Japan, Global
US unions relieved after court deadlock
Public sector trade unions in the US have welcomed the outcome of a Supreme Court case that leaves intact their right to charge non-members who choose not to join but who benefit from the unions' collective bargaining work. This right had been called into question by a member of the teachers' union supported by a group of rich individuals and trusts. The case was referred to the Supreme Court whose deliberations ended in deadlock. [Read more at > PSI->http://www.world-psi.org/en/us-supreme-court-decision-gives-reprieve-public-sector-unions] [Read more at > AFSCME->http://www.afscme.org/news
Unions argue for increased wage share
(August 2016) The International Trade Union Confederation and trade unions at the G20 summit of leading industrial nations have called for world leaders to take urgent steps to boost the global economy through co-ordinated action to increase wages and their share in national income. The ITUC says that rebuilding strong labour market institutions to create quality jobs and reduce income inequality must be a priority. Read more at ITUC (EN/FR/ES).
Japanese and European public service unions condemn secrecy in trade negotiations and the lack of a progressive agenda addressing people’s concerns
Today Public services unions from Europe and Japan have sent an open letter to Cecilia Malstrom and Fumio Kishida demanding greater transparency in the negotiations to reach a trade agreement between Japan and the EU (JEFTA).
International union campaign against gender-based violence
International union organisations are promoting a major campaign against gender-based violence, a key aim of which is to get the International Labour Organisation to adopt a new convention. Launched on 14 February, the 23 days of action are building critical support for the adoption of a convention, accompanied by a Recommendation, on “Violence and Harassment against Women and Men in the World of Work”, with a strong focus on the gender dimension of violence. The campaign is also mobilising and strengthening trade union action in eradicating gender-based violence from the world of work.
Call for global action on investment in care and decent work
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has produced a new report arguing for a doubling of investment in the care sector to prevent a global care crisis. It says that investment on this scale could create 269 million new jobs by 2030 and provide a major boost to women's employment while addressing massive gender inequality in unpaid care. The ILO estimates that over 600 million women want paid employment but are prevented from entering the labour market because of their caring responsibilities. The report underlines the need for a "high road" to increase care provision which means
Global analysis highlights low wage growth and gender pay gap
The International Labour Organisation's (ILO) Global Wage Report 2018-19 finds that wage developments in high-income countries declined from 0.9% to 0.4% from 2016 to 2017. This trend is puzzling for the ILO in the context of a recovery in economic growth and falling unemployment and it argues that wage stagnation is an obstacle to further economic growth and rising living standards. The report also looks at the gender pay gap and using a new way of analysing the difference in men and women's pay finds that the gap has been underestimated in many countries.
Call for action on a human-centred recovery
The International Labour Conference has agreed a Global Call to Action outlining measures to create a human-centred recovery from the pandemic. Delegates from 181 countries representing governments, workers and employers adopted the call unanimously, prioritizing the creation of decent jobs for all and addresses the inequalities caused by the crisis. The agreement covers measures to be taken by national governments and their employer and trade union ‘social partners’, to achieve a job-rich recovery that substantially strengthens worker and social protections and supports sustainable
Important minimum wage research behind Nobel prize award
The ITUC global trade union confederation has noted the significance of the recent award of the Nobel prize for economics to David Card, Joshua Angrist and Guido Imbens. Their key research in the 1990s demonstrated that higher minimum wages do not mean fewer jobs, providing a powerful counter-argument to the often heard claims of employers and many governments about the negative effects of minimum wages. The ITUC argues that this prize is a serious indictment of many economists in that it has taken some 30 years for the facts to be given prominence over a damaging and groundless idea. It added
Report highlights how collective bargaining can advance equality
The International Labour Organisation has published a report that shows that the higher the coverage of employees by collective agreements, the lower the wage differences are. Social Dialogue Report 2022: Collective bargaining for an inclusive, sustainable and resilient recovery is based on a review of collective agreements and practices in 80 countries and the legal and regulatory frameworks in 125 countries. It also provides evidence that collective bargaining can contribute to narrowing the gender pay gap with over half (59 per cent) the agreements reviewed in the study reflecting a joint