The Global Coalition for Social Justice also seeks to serve as a platform to advocate for policy coherence and investment in social protection and decent work, as Mr. Gilbert F. Houngbo, ILO Director-General, stated at the ongoing 11th International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva.

He emphasized the need to build a Coalition for Social Justice to fight growing inequalities in a report made available to the Ghana News Agency.

He said advances to social justice is constrained by compounding crises, insufficient investment in social development, growing inequalities, faltering global solidarity and unprecedented levels of debt.

This set of circumstances threatens to reverse decades of progress on the social
dimensions of sustainable development.

It is exacerbated by a lack of policy coherence on key objectives, such as the achievement of full, productive and freely chosen employment.

“We need to forge a broad Global Coalition for Social Justice to strengthen the ability of countries to succeed in narrowing social justice deficits.

“A Global Coalition for Social Justice would elevate social justice as a global policy imperative requiring greater multilateral cooperation and policy coherence.

“It would serve as a catalyst and a conduit for initiating or accelerating action in policy areas where the realization of the ILO’s mandate for social justice requires solidarity and coordination with other partners to tackle the
multiple challenges facing the world of work.”

Mr Houngbo stressed that a Global Coalition initiated and forged by the ILO’s tripartite partners would signify a global effort to reach beyond the ILO’s own means of action and would engage the multilateral system and international community more deeply and tangibly in supporting national efforts to strengthen social contracts.

He said the benefits of a Global Coalition, including the policy focus it would bring to bear and the increased social gains it would engender, were transformational and empirically verifiable.

He stressed the need to systematically integrate the social agenda into all major international, regional, and national policies and actions to fight growing economic disparities.

“My message is simple. No one should bury their head in the sand when it comes to facing the challenges shaking up the world of work.

“The fourth industrial revolution, which promises a radical transformation of production methods, the demographic upheavals, and the imperative need to decarbonize the economy are opportunities for a better future for us all,” the ILO Director-General stated.

“But at the same time, four billion of our fellow citizens have no social protection, and 214 million workers earn less than the poverty line.

“A large number of job-creating micro and small enterprises have gone bankrupt. And how can we explain the fact that women earn, on average, 20 percent less than their male colleagues? he said.

The conference is being attended by workers, employers, and government delegates from the ILO’s 187 Member States, face-to-face for the first time since 2019.

The delegates will address a wide range of issues that have a long-term impact on the world of work.