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Guest post by: International Labour Organization Become an Author

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It is revealing to look at the challenge of reducing and eventually eliminating
poverty from the perspective of the drive to create decent work for
women and men. Such a viewpoint helps to focus the attention of public authorities,
from the local to the global level, the social partners and relevant
groups in civil society on how to make institutions and markets serve better
the needs of those most at risk of being trapped in poverty.
Sustainable pro-poor growth and the governance of the labour market

The ILO approach to poverty reduction through decent work, described
in Chapter 3, has considerable potential. But a wide process of institutional
change is needed to create the conditions in which businesses, trade
unions, cooperatives, communities and public authorities act together to
overcome exclusion and discrimination and open opportunities for productive
and decent work. It is central to poverty eradication for societies and
economic systems to be organized in a way that enlarges the freedoms and
opportunities of people living in poverty, who need to be able to work in conditions
of equity, security and human dignity.

This chapter situates the work of the ILO in the context of the debate
about the appropriate institutions for poverty-reducing development. It
looks at the importance of the universally accepted values reflected in the
ILO’s Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. By giving
people title over their own labour, these serve as a foundation enabling governments,
employers and workers to build fairer and more efficient governance
mechanisms for the labour market. The chapter examines how
weaknesses in governance result in a large informal economy where development
is inhibited by barriers to investment, enterprise development and
increased employment in decent conditions. It also discusses how social dialogue
can facilitate the formulation and reform of labour laws and collective
bargaining systems by helping to balance the twin imperatives of flexibility
and security. These are inherent in creating decent work opportunities in a
rapidly changing global market. The chapter concludes that the ILO’s tripartite
constituency is in a position to mobilize its considerable energy and creativity
to connect local action to combat poverty to national strategies for
equitable development and the international drive to achieve the Millennium
Development Goals.

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