Celeste Drake, Deputy Director-General, highlighted the shrinking global labor income share, stressing that despite worker contributions to a growing economy, their share of that growth is diminishing, exacerbating inequality. The ILO’s latest update revealed a 0.6 percentage point decline in global income between 2019 and 2022, translating to a $2.4 trillion annual shortfall. This decline is part of a longer-term trend, with a 1.6 percent drop from 2004 to 2024. Notably, nearly 40 percent of the decline occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic years.
While global worker output per hour rose by 58 percent from 2004 to 2024, incomes only increased by 53 percent, creating a five-percentage-point gap. The ILO’s World Employment and Social Outlook report warns that without policy interventions, innovations like generative AI could further depress wages. Steven Kapsos of the ILO emphasized the need for policy measures to reduce inequalities, in line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), given the current sluggish economic outlook and stagnant labor income despite falling inflation.
ILO recommendations to combat rising inequality include universal social protection, a decent minimum wage, support for freedom of association, and collective bargaining. The report also sheds light on youth unemployment, noting a marginal decline from 21.3 percent in 2015 to 20.4 percent in 2023. Regions like the Arab States, Africa, Asia, and Latin America display the highest youth unemployment rates, with female youth unemployment remaining significantly higher than male.
In summary, the ILO calls on governments to implement policies addressing income inequality and enhancing workers’ welfare to align with SDGs by 2030, amidst concerns over future technological impacts on wages.
Original Story https://news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2024/09/1153906
Category :
Tags:
