends, however, that forced labour is a much larger and more complex problem.'

http://www.soas.ac.uk/cdpr/publications/dv/45142.pdf

(Added: Tue Jul 15 2008   Hits: 12)

The Right to Stay Home

This article by David Bacon explores migrant rights in the indigenous communities of Oaxaca mexico. In particular it focuses on the tension between economic benefit of locals leaving Oaxaca to find work and the social and economic cost this has in Oaxaca.

http://www.truthout.org/article/the-right-stay-home

(Added: Tue Jul 15 2008   Hits: 5)

Problematic Pragmatism The Ruggie Report 2008: Background, Analysis and Perspectives

This analysis of John Ruggie's "Protect, Respect and Remedy: a Framework for Business and Human Rights" finds that while Ruggie's report importantly 'identifies grave deficits in the current human rights regime that represent an obstacle to protection to individuals and communities against corporate-related human rights violations' it does not respond to the global governance gaps it notes with global governance solutions.'

http://www.globalpolicy.org/reform/business/2008/0601pragmatism.pdf

(Added: Thu Jun 26 2008   Hits: 32)

Global employment trends for women [pdf]

This report indicates more women are working than ever before. But women are more likely than men to get low-paid and vulnerable jobs, with no social protection and basic rights. (International Labour Organisation, March 2008)

http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---dcomm/documents/publication/wcms_091225.pdf

(Added: Tue Apr 29 2008   Hits: 35)

China: Beijing's migrant construction workers abused

Migrant construction workers building the "new Beijing" are routinely exploited by being denied proper wages, under dangerous conditions with neither accident insurance nor access to medical and other social services, Human Rights Watch said in a report entitled "One Year of My Blood,". (HRW, 13/3/08)

http://hrw.org/reports/2008/china0308/

(Added: Thu Mar 13 2008   Hits: 81)

War on Want: Sweatshops & Plantations Programme

Across the developing world, hundreds of free trade zones have been created. Known as export processing zones (EPZs), they are industrial areas where, typically, factory owners pay no tax, the minimum wage is suspended and safety is neglected. Twelve-hour shifts are the norm and trade unions are often illegal. The organisation, War on Want, fights poverty in developing countries in partnership and solidarity with people affected by globalisation.

http://www.waronwant.org/?lid=107

(Added: Mon Mar 19 2007   Hits: 144)

Bolivian Community in Buenos Aires Divided Over Sweatshops

The Buenos Aires city government's new offensive against slave labour has resulted in the closure of 30 clandestine textile sweatshops in the Argentine capital. But it has also caused divisions in the Bolivian immigrant community: some denounce the exploitative labour conditions, while others desperately want to keep their jobs, however precarious. (6 April 2006)

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=32800

(Added: Mon May 01 2006   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 166)

Economic Report on Africa 2005: Meeting the challenges of unemployment and poverty in Africa

In addition to its traditional role of reviewing Africa's economic performance over the preceding year, and projecting medium-term prospects for the continent, this year's Economic Report on Africa (ERA 2005), the sixth in an annual series, provides a detailed analysis of the challenges of unemployment and poverty reduction, key issues at the heart of the debate on Africa's development.

http://www.uneca.org/era2005/

(Added: Tue Dec 20 2005   Hits: 245)

Labour and Social Trends in Asia and the Pacific 2005 [PDF]

International Labour Organisation, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, September 2005. Labour and Social Trends in Asia and the Pacific is the first issue of a new report to be published every second year. The report has two main aims, the first of which is to present major trends in employment and social conditions in the world's most populous and dynamic region, while also drawing attention to key policy challenges posed by the identified trends. The second aim of the report is to contribute to the development of internationally comparable, gender-sensitive indicators to measure progress in decent work. Decent work is a goal, meaning not just whether women and men have any job, but productive employment that provides: an adequate income to keep them and their families out of poverty, security in times of adversity, good working conditions and a voice in decisions that affect their lives and livelihoods. To identify decent work gaps, and measure progress made in the different dimensions of decent work - many of which are of a fundamentally qualitative nature - it is crucial to have relevant and up-to-date information.

