Corporate Responsibility and Labor Affairs Archives

Access to Remedy Briefing

In November 2014, the OHCHR launched an initiative “to make domestic legal responses fairer and more effective for victims of business-related human rights abuses, particularly in the most severe cases.” The initiative, called the Accountability and Remedy Project, will deliver credible and concrete recommendations and guidance to States to enable more effective implementation of the Access to Remedy pillar of the UN Guiding Principles.

The Accountability and Remedy Project will run until June 2016.  At that point, OHCHR will report the outputs and recommendations from the initiative to the United Nations Human Rights Council. To gather input and recommendations from stakeholders for this project, OHCHR has launched a global online consultation, which runs until August 1, 2015.

During the briefing on September 16, Lene Wendland and Ragnhild Handagard from OHCHR will present initial findings of the global online consultation and discuss with participants actions and possible follow-up.

 

USCIB’s Global Network Weighs In: B20 Employment Recommendations

Published on August 10, 2015

g20As the Turkish presidency moves to its final, decisive phase as this year’s G20 host country, the International Organization of Employers (IOE) and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee (BIAC) to the OECD have contributed extensively to B20 work on labor and employment.

On September 4-5, the G20 labor ministers will meet in Ankara, and on 15 and 16 November the G20 Leaders’ Summit will take place in Antalya. It is crucial the business recommendations are reflected in the outcome documents of these events. Ronnie Goldberg, USCIB’s senior counsel, will attend the labor ministerial in September.

The B20 Employment Task Force, co-chaired by IOE President Daniel Funes de Rioja, proposes three main recommendations:

    1. Advance a business-friendly environment to create employment opportunities
    2. Increase participation of youth and women in the labor force by making labor markets more dynamic and inclusive
    3. Develop and finance programs aimed at reducing skills mismatches in an era of rapid technological change and innovation

Read the complete B20 Employment Recommendations.

While USCIB’s global network has already engaged in extensive advocacy work at G20 level, the recommendations also need to be reinforced vis-à-vis national governments well ahead of the G20 Labor Ministerial and Leaders’ Summit. Business leaders are urged to contact their governments and advocate for the uptake of these recommendations

As part of the B20/L20 (trade unions) work stream, the IOE will also sign a joint statement entitled “Jobs, Growth and Decent Work” during the Ankara B20 Conference calling on G20 governments to:

  • Determinedly tackle youth unemployment
  • Pursue macro-economic policies that promote employment
  • Make a reality of the 2014 Brisbane target of reducing by 25% the gender gap in employment by 2025
  • Promote transition to formality and implement the Recommendation on informality adopted by the 2015 ILC

Read the full B20/L20 Statement.

The B20/L20 fully endorse the IOE/BIAC/TISK–ITUC/TUAC projects on promoting in national seminars the joint understanding of quality apprenticeships to foster implementation, and on strengthening occupational safety and health (OSH) through supporting better implementation of standards through capacity building of the social partners on prevention, the creation of modern OSH frameworks and of a best practice data base.

The B20/L20 argue that business and labor must play a key role in the shaping of economic and social policy, committing themselves to realizing a project on a joint understanding of the effects of technological change on employment and skills. A Roundtable is being organised by B20/L20 in Ankara on September 5 on this topic. Representatives of ILO, OECD, the Chinese G20 presidency and the social partners will make key contributions to this high-level event.

USCIB Joins Other Business Groups in Defense of IPRs

Published on July 29, 2015

green_lightbulbThe protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) is a central enabling condition for innovation, stimulating investment and disseminating new greener technologies and knowledge. But in recent years, IPR protection is being challenged in a range of international forums, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the UN Post-2015 Development Agenda.  Critics assert that IP protection increases costs and impedes access.

USCIB joined eight other business associations in signing a letter to U.S. cabinet officials calling upon the U.S. government to resist “persistent efforts” by a small group of countries and NGOs to undermine American innovation for environmental technologies. The letter focuses on major international policy decisions that will be reached covering climate change and a wide array of other economic, social and environmental policy priorities this year in New York and Paris. It underscores the importance of avoiding inclusion of IP protection in the Paris climate agreement, and discouraging the proliferation of bureaucratic and redundant technology forums.

