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ILO WASHINGTON DIGEST

Update from the ILO Office in Washington, DC
March - April 2016

 

ILO Washington Happenings

Time for structural reforms and greater attention to the refugee and humanitarian crisis: the main messages from the 2016 WB-IMF spring meetings.

Concerns over a “too slow too long” global economic recovery prompted IMF’s call for accommodative monetary policy, growth-friendly fiscal policy, and structural reforms, including the labour market, but the Fund suggests a cautious prioritization and sequencing of reforms. Instead, the ILO urged action to break out of the slow growth trap by implementing aggressive employment and social policies. Concerned by forced displacement and the refugee crisis, the ILO called for an increased focus on decent work and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as a main part of the international approach to the refugee crisis.       

 

ILO-WAS Director Speaks on Decent Work in Trade Policy in Africa

At the 2016 Spring Meetings held by the World Bank and the IMF, Nancy Donaldson joined a distinguished panel of experts at an event organized by civil society organizations focused on African growth and development. The panel explored ways for the African continent to maximize the opportunity of the provisions of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). At the heart of the conversation was the prioritization of the decent work agenda to ensure that African economies are not just growing, but also creating quality jobs and protecting workers’ rights.

Balancing regulations to promote jobs

ILOWAS Deputy Director Erick Zeballos discussed opportunities for stronger collaboration between the ILO and the World Bank in this area. He gave remarks at the ITUC-TUAC Economic Policy meetings with IFIs held in Washington D.C. on March 14th. They discussed the new WB tool which provides a number of policy approaches to achieve both job creation and workers’ protection, recognizing the importance of ILO’s core labour standards and social dialogue in the design of labour market policy reforms.

 

On World Day for Safety and Health at Work, ILO focuses on integrated preventive strategies to address workplace stress.

On April 28th, in observation of World Day for Safety and Health at Work, Erick Zeballos, ILOWAS Deputy Director, participated in the webinar, "Workplace Stress: A Collective Challenge for All in the Americas," co-organized with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Mr. Zeballos presented the latest ILO report “Workplace Stress: A Collective Challenge,” and highlighted the importance of developing strategies for the prevention of psychological risks and the promotion of mental health at work. Read more here.

 

US Labour Policy Developments

 

USDOL Priorities for 2017

USDOL Secretary Perez testified before three congressional committees the week of March 12th, outlining the DOL’s focus in the proposed fiscal year 2017 budget, including connecting Americans with employment, investing in apprenticeships, cracking down on wage theft, protecting worker safety and health, and helping more Americans enjoy a secure retirement. For more information, click here

US Congress Tries to Stop Updated Overtime Pay Rights for Millions of Workers

Lawmakers on March 17th introduced “the Protecting Workplace Advancement and Opportunity Act,” which would place limitations on the DOL’s abilities to define workplace rules. The DOL’s rule would extend overtime pay rights to millions of salaried employees that are working overtime but not getting paid for it.  Supporters of the proposed bill argue that the Administration’s efforts to update federal wages and hours standards would result instead in workers having less flexibility and opportunity for advancement in the workplace, and that it would raise costs for small businesses. For more information click here and here. 

Some Labour Provisions Slow Congressional Consideration of TPP

On March 22nd, a group of 19 Senate Democrats sent a letter to US trade representative Michael Froman urging him to delay submitting the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) implementing bill to Congress until Malaysia, Brunei, and Vietnam have met commitments to improve worker rights, reforms stipulated in their bilateral consistency plans. To learn more, click here. The Republicans in the House Ways & Means Committee have formed five working groups to address their objections to the TPP, one of which is “elevated labour obligations.” To learn more on worker rights in the TPP, click here.

US Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Protecting the Right of Unions to Collect Mandatory Fees

The Supreme Court deadlocked in a 4-4 decision on March 29th in the case of Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association on whether public employees who choose not to join unions could be compelled to pay a “fair share service fee” to cover costs of collective bargaining. Had the court ruled against the union, the bargaining abilities of unions would have been seriously weakened. To learn more, click here.

California and New York Leading the Race to Lift the Minimum Wage to $15 State-wide

Both states joined the efforts of 17 other cities and states pledging to gradually increase their minimum wage by 2022 at the latest. To date, 30 states have taken actions to lift the minimum wage above $7.25 which is the federal minimum level. To learn more, click here.

