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UNI GS, Philip Jennings, calls for G20 to take action on jobs and workers’ rights and companies to adhere to human rights due diligence in the workplace

UNI Global Union General Secretary, Philip Jennings, has urged G20 Labour Ministers to make good on the promises made in their Ministerial Declaration at their meeting in Bad Neuenahr, Germany, last week. The Declaration (see attached files) was agreed by the Ministers after fraught negotiations, which included members of the Trump administration. The G20 followed the union summit or L20 as it is known. The L20 was addressed by Chancellor Angela Merkel, and German Employment Minister, Andrea Nahles.

Jennings who spoke at the L20 Labour Ministers meeting, said, “The Ministers have talked the talk on cleaning up global supply chains, provide decent work, ensure living wages and integrate migrants, women, refugees and young people into the workplace. Now they must deliver. We are living in an increasingly unequal and unstable world and their actions can help create levels of sustainability and growth that would free people from poverty and end the scourge of inequality which is destroying our communities.”

ITUC General Secretary Sharan Burrow said, “Labour markets need to work for working people, and the Ministerial Declaration is a basis for a global economy that works for everyone. Global supply chains are based on a model of low wages, insecure and unsafe work with increasing informal work and modern slavery. We would like to see every country mandate the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights for workers in global supply chains, with due diligence and grievance procedures that enable remedy against exploitation for the millions of workers on whom multinationals rely on for their products and services.”

Jennings added, “Chancellor Merkel made specific reference to global agreements in her speech to the L20 and are pleased to see the G20 Declaration state, ‘we encourage businesses to promote decent work…through International Framework Agreements…’ We urge businesses and other governments to take note. UNI has more than 50 such agreements and the Bangladesh Accord. These agreements are not CSR fluff but commitments by companies to raise standards in worker rights, to be held accountable and to engage in a dialogue with unions global and local. In the case of the Bangladesh Accord, the agreement is legally binding and brands that do not reach the high standards agreed are held to account. The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights or Ruggie Principles inform all our agreements.

“The UNI Management Committee, which met earlier this month, agreed that businesses must demonstrate a real commitment to human rights and in carrying out proper human rights due diligence. The UNI MC concluded that having a global agreement in place should be integral to the due diligence process. UNI is exploring ways to assume a formal role in the due diligence programs, building upon its experience in the Bangladesh Accord.

“The G20 Declaration runs to 39 paragraphs and taken together reinforce our Breaking Through mission and our commitment to the Future World of Work. The Declaration gives further weight to our work for responsible supply chains, the Ministers emphasise ‘that violations of decent work and fundamental principles and rights at work cannot be part of the competition.’ The also ask G20 members to consider ‘the inclusion of fundamental principles and rights at work and decent working conditions in trade agreements.’ They also emphasise the need for unions and businesses to work together.”

G20 Labour Ministers made commitments to:

Clean up global supply chains:
- We reaffirm our commitment to international guidelines and frameworks such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UN Guiding Principles). (Paragraph 22) 
  We will encourage initiatives to improve occupational safety and health across global supply chains. (Paragraph 25) 
  We emphasise that wages should take into account the needs of workers and their families, the cost of living and economic factors. In this respect, minimum wage legislation and collective bargaining in particular can set income floors to reduce income inequality, eliminate poverty wages and achieve sustainable wage growth. (Paragraph 26)
- We underline the importance of providing access to remedy. (Paragraph 28)

Eradicate modern slavery and forced labour:
- We also commit to take immediate and effective measures, as called for by SDG 8.7, both in our own countries and globally, towards eradicating modern slavery, forced labour and human trafficking, and by 2025 end child labour in all its forms. (Paragraph 23)

Fundamental rights at work:
- The inclusion of fundamental principles and rights at work and decent working conditions in trade agreements. (Paragraph 24 b)

Decent Wages:
- We emphasise that wages should take into account the needs of workers and their families, the cost of living and economic factors. In this respect, minimum wage legislation and collective bargaining in particular can set income floors to reduce income inequality, eliminate poverty wages and achieve sustainable wage growth. (Paragraph 26)

Future of Work: 
  Priorities on the future of work (ii) promoting adequate social protection and social security coverage for all workers (iii) respect for fundamental principles and rights at work is a foundation for social dialogue and collective bargaining in a changing world of work.

G20 leaders meeting at the Hamburg summit in July must endorse the commitments of Labour Minsters and implement national action plans on due diligence and grievance procedures for remedy against violations of workers’ rights in global supply chains in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.