The ILO Decent Work Indicators An overview

Decent Work Agenda From around 1980 the neo-liberal agenda promoted jobs growth through deregulation: ‘Any job is better than none’ From the late 1990s the ILO began to stress the importance of job quality and coined the term ‘Decent Work’

Decent Work Is ‘work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for families, better prospects for personal development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns, organize and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of opportunity and treatment for all women and men’. (ILO)

4 pillars of the Decent Work Agenda International labour standards and fundamental principles and rights at work Employment creation Social protection Social dialogue and tripartism

Decent Work Statistical Indicators 18 ‘Main’ indicators; 25 ‘Additional’ indicators; 12 ‘Context’ indicators; and more To cover all four pillars Grouped in 10 elements

The 10 elements employment opportunities adequate earnings and productive work decent working time combining work, family and personal life * work that should be abolished stability and security of work equal opportunity and treatment in employment safe work environment social security social dialogue, employers’ and workers’ representation * Indicators yet to be developed by ILO, includes maternity protection indicator

Main DWIs: 10 elements & 4 pillars I. International Labour Standards and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work II. Employment creation III. Social protection IV. Social Dialogue   Indicators (1) Employment to population ratio (2) Working poverty rate (10) Union density rate (1) Unemployment rate (2) Low pay rate (10) Employer organisation density rate (1) Youth (15-24) not in employment, education or training (3) Excessive hours (10) Collective bargaining coverage rate (1) Informal employment rate (5) Child labour (10) Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining (8) Fatal occupational injury rate (9) Population aged 65 and over with pension (9) Public social security expenditure (% of GDP) (6) Precarious employment rate (7) Occupational segregation by sex (7) Female share of employment in management From the ICLS

Some Additional DW Indicators 4 pillars I. International Labour Standards and Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work II. Employment creation III. Social protection IV. Social Dialogue   Indicators (1) youth unemployment rate (2) average real wages (10) strikes and lockouts (1) unemployment by level of education (2) Minimum wage as % of median wage (1) share of own-account workers in total employment (3) Usual hours worked (1) share of wage employment in non-agricultural employment (3) Annual hours worked per employee (3) Time-related underemployment rate (5) Hazardous child labour (8) Labour Inspection (Inspectors per 10,000 workers) (9) Share of population covered by (basic) health care provision (6) number and wages of casual/daily workers (7) gender wage gap (7) measures of discrimination by race/ ethnicity/ indigenous/ migrant/ rural workers From the ICLS

Cross-cutting variables Because gender equality cuts across the decent work agenda, it is recommended to disaggregate most variables by sex For similar reasons, also by age group, education, and ethnicity for some variables

Economic and social context variables Children not in school (% by age) Estimated % of population HIV positive Labour productivity (GDP per employed person, level and growth rate) Income inequality (P90/P10 ratio, income or consumption) Inflation rate (CPI) Employment by branch of economic activity Adult literacy rate; adult secondary school graduation rate Labour share in GDP

Decent Work Indicators Put the focus on the quality as well as the quantity of employment Shine a light on inequality Have a social protection dimension OECD, IMF, World Bank also now recognise need to focus on quality as well as quantity of employment

ILO Manual has 257 pages ILO MANUAL GUIDELINES FOR PRODUCERS AND USERS DECENT WORK INDICATORS GUIDELINES FOR PRODUCERS AND USERS OF STATISTICAL AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK INDICATORS ILO MANUAL Second version December Covers most but not all DWIs

But the Manual does not include The ‘main’ statistical indicator on freedom of association and collective bargaining Share of population covered by (basic) health insurance

Our task To identify the DWIs that are used to measure and monitor progress on the SDGs, and To identify other DWIs that will be useful to the CMTU in collective bargaining with employers, and in social dialogue with government and employers to shape public policy