New York State, San Francisco Pass Most Generous Parental Leave Programs to Date

On April 4th, New York’s governor announced a 12-week paid parental leave plan, the nation’s most comprehensive. The next day, San Francisco’s board of supervisors approved a law offering six weeks of paid parental leave. The Obama Administration has included more than $2 billion in funding to encourage paid family and medical leave programs. To learn more, click here. To learn more on DOL’s paid leave policies, click here.

Equal Payday Celebrated on April 12th - A Reminder of Existing Wage Gap Between Men and Women

Despite outpacing men in education, women working full time in 2014 made only about 78% of men’s earnings, a wage gap that increases for women of colour. While the pay gap has decreased over the years, progress has stalled in the past decade. Much of the gender pay gap can now be explained by differences in certain occupations and industries seen as “men’s jobs” or “women’s jobs.” While STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields attract men, HEAL jobs (Health, Education, Administration, and Literacy) disproportionately attract women and are less well paid. To learn more click here and here.

Visa Transparency Anti-Trafficking Act Introduced to Protect Guest Workers

A bipartisan bill was introduced April 20th by five members of Congress to standardize and publish government data on temporary visa programs. This increase in data transparency will decrease the risk of employers or traffickers faking temporary visas, protecting the labour standards of foreign non-migrant workers. To read more about this bill, click here.

 

Other Policy Developments in Washington 

 

New Management at IFC and World Bank Pushes Organizations Towards New Horizons

Earlier this year, former Brazilian Minister of Finance Joaquim Levy became CFO at the World Bank, and former World Bank Vice President Philippe Le Houérou became head of the IFC. The significant experience and priorities of these hires is seen as a boost in the World Bank Group’s commitment to ending poverty.

 

World Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Sign First Co-Financing Framework Agreement

The new AIIB will provide financial support for infrastructure development in order to increase connectivity across Asia. Under the framework outlined in the agreement, the WB will leverage its expertise to prepare and supervise over ten infrastructure projects in accordance with its social safeguards and environment policies.

 

 Suggested Readings

 

IMF: World Economic Outlook April 2016

While the economy is projected to grow at 3.2% in 2016, risks related to increasing uncertainty require a creative and collaborative policy response. This report explores recent developments that give rise to uncertainty, focusing particularly on the slowdown in capital flows to developing economies and the timing of product and labour market reforms. To read the full report, click here.

World Bank: World Development Indicators 2016

WDI is the most current and accurate global development data available, and is the WB’s primary collection of development indicators, compiled from multiple international sources. WDI 2016 includes a feature on the Sustainable Development Goals. To read the full report, click here.

 

Latin American Economic Outlook 2016: Towards a new partnership with China

This report explains the relationship between Latin America and China, suggesting policy responses for Latin America to increase gains from trade, such as prioritizing regional value chains and better integrating service sectors. To read the full report, click here.

 

Brookings: Five Evils: Multidimensional Poverty and Race in America

Brookings argues that there are five dimensions of disadvantage: low household income, lack of employment, limited education, lack of health insurance, and living in a poor area. 16% of working-age Americans face at least two of these disadvantages. These disadvantages cluster in different ways across different places and disproportionately affect blacks and Hispanics. To read the first full report, click here.

 

Brookings: Understanding declining fluidity in the labour market

This paper by Brookings explores why the trend of declining fluidity in the US labour market has continued since the 1980’s. Some potential causes may include changes in the worker-firm relationship, especially with compensation adjustment; changes in firm size and age; and a decline in social trust, thereby increasing the cost of job searching, and making both employers and job seekers more risk averse. To read the full report, click here.

 

Upcoming Event

 

US Women Summit

On June 14th-15th, the White House will host the United State of Women Summit to celebrate achievements in advancing women’s issues, as well as to discuss what still needs to be done to make a powerful difference for the future. One of the major topics covered is women’s economic empowerment, including important policy issues such as the minimum wage, paid family leave, and workforce participation. Click here to learn more.

 

About Us

The International Labour Office (ILO) in Washington, DC serves as a liaison between the ILO and the United States government, employers’ and workers’ organizations, multilateral and Washington-based institutions. The Washington Office engages in analysis of labour issues, research, and outreach activities.