“These countries assert that environmental technology and other manufacturing IPRs prevent technology diffusion and undermine socio-economic development – without any evidence, in the face of practical experience and despite a vast body of academic literature to the contrary,” the letter stated, which was sent on July 29 to Secretary of State John Kerry, USTR Michael Froman and Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker.

“In reality, the development of effective IP frameworks that apply to environmental technology IPRs, including manufacturing IPRs, has been shown to facilitate the development of new solutions to environmental and development challenges and, especially, their adaptation and

Read the full multi-association letter.

USCIB advocates for polices that enhance innovation, such as IPRs, as vehicles that support and encourage environmental and development goals.

Find out more about USCIB’s engagement with the UN climate talks and the UN Post-2015 Development Agenda.

Launch of the Global Employers’ Summit 2015 Website

Published on July 27, 2015

BahrainThe first Global Employers’ Summit of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) will take place at the invitation of the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) on October 6-7, 2015 in Bahrain. 

The Global Employers’ Summit website is now online. Participants are encouraged to register on the website as soon as possible.

Jointly organised by the IOE and BCCI, this prestigious event will be held under the patronage of His Royal Highness Shaikh Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Summit will bring together high-level participants from multinational companies, international organisations, employers’ organisations and institutions, to explore key areas of interest for business including labor mobility across borders, business and human rights, promoting inclusion and diversity, and more.

The event will culminate with the signing of the Bahrain Declaration.

IOE, IOM, Partner Companies Take Part in Expert Meeting on Ethical Recruitment

Published on July 24, 2015

Two machinists working on machine

The International Organization of Employers (IOE) is deepening its engagement with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on the interface between employment and migration. As part of this, USCIB Senior Counsel (and IOE Regional Vice President for North America) Ronnie Goldberg and IOE Senior Adviser Frederick Muia attended a recent expert meeting on ethical recruitment.

The two day meeting, which was also attended by Cindy Sawyer of The Coca-Cola Company and Annemarie Muntz of Randstad Holding NV, two IOE partner companies, discussed the development of the operational protocol of the International Recruitment Integrity System (IRIS), an international voluntary ethical recruitment framework that will benefit all stakeholders in the labor migration process.

Speaking during the opening session, Goldberg called for a practical operational tool that would recognize, reward and build on the efforts being undertaken by the “good” actors in the recruitment chain and find ways to identify, isolate and hopefully eliminate the bad actors. She noted that companies were taking measures to ensure transparency in their labor supply chain and that all recruitment activities were being performed in accordance with ethical recruitment principles. These efforts are helping companies mitigate the risk of unforeseen links to forced labor, child labor and human trafficking. 

Speaking during the session dedicated to partners of the initiative, Muia underscored the importance of the IOE in enabling member federations and partner companies to have a platform to push for immigration policies that are efficient and transparent so that companies can move skills and talent across borders. Muia also spoke about the need to strengthen government institutions particularly in fragile states. As IRIS was a voluntary initiative it could only compliment government efforts whose role was critical in addressing cases of criminal activity such as human trafficking. 

Muntz, who is also president of the International Confederation of Private Employment Agencies (CIETT), underscored the role of the recruitment industry in self-regulation. She explained how the CIETT code of conduct helps mobilize member companies and associations to promote ethical recruitment practices both at national and international levels. She highlighted the need to continue efforts to promote the ratification of ILO Convention 181 on private employment agencies as it gave these agencies the necessary recognition to carry out their legitimate activities. 

Sawyer focused on the role of multinational enterprises in taking the lead in ethical recruitment of migrant workers and promotion of good employment practices. She gave the example of The Coca-Cola Company that had issued Supplier Guiding Principles that expressly prohibit the use of all forms of forced labor and trafficking.

The Business of Sustainability

Published on July 22, 2015
USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson
USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson

Think the UN is all talk and no action? Think again. Two upcoming conferences could radically alter how business is done around the world.

By the end of this year, two highly anticipated UN deliberations will have altered the course of global policy and regulation. Taken together, September’s UN General Assembly session – where member states will finalize the UN’s long-awaited Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – and December’s COP21 climate summit in Paris will shift markets and expectations of the private sector, and impact U.S. companies for years to come.

