The Acting Minister of Labor, Migration and Social Security has participated in New York in the Forum "The Business Dialogue on the Sustainable Development Goal 8: Commitments of the private sector for economic growth and decent work".
This forum is organized by the International Organization of Employers (OIE) in the framework of High Level Political Forum on the Sustainable Development Goals.
In his speech, Valerio stressed that companies have a "fundamental" role in achieving Sustainable Development Goals, especially of SDG 8, on sustainable growth and decent work. In this sense, Valerio recalled that for 15 years the United Nations Global Compact It is asking for the commitment of companies in economic development and respect for fundamental rights at national and international level, through corporate social responsibility. Similarly, in the Declaration of the Centenary of the International Labor Organization (ILO) for the future of work recognizes "the importance of the role of sustainable enterprises as generators of employment and promoters of innovation and decent work".
Therefore, "it is no novelty to firmly affirm the fundamental role that companies have in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and especially SDG 8, on sustainable growth and decent work," Valerio said.
The minister focused her intervention on the 4 challenges faced by governments, employers and workers' representatives: job insecurity, training, fair transition and equality. Valerio defended the importance of increasing the collaboration of governments, the business sector and workers' representatives in favor of "inclusive and people-centered economic growth" and opted for "tripartism" to undertake "a true revolution of decent work" .
"We have to take advantage of the innovative impulse of the private sector and achieve a better integration with the efforts deployed by public policies to advance towards an economy and a labor market based on decent employment," he said.
On the precariousness of work and the problems that arise from it, such as instability in employment, excess hours of work, unpaid overtime, lack of safety and health at work, proliferation of false self-employed in the economy of the digital platforms or submerged employment, Valerio said that "many times responds to the changes we are experiencing in the economic reality are faster than the processes of adaptation." He highlighted the plan launched by the Government in Spain to combat these problems, the Master Plan for a Decent Work 2018-2020, which has improved the quality of employment of more than 220,000 people.
Regarding the second of the challenges, the training in skills and skills for the future labor market, the minister stressed that "it is a collective commitment" and that it is necessary to work "together to support the working people through an effective system of lifelong learning and quality education ".
With this objective, he said, the Government of Spain has approved, with the support of trade union and business organizations, the Plan of Shock for Youth Employment 2019-2021 launched by Spain, with the unanimous support of trade union and business organizations and which provides, for example, that at least 225,000 young people are trained in collaboration with the private sector in digital competitions.
A just transition
Ministry of Labor, Migration and Social SecurityIn his speech, Valerio pointed out as another of the challenges that governments must face in the transition towards a "just and solidary economy". A transition, he said, that has to do with changes in the productive system towards a decarbonised economy marked by the demographic, environmental, digitization, robotization and artificial intelligence challenges. "We are facing a labor market in deep mutation, which requires a response to the challenges and opportunities," said Valerio.
The minister explained that the Government of Spain defends that the transition towards a climate-neutral economy must be managed in a "fair and solidary" manner, combining energy and climate policies with growth and employment policies. And in that direction, "it's going to adopt a Just Transition Strategy that should serve to not leave anyone behind ".
As a challenge to equality, the acting minister said that the Spanish government "is prepared to lead the international agenda on gender equality." And he asked for collaboration to "make tripartite reality (social dialogue) and in the framework of the United Nations a truly transformative agenda for women."
He also wished to thank the International Organization of Employers for its efforts to approve the ILO Convention 190 on the "Elimination of violence and harassment in the world of work" and its Recommendation. "Violence and harassment are incompatible with the promotion of sustainable enterprises and negatively affect the organization of work, relationships in the workplace, the commitment of workers, the reputation of companies and productivity," Valerio concluded.