New York, NY, February 27, 2024–This weekend, the International Labor Organization (ILO), the UN entity responsible for setting international labor standards, reached the first-in-history multilateral agreement on the concept of a “living wage.” The alignment on the concept, negotiated between workers, employers and governments, was part of the outcome of a week-long expert meeting on wage policies, including living wages.
In recent years, there has been a rise in political pressures on ensuring wage levels that can ensure a decent standard of living and an increase in living wage initiatives and consulting firms, claiming to help companies set correct wage levels. Yet, as reported by the ILO, such initiatives have largely been ignoring the second pillar of wage-setting, namely economic factors. The expert meeting provided clarity on this and underscored that a wage-setting process must take into account both the needs of workers and economic factors.
“We are proud to have reached multilateral alignment on the concept of a ‘living wage,’” said Ewa Staworzynska, director of corporate responsibility and labor affairs at USCIB, who represented American business during the expert meeting, together with Ryan Larsen, group director, international labor relations at Walmart. “In order to set sustainable wages and not disrupt employment levels, it is critical that wage-setting processes couple the estimates of needs of workers with economic factors, such as macroeconomic stability and productivity levels.”
The full conclusions, including the ILO’s description of the concept, is expected to be published in the coming days.
About USCIB
The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) advances the global interests of American business. We do so through advocacy for an open system of world trade, finance, and investment, where business can flourish and contribute to economic growth, human welfare, and environmental protection. We are the sole U.S. affiliate of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Business at OECD (BIAC) and the International Organization of Employers (IOE). USCIB is also the only U.S. business organization with standing at the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and is recognized at the UN Environment Program (UNEP), UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UN CBD).
USCIB’s Moving the Needle (MTN) initiative launched the reports at a USCIB High-Level Business Roundtable. The Roundtable focused on sustainability, solidarity and shared prosperity and featured high-level speakers from AT&T, Bayer, Google, Microsoft, Salesforce, the U.S. Department of State, the UN, the International Organization of Employers (IOE) and many others. Discussion topics included innovative Artificial Intelligence (AI) for the benefit of people and planet and public private partnerships for innovation and infrastructure. Business leaders from USCIB member companies presented practical business recommendations highlighted in the reports, to ramp up implementation of the SDGs and strengthen the UN’s effectiveness and impact.
New York, N.Y., July 31, 2023—The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) supports the global community in recognizing World Day Against Trafficking in Persons and emphasizes that trafficking in all forms is unacceptable. The U.S. business community continues to help combat trafficking globally.
According to the ILO, a glance around the world shows that an increasing number of countries are focusing on the development or improvement of apprenticeship systems and programs to address the challenges of changing labor market trends and the need for workers to retrain and upskill.
New York, N.Y., June 09, 2023—On June 8, OECD governments adopted the revised Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct. USCIB and its members have long recognized and promoted the Guidelines as the most comprehensive, government-backed, voluntary practical framework for responsible business conduct. We proudly advocate for responsible business conduct and recognize the crucial role that businesses have in promoting sustainable practices. This revised version, however, promulgates new far-reaching expectations on companies, raising serious concerns about its practicality.
New York, N.Y., June 8, 2023—Article 1 of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” The observation of Pride Month, which this June celebrates the contribution of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals to our communities and our societies, sits firmly in this human rights tradition. The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) is proud to take this occasion to underscore our commitment and that of our members to support LGBTQI+ equality and inclusion.
New York, N.Y., November 28, 2022—The United States Council for International Business (USCIB) sought an “Implementation Plus” approach in the outcomes of the recently concluded 27th Conference of the Parties (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh, in which the international community would realize progress in advancing food and energy security alongside climate action and mobilization of resources.
New York, N.Y., November 28, 2022—Today, the USCIB Foundation launched the ‘There’s More To Be Done’ Campaign, an initiative that seeks to maintain workplace wellbeing. Employers can encourage vaccination for COVID19 and other preventable illness by informing and educating employees on the benefit of vaccination. ‘There’s More To Be Done’ is a global movement of employers and is part of the Business Partners to CONVINCE initiative, which seeks to empower a “vaccine-literate” public.
New York, NY, September 21, 2022—As the second week of the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly got underway, the United States Council for International Business (USCIB) joined with partners, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the International Organization of Employers (IOE), to hold a Global Business Town Hall on September 21. The Town Hall tackled some of pressing priorities outlined in the UN Secretary General’s report Our Common Agenda, which seeks to foster a human-centric recovery for the global workforce in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
June 1, 2022, New York, NY