At the same time, critical negotiations on finance, investment and trade are unfolding that seek to mobilize business resources for climate and sustainability. These include July’s UN Financing for Development conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and talks on a WTO Environmental Goods Agreement. As these processes move forward, we are seeing increasing momentum, activity and heightened expectations, not just for governments but also for the business community.

This is because, unlike previous UN talk shops, these deliberations have catalyzed political leaders around the world toward action. Governments are already moving ahead. The United States, Brazil and China have all announced new ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets. In Addis Ababa, governments will commit to global economic and development policies that seek to mobilize both public-sector and private-sector financial resources in support of development.

So what is the role of U.S. business in these global debates? This depends in large measure on what our government and the UN agencies involved want – and allow – companies to do. But to a substantial degree, it is also up to American business to define and shape its role in the systems and policy frameworks that will emerge from the SDGs and COP21.

Make sure agreements work with – and for – the private sector

We have an important message to deliver to policy makers: The private sector, not government, is responsible for the lion’s share of investment decisions around the world that will finance sustainable development and climate amelioration. It is business that develops, and deploys, the technologies that will surmount current sustainability challenges. The success of the SDGs and the COP21 agreement hinges on open markets and a level playing field. These have been core guiding principles of USCIB and our business partners for decades, and they are more important now than ever before.

As a responsible partner of long standing representing U.S. companies in intergovernmental agencies, USCIB has been deeply involved in all these deliberations. Our members know how important it is to find solutions that work with the private sector, and in synergy with global markets, to foster shared prosperity through innovation and investment.

Undeniably, business can, and should, lead in the transition to a more climate-friendly and sustainable economy, while improving world health and eradicating poverty and hunger. For this to happen, the policy frameworks governments put in place in via the SDGs and a global climate pact must be practical, and must consider how  the private sector’s involvement can get us all to the finish line more quickly, without compromising economic growth and prosperity or creating undue burdens on business.

Launch of Campaign 2015

campaign2015_logoJust as political leaders are catalyzing around the need for action, USCIB is rallying American business in a constructive, coordinated effort to provide a stronger private-sector role in the SDGs, COP21 and related initiatives. We have launched a new initiative, Campaign 2015, to serve as a linchpin for our work in these critical negotiations.

Through Campaign2015, USCIB will:

  • represent business interests in real time at global negotiations, ensuring business is at the table when these ambitious agreements lead to binding regulations
  • champion and amplify USCIB’s messagesthrough dedicated meetings with key policymakers
  • promote the opportunity for business investment, action, collaboration and innovation, and
  • communicate our policy views to influential audiencesby leveraging media attention around UN deliberations.

We have created a new Web platform www.BusinessForPost-2015.org, to showcase the private sector’s contributions to sustainable development and explain what the SDGs mean for business.  We are also engaging in a media campaign with Devex, the leading online platform for development professionals, to highlight our policy work and priorities for the post-2015 development agenda.

Our efforts through Campaign 2015 will challenge us to extend our reach and amplify our voice in new ways. More than visibility, this initiative provides business a seat at the table to inform, advise and engage throughout the negotiation processes to encourage member state representatives to enact policy frameworks that safeguard sustainable economic growth and resist negative proposals, such as those that will weaken intellectual property protection.

The bottom line is that business must be a part of the process if it is to be a part of the solution.

To learn more about Campaign2015 or to make a contribution, please visit www.USCIBCampaign2015.org, or contact Norine Kennedy at nkennedy@uscib.org.

 

FFD3 Emphasizes Enhanced Role for Private Sector

Published on July 20, 2015

USCIB and its global network have welcomed the conclusion of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD3), as the outcome emphasizes an enhanced role for the private sector in the United Nations Post-2015 Development Agenda. FfD3 formally concluded on July 16 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia after three days of negotiations to agree on a new global financing framework to support sustainable development. The final text—known as the Addis Ababa Action Agenda—sets out  the means of implementation, including technology, domestic resource mobilization and blended finance and investment for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In a letter to Ambassador Lisa Kubiske of the U.S. State Department, dated July 7, USCIB’s President and CEO, Peter Robinson stated that a successful FfD3 would “amplify the opportunity to catalyze private initiative and investment to advance sustainable development and economic growth.  It will be actionable and practical for governments and business; it will synergize with the global market place and provide opportunities to advance entrepreneurship in support of shared prosperity.”  In that letter, Robinson also raised USCIB’s concerns with some aspects of the Addis outcome, relating to taxation and the proposed technology facilitation mechanism in terms of its role vis-à-vis protection of intellectual property.

