The ILO’s Global Call to Action for a human-centred recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, adopted by the membership at the International Labour Conference (ILC) in June, has been endorsed by the Labour and Employment Ministers of the five BRICS economies.
Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Guy Ryder, has welcomed the endorsement by the BRICS ministers, which include: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Describing the declaration adopted by the ministers as “a concrete demonstration of your commitment to repair the damage of the crisis,” Ryder said, “the Global Call outlines a comprehensive agenda to ensure that the recovery is inclusive, sustainable and resilient, and based upon fundamental principles and rights at work.”
He said, “this approach is essential,” adding that “unless we address the inequalities that have deepened during this crisis, there is a real risk that its economic and social consequences will cause long-term scarring.”
The Global Call to Action for a human-centred recovery was adopted unanimously by ILO Member States in June 2021, at the International Labour Conference.
The Ministers’ Declaration, issued at the end of their virtual summit on 15 July 2021, expressed great concern at the pandemic’s negative effects on unemployment, decent work deficits and inequality, and states their strong determination to recover with stronger national economies, inclusive labour markets and social protection systems.
Their Declaration highlights four key pillars for labour and employment policy responses to the pandemic; promoting social security agreements between BRICS nations, formalisation of labour markets, women’s labour force participation, and the role of gig and platform workers.
Ryder welcomed the Ministers’ commitment to deepen social security cooperation and promote agreements between themselves, saying “this could make a real difference for the millions of workers who travel to other countries to find work.”
The Director-General also praised the pledge to improve the situation of women in the labour force and to accelerate progress on shifting informal economy workers to the formal economy, adding that, “if we are to address these issues effectively we need concrete policies and action. Creating an economic recovery will not be enough by itself.”
On the other hand, to mark the World Youth Skills Day 2021, the ILO Senior Youth Employment Specialist, Susana Puerto, spoke about the impact of COVID-19 on young people’s education and job prospects and the skills that are in demand by employers and a changing world of work.
According to Puerto, the power, leadership and resilience of young people over the past 18 months have experienced severe challenges in the labour market and disruptions in education and training among other important hurdles.
She pointed out that one of the important elements for ILO to celebrate and mark the day is actually to come up with a new and unparalleled framework on core skills for life and work in the 21st Century.
This, according to him, means that the ILO has placed a lot of attention on what are those core skills that are critical to not only enhance the employability of young people but also to support young people in achieving their life goals and contributing to their own well-being and of their communities.
She said: “There are four areas of skills that we are prioritising, and that we have seen that there is a strong demand for, but there is also demand today and towards the future.
“So first, we are talking about social and emotional skills. There are for example skills that refer to the power of communication, teamwork, emotional intelligence.
“The second area that is quite in demand are skills that are rather more cognitive or meta-cognitive skills. And these very much include skills like problem-solving, analytical thinking, planning, and career management. And this is quite important for young people nowadays as they try to navigate the labour market and enter a post-pandemic world of work.
“The third set of skills is rather focusing and responding to the technological changes and recognising the importance of digital skills, so what we call basic digital skills, that nowadays are fundamental for young people to engage in Labour market, and they include the skills like the use of hardware, software, and basic online operations.”
On the fourth core skill, she added: “We also include basic skills for green jobs. These skills include for example; environmental awareness, waste reduction and waste management and other skills that will build up the knowledge and the know-how among the young people, for them to continue supporting action towards a just transition to environmentally sustainable economies.”
She pointed out that this framework and the continued commitment of the ILO through the UN Global Initiative on decent jobs for the youth is already impacting young people’s lives” adding, “and we see the power of the collaboration, the shared values and the scaling in bringing this work forward with and for young people.”
and then