ILO Partners with Private Sector to Ensure Fair Living Wages in Supply Chains
Translated & summarized from Davar by baba
The International Labour Organization (ILO) has partnered with Unilever, Amfori, and the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) to promote fair living wages in global supply chains. The agreement aims to translate committee findings that minimum wages are often insufficient into practical action by re-evaluating wage policies and reducing the gap between minimum and living wages. The ILO will facilitate discussions and provide data to help companies implement living wage policies, with stakeholders emphasizing the importance of collaboration for sustainable progress.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- ILO signed a cooperation agreement with Unilever, Amfori, and RBA to ensure fair living wages in global supply chains.
- The agreement aims to address the issue that minimum wages in many countries are insufficient for a dignified life.
- The ILO will convene roundtables in production countries to develop roadmaps for advancing living wages.
- Unilever, Amfori, and RBA will receive data and guidance to implement consistent living wage policies.
- Stakeholders emphasized the critical need for collaboration between workers, employers, and governments.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) has entered into a landmark cooperation agreement with private sector entities to promote fair living wages across global supply chains. The agreement, signed in late September, involves Unilever, the business coalition Amfori, and the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA). This initiative aims to translate the findings of a joint committee, which determined that minimum wages in many countries are insufficient for a dignified life, into practical action.
The ILO seeks to re-evaluate wage policies in relation to the cost of living and reduce the gap between minimum wages and actual living costs. The goal is to connect private sector initiatives in global supply chains with national institutions that influence minimum wage, collective bargaining, and social dialogue in production countries.
Unilever, a major British multinational consumer goods corporation, will see the ILO convene roundtables in key production countries. These discussions will involve governments, employer organizations, and worker organizations to develop roadmaps for advancing living wages, strengthening collective bargaining, and addressing local challenges like the informal economy and low productivity that contribute to low wages.
For Amfori, a global business association focused on open and sustainable trade, the ILO will help align its methodology for calculating living wages with ILO principles and provide reliable wage data from production countries. The ILO will also collaborate with the RBA, a large industry coalition dedicated to corporate responsibility, to provide data-driven wage assessments and guidance for implementing consistent living wage policies across their supply chains.
Unilever's Global Sustainability Vice President, Ryan Botter, stated that promoting living wages is crucial for building strong supply chains and decent work, emphasizing the need for collaborative solutions involving workers, employers, and governments. Amfori President Linda Kromjong highlighted the potential for a common, reliable reference point for living wages, based on ILO's definition and methodology, to focus resources on practical implementation. RBA Executive Director Rob Lederer expressed anticipation for the project's data-driven approach to wage setting in global supply chains. Peter Lerner, Director of International Relations at the Histadrut, noted that the ILO's dialogue with multinational companies presents an opportunity for Israel to participate in standardization that benefits workers globally and promotes fair global trade.