USCIB played a central role in marshaling business input into FfD3, having worked actively with members and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) to ensure that the private sector’s voice was heard in Addis. USCIB and its members have engaged on several occasions with the U.S. negotiating team, and USCIB Vice President Ariel Meyerstein met with the co-facilitators of the FfD3 process as part of the Business Steering Committee for Financing for Development, chaired by the ICC Permanent Representative to the UN, Louise Kantrow.

USCIB was instrumental in organizing the conference’s landmark Business Forum on July 14. USCIB lined up an impressive array of member speakers for the business forum to share their insights about investing in emerging markets, including Jay Collins, vice chairman of corporate investment banking at Citi; Peter Sullivan, head of the Africa public sector group at Citi; Walt M. MacNee, executive vice chairman of MasterCard; Elaine Weidman, vice president for sustainability and corporate responsibility at Ericsson; and Jay Ireland, CEO of GE Africa.

“We welcome the Addis agreement as an important step towards realizing a more sustainable and prosperous future for us all,” said International Chamber of Commerce Secretary General John Danilovich. “By establishing a framework that seeks to harness private sector investment, we’ve seen a major leap forward in the international community’s approach to development cooperation.” (Read ICC Secretary General John Danilovich’s letter to the Financial Times on enabling trade for development.)

The private sector and other development institutions and donor countries led the way in a number of areas that went far beyond the confines of the Outcome Document. Several blended finance initiatives were announced, including the Sustainable Development Investment Partnership, which will try to unlock private capital for development, and Convergence, an online platform for developing a pipeline of projects ripe for investment and the exchange of information and capacity building. In addition, the European Union announced that it would add $2.8 billion to Power Africa, an initiative spearheaded by the U.S. government and private sector companies and other partners in sub-Saharan Africa to add more than 30,000 megawatts (MW) of cleaner, more efficient electricity generation capacity as well as increase electricity access by adding 60 million new home and business connections. Other major international financial institutions announced plans to make $400 billion available in the next three years to finance the sustainable development goals.

The conference also provided some cliffhanging moments of concern to business as a proposal by developing countries to elevate the UN tax committee to an intergovernmental body with universal membership nearly brought the conference to a stalemate. The proposal was ultimately rejected, but some in civil society were disappointed with that outcome and along with some governments, can be expected to continue to press for such an upgrade to be reconsidered during the remaining negotiations leading to the UN General Assembly and Post 2015 Summit in September. Significantly, a number of global initiatives were launched to improve the capacity of national tax authorities because taxation is a key aspect of domestic resource mobilization – one of the key resource streams for financing development that could surpass the revenue streams from both foreign direct investment and official development assistance (ODA). These initiatives included the launch of the OECD’s Tax Collectors Beyond Borders Project (a joint venture of the UN Development Program and the OECD) and the Addis Tax Initiative (an effort by 18 developed countries, including the United States, to double official development assistance for tax authority capacity) and a joint World Bank/IMF initiative to provide capacity building for tax authorities in developing countries.

USCIB’s SDG Working Group, chaired by Tam Nguyen (Bechtel) and Brian Lowry (Monsanto), will continue to weigh in to the UN and the administration on USCIB member interests as the UN process continues to deliberate on a wide range of business issues and implementation.  In addition, USCIB has created an online platform to showcase the private sector’s continuing contributions to sustainable development, and demonstrates the many ongoing business initiatives in support of the UN’s Post-2015 Development Agenda. Visit businessforpost-2015.org to learn more.

 

Private Sector’s Critical Role Recognized at UN Development Finance Conference

Published on July 9, 2015

FfDThis is a landmark year that will define the global development agenda for the next 15 years. The financing needed to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 will far surpass current official development flows, so the international community will have to leverage complementary forms of financing, including from the private sector.