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/region/asro/bangkok/download/14tharm/rep_trends.pdf

(Added: Wed Sep 14 2005   Hits: 308)

Global Employment Trends 2004 (PDF)

ILO. Since the first issue of this report in January 2003, a slow economic upturn has once again resulted in a deteriorating global employment situation. For the second time, this report provides a valuable analysis of current labour market trends around the world. It incorporates the most recent information available, shedding light on possible factors contributing to the downturn affecting many workers today. The report traces the various factors contributing to the global employment decline - such as the increase in employment in the informal economy, the decrease in employment in information and communication technology, as well as extensive job losses in travel and tourism and in the export and labour-intensive manufacturing sectors. Countries in fragile financial situations and those experiencing armed conflict and violence have also seen rising unemployment and poverty. Clearly, the global employment challenges are many and some are daunting. The information provided here offers a concise picture of the current situation and of where economic growth and decent work opportunities are most needed around the world.

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/strat/global.htm

(Added: Mon Jan 26 2004   Hits: 179)

Globalisation and Employment in Bangladesh and Kenya (PDF)

By Kunal Sen, School of Development Studies and Overseas Development Group, University of East Anglia, U.K. (prepared as part of the DFID-funded project, 'Globalisation, Production and Poverty'). In contrast to the growing empirical literature that examines the labour market effects of globalisation in middle income developing countries, there are few studies that do so for the low income countries of South Asia and Sub-Saharran Africa. In this paper, we study the effects of globalisation on manufacturing employment in Bangladesh and Kenya, two countries that have witnessed rapid integration of their economies with the rest of the world in the past two decades. To assess the impact of increased open-ness on employment, we use the factor content, the growth accounting and regression-based approaches. (PDF-210KB)

http://www.gapresearch.org/production/Globkunalbgdken.pdf

(Added: Thu Oct 16 2003   Modified: Wed Dec 14 2005   Hits: 461)

Unemployment Protection in the Philippines (PDF)

By Nepomuceno A. Malaluan. Action for Economic Reforms, December 2001. Unemployment protection, which we define here as the mechanisms intended to protect private sector labor from loss of income resulting from loss of employment, should receive greater attention from policymakers in the face of the unfolding vulnerabilities of globalization. Even as greater integration of the Philippines to the global economy has presented new opportunities for Philippine labor, recent events have also demonstrated its downside. (PDF-87KB )

http://www.aer.ph/images/stories/projects/pssp/unemploy.pdf

(Added: Thu Oct 16 2003   Modified: Thu Jan 18 2007   Hits: 331)

The Right to Work

July 2003 By Ana Elena Obando, WHRnet. This theme focuses on the discrimination women face in their places of work. It discusses international mechanisms and instruments and provides statistics related to the issue.

http://www.whrnet.org/docs/issue-righttowork.html

(Added: Fri Jul 25 2003   Modified: Thu Jun 02 2005   Hits: 189)

Global Employment Trends (PDF)

International Labour Organisation, January 2003. Global Employment Trends forms part of a series of World Employment Reports, which began in 1995 and has subsequently been published every two years. However, because interest was shown in a regular analysis of current labour narket trends by the ILO's Governing Body, national policy makers, international institutions and the general public, Global Employment Trends is now being published as a seperate report in those years when the World Employment Report does not appear. The Report presents labour market trends and underlines the main employment challenges at the global level and in each of the 8 regions of the world. The report does not aim at presenting policy recommendations to overcome these challenges. Every attempt to incorporate data on the year 2002, but such information but such information may need to be revised later on. Stress has been laid on the growth of employment and unemployment, youth employment and the employment of women. Such developments are presented in the light of changes in output growth and in labour market policy.

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/employment/strat/download/trends.pdf

(Added: Thu May 29 2003   Hits: 214)

World Employment Report 2001

The World Employment Report 2001 examines the impact of the new information and communication technologies on life at work at a time when the global employment situation still remains of considerable concern. While there have been some significant positive developments, especially in the United States and some industrialized countries, in most parts of the world the growth of new employment opportunities still remains insufficient to productively employ those who have lost jobs due to restructuring and the new entrants into the labour force.

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/support/publ/wer/index2.htm

(Added: Fri Jan 26 2001   Hits: 225)