Peace Will Last With Social Justice Only

         International Labour Organisation Director-                 General Mr Gilbert F Houngbo

Peace Will Last With Social Justice Only

Deepak Razdan

Friday, 13 June, 2025

Unlike the twentieth century when democracies thrived by combining political equity with economic inclusivity, the 21st century has seen in its past few decades a marked erosion of this balance.

The result is decent jobs are not available sufficient in numbers, inequality has soared, labour income has stagnated, the cost of living has gone up, the debt burden has strangled developing economies, and trust in institutions has plummeted.

These disturbing findings are mentioned in International Labour Organisation (ILO) Director General’s Report to the 113th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC), held in Geneva from 2 to 13 June.

Mr Gilbert F Houngbo, who made history in 2022 by becoming the first African to be elected the ILO DG, said “in recent years, I have grown increasingly concerned by the sense of disillusionment I witness from working people around the world.”

“Many feel unheard, unprotected and disconnected from decisions that shape their lives. Trust in institutions is fading, and the promise that effort and contribution will be met with dignity and opportunity feels broken for too many,” he said.

“This is not just an economic issue – it is a crisis of confidence, one that cuts at the heart of social cohesion and social justice,” said the ILO DG.

The United Nations’ first specialised agency, ILO was established in 1919 under the Treaty of Versailles which had ended the First World War (1914-18).

The Great War, as it was called devastated nearly 100 countries across all major Continents and took over two million lives. The ILO took shape as  investigations into the causes of the war showed universal or lasting peace was not possible without social justice.

The New World is currently so overtaken by Money and Missile wars that it does not hear some voices. The ILO is pointing to such prevailing conditions which are dangerous and have in the past led to World Wars.

The New World has today countries worried about financial losses and gains in international trade. The countries are negotiating trade deals and focusing on import and export tariffs which ensure a positive balance of payments for them.

Another big concern of the New World is armed conflicts. The Ukraine-Russia war is raging for over three years and has taken a toll of hundreds of thousands of young soldiers on both sides.

Israel was pounding Gaza with missiles to ensure Palestinians do not dare to attack it again. Israel is now involved in a war with Iran also.

The ILO has brought in public domain such disturbing facts which have been emerging over past some years and deserve attention. The ILO DG’s Report says “Achieving social justice remains the responsibility of all of us, at the individual, national and global levels.”

“From a global perspective, partnerships need to be built on democratic values. Cooperation – including bilateral cooperation, South–South cooperation, United Nations cooperation and multilateral cooperation – are all needed to support this goal,” the Report said.

The Group of Seven (G7) comprising the world's advanced economies including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union is holding a Leaders Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, from 15 to 17 June.

The G7 can take note of the ILO DG’s Report as its powerful members can influence international economic systems significantly.

By the month-end, on 24-25 June, the powerful NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) is also holding its Summit at The Hague, Netherlands. It can also review if the world security scenario is getting affected by declining social justice across the world.

The ILO brings together at the ILCs representatives of governments, employers and workers from its member-States to discuss the future of work based on decent employment creation, rights at work, social protection and social dialogue.

No wonder, the ILC is therefore called the International Parliament of Labour. As many as 640 delegates representing Governments, employers and workers from 170 countries attended the 113th ILC Session.

The ILO DG said in his Report the key question before the world is jobs, rights and growth and how to ensure that economic growth generates more and better jobs while strengthening respect for labour rights for all.

“Growth can be a mixed blessing, sometimes exacerbating inequalities, harming the environment, weakening communities, and even undermining democracy and labour rights,” the ILO DG said.   

Judging how world economic growth has translated into decent jobs, Mr Houngbo’s Report says “Over the past two decades, GDP growth averaged around 3.5 per cent per year, which is relatively solid, although marked by recurring episodes of economic crises and differences between countries and regions.”

“In parallel, employment increased on average by 1.3 per cent per year – and even if this is not much, we cannot say it was jobless growth,” he said.

However, a greater concern is that economic growth is creating fewer jobs over time. The employment intensity of growth – how much employment increases for every 1 per cent rise in GDP – was 0.40 over the last decade, he said.

“This is an improvement from 0.32 in the previous decade, mainly due to the rising participation of women and the fact that the majority of jobs were created in the employment-intensive service sector,” the ILO DG’s report says.

But the impact has varied, with upper-middle-income countries in particular experiencing slower job creation, raising fears of economic stagnation, inadequate and incomplete structural transformation processes and increasing inequalities.

Another key issue is that much of this job growth comes from population increases, not necessarily from stronger economies. As a consequence, in many developing countries, people must take informal jobs due to limited formal employment opportunities, the Report says, reviewing the job scenario.

“The real question therefore is: How can we ensure that growth creates formal jobs? The trend is concerning. At the start of the twenty-first century, 1 per cent economic growth led to a 0.50 per cent rise in formal jobs – faster than overall employment growth,” the Report says.

“But in the past decade, this dropped to 0.38 per cent, showing a weaker link between growth and formal job creation,” the ILO Report says.

Societies that foster democratic values and strengthen democratic institutions deliver tangible benefits to their citizens and achieve faster growth and greater stability, the ILO Chief said.

Mr Houngbo said “In this way, we can and must turn the perplexing trilemma of jobs–rights–growth into a dynamic, mutually reinforcing triangle for the twenty-first century.”