At the Third International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD3), in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from July 13 to 16, UN member states will establish a new financing framework to support sustainable development for the next 15 years, following upon previous high-level gatherings in Monterrey (2002) and Doha (2008). The outcomes from FfD3 hold special importance this year, as they will set the means of implementation for the SDGs.

Negotiators in Addis Ababa will tackle a cross-cutting global policy agenda – one that touches on multiple areas of interest to USCIB members and the global business community. These include global tax harmonization, trade and investment policies, climate and energy, intellectual property, food and agriculture, and corporate responsibility issues such as transparency and anti-corruption.

USCIB has played a central role in marshaling business input into the FfD process, having worked actively with members and our global network to ensure that the private sector’s voice is heard in Addis. USCIB and its members has engaged on several occasions with the U.S. negotiating team, and USCIB Vice President Ariel Meyerstein has met with the co-facilitators of the FfD3 process as part of a delegation of the Business Steering Committee for Financing for Development, chaired by the International Chamber of Commerce Permanent Representative to the UN, Louise Kantrow.

In addition, USCIB was instrumental in organizing the conference’s Business Forum to be held on July 14, concurrently with the FfD3 Conference. The Business Forum will provide an opportunity for business participants to interact with senior government officials, business leaders and other experts, and let companies and other stakeholders showcase their initiatives related to development finance.

“The forum is a unique platform to demonstrate the value the private sector offers to sustainable development,” Meyerstein said. “A key focus will be on the business enabling environment required to attract investment to least developed countries, the role of public-private partnerships and the need for new innovative approaches to financing, such as blended finance, which uses public funds, including official development assistance (ODA), to catalyze increased private flows, particularly to least developed countries.”

USCIB lined up an impressive array of member speakers for the business forum, including Jay Collins, vice chairman of corporate investment banking at Citi; Peter Sullivan, head of the Africa public sector group at Citi; Walt M. MacNee, executive vice chairman of MasterCard; Elaine Weidman, vice president for sustainability and corporate responsibility at Ericsson; and Jay Ireland, CEO of GE Africa. Speakers will share their insights about investing in emerging markets and developing countries.

The Addis Ababa Accord, which will be adopted by UN member states at FfD3, is positive for business, as the private sector is called upon as a partner in global efforts to finance sustainable development. The policies business supports in the outcome document include an emphasis on governance and domestic resource mobilization, support for blended finance and a move away from an overly-narrow focus on official development assistance and towards an openness to modernize the measurement of ODA, including consideration of the OECD’s proposed “total official support for development” metric. Concerns remain on a proposed technology transfer mechanism and its impact on intellectual property rights protection, but overall the outcome document is positive for the international business community.

Partnerships in Post-2015: Converging Perspectives for Action

Ahead of the Addis Ababa conference, USCIB member Citigroup hosted an event on public-private partnerships on June 17 in New York. This breakfast brought together business representatives and UN delegates from over ten countries for a discussion about how private finance can be used to ensure sustainable development through investment, job creation and inclusive growth.

Speakers at the breakfast included Louise Kantrow, the International Chamber of Commerce’s permanent representative to the UN and chair of the UN FfD Business Sector Steering Committee, Robert Annibale, global director of inclusive finance and community development at Citi, Amina Mohammed, special advisor to the UN secretary general on post-2015 development and Arthur Karlin, chief strategist of the International Finance Corporation.

Participants discussed the role of the private sector in scaling up financial and technical resources for sustainable development, as well as what non-state actors can do to work more effectively together. Conversations focused on the benefits of public-private partnerships and blended finance, as well as the practical steps countries can take to scale up their access to private capital.

The well-attended event emphasized business engagement for and after FfD3. Many speakers referenced the need for rule of law, sound investment climate and investment in infrastructure, all of which are touchstones of USCIB’s advocacy on the post-2015 development agenda.

“Most interesting was the emerging recognition that there needs to be an interface for business with the UN, that was in line with transparency, accountability, conflict of interest and governance,” said Norine Kennedy, USCIB’s vice president strategic international engagement, energy and the environment, who attended the event.

