The Future of Work - Democracy, Development and the Role of Labour

Background:

The last four decades have been marked by neoliberal hegemony and intensification in the process of globalization and financialization, which are presented as the main components of world economic order. Unregulated global capitalism has led to instability and deep financial and productive crises, resulting in high unemployment and an increase of inequality, informalization and precariousness of labor. 

The implementation of successive structural reforms have contributed to the reduction of social protection and labor regulation, weakening the role of trade unions and hampering their struggles and strategies of organization - nationally and internationally - widening social inequality within nations and asymmetries between nations in economic development, insertion in the global value chains and in the international division of labour. Furthermore, the international agenda of our times is marked by the growth of right-wing and extreme right-wing forces in several nations. Also the profound ongoing technological changes create concerns about the future of labor, the organization and role of trade unions, public labour regulation, on the possibilities for reducing global asymmetries in global value chains and in the international division of labour.

The XIII GLU Conference will debate these challenges with a focus on four sub-themes: 

1. Structural Changes and Impacts on Labour 

2. Trade Union Organization and Strategies 

3. Labour Regulation 

4. Development