Interviews indicated that through the Decent Work Agenda, the International Labour Organization is shaping the global policy narrative about work among UN agencies, and that the pursuit of decent work and the Agenda were perceived as important goals with the potential to promote just policies.
There was general agreement among key informants from all three organizations that the pursuit of decent work and the Decent Work Agenda were laudable goals with the potential to promote just policies.
However, a frequently cited limitation of "decent work" and the Decent Work Agenda's discursive role across all three organizations was that it has remained too conceptual, that it is difficult to measure, that it lacks a robust evidence base (in particular economic evidence), and that it has yet to result in a completely coherent, comprehensive policy strategy.
"Evidence has shown that an effective, coherent response to child labour requires a mix of decent work employment measures, child sensitive social protection systems and the extension of basic services to the most vulnerable".
"There is a growing international consensus that an effective, coherent response to child labour requires a mix of decent work employment measures, child sensitive social protection systems and the extension of basic services to the most vulnerable," UNICEF stressed.
Since the launch of the Decent Work Agenda in 1999, the ILO has, for instance, raised awareness of the importance of decent work through the UN, G20 and other global fora, disseminated policy documents (e.g. Social Protection Floor Initiative), and provided technical guidance on topics such as promising employment and social policies that promote decent work conditions [ 10].
While for some this took the form of disengagement (i.e. "decent work" is the ILO's business), others readily reported common ground with the concept of decent work and the DWA.
"Many of those working on the factory lines are migrant workers brought to the country on the promise of decent work but who are facing a system of exploitation that has deepened and expanded over the years," he said.
But he brings vividly to life the struggles that the working classes faced in pursuit of decent working conditions and a fair wage.
The principle of acting in good faith is at the heart of decent work.