USCIB has also created an online platform that showcases the private sector’s continuing contributions to sustainable development, and demonstrates the need for a role for business in the UN’s Post-2015 Development Agenda. Visit businessforpost-2015.org to learn more.

 

Business Weighs in on UN Treaty Process on Business and Human Rights

Published on July 2, 2015
Photo credit: UN, Pierre Albouy
Photo credit: UN, Pierre Albouy

As the United Nations Human Rights Council begins work on a legally binding treaty aimed at regulating transnational enterprises with respect to human rights, USCIB’s global network published a position paper representing the views of international business on the UN treaty process.

Jointly written by the International Chamber of Commerce, the International Organization of Employers, the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the paper argues, among other things, that the UN treaty process must not undermine the ongoing implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, that the process must be inclusive of all stakeholders and that the treaty should address all companies, not just multinationals.

As one of the only trade associations with membership in three of the four organizations that drafted the position paper, USCIB was instrumental in working with the IOE to draft the document, and was decisive in the ICC and BIAC decisions to support the final version.

The global business community has expressed concern that the proposed UN treaty process may hinder the implementation of the UN’s Guiding Principles, which were developed over the eight year mandate of former UN Special Representative on Business and Human Rights John Ruggie, and have very quickly become the authoritative international framework on the issue. The Guiding Principles’ “protect, respect, remedy” established a framework that reaffirmed states’ obligations under international law to protect human rights, while businesses, regardless of size or ownership structure, are responsible for respecting these rights throughout their operations. The principles also establish that both states and corporations share the task of ensuring access to effective remedies for human rights victims.

“We’ve seen tremendous uptake of the UN Guiding Principles in a very short period of time, but not enough implementation, particularly on the National Action Plans that states have been tasked with creating.  The treaty process will prove most effective if it reinforces the ’protect-respect-remedy’ framework with further international legal weight, creating more pressure on states take to their duty to protect more seriously, which includes supporting and encouraging business enterprises’ efforts to respect human rights.  ,” said USCIB Vice President Ariel Meyerstein. “The treaty also provides an opportunity to strengthen the rule of law and access to remedy through national courts where harms occur. That will ultimately provide redress for more victims more efficiently than other proposed means of ensuring access to remedy, which in effect may only offer hope to victims of the most heinous violations. .”

Last year, the UN Human Rights Council voted in favor of a proposal sponsored by Ecuador and South Africa to negotiate a binding treaty on business and human rights. On July 6, the Intergovernmental Working Group (IWG) on Transnational Corporations and Human Rights, which will develop the treaty, will hold the first of several annual meetings. The position of the United States – which voted against the treaty last year – remains not to participate in the IWG. The IOE will participate in the IWG and will also host a side event to  provide business input.

Other positions by business on the UN Treaty Process include:

  • The treaty should contribute to the effective implementation of UN Guiding Principles by requiring states to draft National Action Plans.
  • The treaty’s scope of must be limited to business and human rights, not other issues such as climate change.
  • The treaty must not shift the responsibility from the entity perpetrating a human rights violation to the enterprise linked in some way to that entity, a principle well-established by both the UN Guiding Principles and OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.
  • To strengthen national implementation, the treaty should require governments to report back to the UN supervisory machinery about measures taken.

Read the position paper: “UN Treaty Process on Business and Human Rights: Initial Observations by the International Business Community on a Way Forward.”

 

IOE Report of the 2015 International Labor Conference

Published on June 26, 2015
Ronnie Goldberg speaks at the closing ceremony of the 2015 ILC.
Ronnie Goldberg speaks at the closing ceremony of the 2015 ILC.

The International Organization of Employers (IOE) published its report on the 104th session of the International Labor Conference, which gives a roundup of the technical discussion on labor protection. The conclusions from these discussions provide guidance to the International Labor Organization and its constituents.

A chapter on the work of the 2015 Committee on the Application of Standards (CAS) is also included, as is an outline of the examination by the Credentials Committee of three objections and two complaints brought by employers.

Ronnie Goldberg, USCIB’s senior counsel, presided at the International Labor Conference as the employers’ co-chair.

Download the report.