A new report from the International Labour Organization recommends that countries move to improve the working conditions and earnings of key workers, who were essential during the COVID-19 crisis—to fully reflect their contribution to society and their importance in the daily functioning of economies.
The report, World Employment and Social Outlook 2023: The value of essential work, underscores the extent to which economies and societies depend on key workers, and also how they are undervalued.
ILO Assistant Director-General for Governance, Rights and Dialogue, Manuela Tomei says, “Key sectors are facing labour shortages because people are increasingly reluctant to engage in work which is not properly, adequately, fairly valued by society and rewarded in terms of better pay and improved working conditions.”
Drawing on data from 90 countries, key workers remain severely “undervalued” and their contributions insufficiently recognized.
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