ID :
44664
Sat, 02/07/2009 - 17:34
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/44664
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ILO: CREATE SOCIAL SECURITY FOR WORKERS
From P.Vijian
NEW DELHI, Feb 7 (Bernama) -- The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has urged South-East Asian governments to introduce social protection schemes for workers amid rising unemployment triggered by the global economic meltdown.
Dr Duncan Campbell, director of ILO, said the Geneva-based organisation
studied eight sub-regions in the world and found South-East Asia ranked third in
terms of unemployment due to the ongoing crisis.
"This is the time to provide safety nets for workers because they are the
ones that will be hurt. We have seen this during the Great Depression in the
30s.
"It happened after the devastation of World War Two in Japan and the
Japanese invented their social security. So it is time to innovate social
protection for workers," Duncan told Bernama on the sidelines of the "Financial
Crisis: Global Economic Governance and Development" conference here.
The ILO annual report, "Global Employment Trends" released last week,
predicted a grim labour market scenario, with nearly 50 million workers, to join
the unemployment list if the crisis were to worsen.
The report said at least 200 million workers, mainly in developing
economies, would be pushed into extreme poverty.
"On average we are looking at 1.1 percent increase in unemployment in
South-East Asia. Unemployment will rise because of the export exposure of these
countries," he said.
Campbell said the shrinking global demand would dramatically impact the
labour market and even an economic growth of seven percent in countries like
China or India would not be able to create enough jobs.
"Working conditions will be rough, wages will drop and workers' rights will
be affected. It took about five years to recover (labour market) in the last
crisis and it will be same this crisis," he said.
-- BERNAMA
NEW DELHI, Feb 7 (Bernama) -- The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has urged South-East Asian governments to introduce social protection schemes for workers amid rising unemployment triggered by the global economic meltdown.
Dr Duncan Campbell, director of ILO, said the Geneva-based organisation
studied eight sub-regions in the world and found South-East Asia ranked third in
terms of unemployment due to the ongoing crisis.
"This is the time to provide safety nets for workers because they are the
ones that will be hurt. We have seen this during the Great Depression in the
30s.
"It happened after the devastation of World War Two in Japan and the
Japanese invented their social security. So it is time to innovate social
protection for workers," Duncan told Bernama on the sidelines of the "Financial
Crisis: Global Economic Governance and Development" conference here.
The ILO annual report, "Global Employment Trends" released last week,
predicted a grim labour market scenario, with nearly 50 million workers, to join
the unemployment list if the crisis were to worsen.
The report said at least 200 million workers, mainly in developing
economies, would be pushed into extreme poverty.
"On average we are looking at 1.1 percent increase in unemployment in
South-East Asia. Unemployment will rise because of the export exposure of these
countries," he said.
Campbell said the shrinking global demand would dramatically impact the
labour market and even an economic growth of seven percent in countries like
China or India would not be able to create enough jobs.
"Working conditions will be rough, wages will drop and workers' rights will
be affected. It took about five years to recover (labour market) in the last
crisis and it will be same this crisis," he said.
-- BERNAMA
