The ILO Global Employment Trends Report: Decent Work for All still far from reality

The annual ILO Global Employment Trends Report offers the latest global and regional information and projections on several indicators of the labour market, including employment, unemployment, working poverty and vulnerable employment. The 2014 Edition, published on 21 January, underlines that the weak global economic recovery has failed to lead to an improvement in global labour markets: global unemployment in 2013 reached almost 202 million, youth unemployment continues to rise and so does the proportion of young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs). Also for those who have a job, living a decent life is often difficult due to stubbornly high informal employment, around 839 million workers living on less than 2 dollars a day and 48 percent of all jobs worldwide being vulnerable employment with limited or no access to social security or a income guarantee.

SOLIDAR is highly concerned about these worrying trends regarding both quantity and quality of jobs in the EU and the rest of the world. The creation of decent jobs and the realization of the universal right to social security and to a social protection floor are key to fight inequality and assure the inclusive character of growth and development. As stated in the SOLIDAR briefing paper “Realising Decent Work and Social Protection for All: How civil society organisations are creating change”, investment in a universal social protection is not just a human right and a social need, but an economic necessity.

Read the ILO press release and consult the ILO website for more details.