Knowledge Resources
Here you get to understand what decent work is, the current state of decent work in different sectors in various African countries, and what several studies show about the capacity and possibilities of various organisations and sectors implied in decent work.
Four pillars of decent work
Decent work assessments
Research findings
Knowledge repository
What is decent work?
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), decent work is work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for families; better prospects for personal development and social integration; freedom for people to express their concerns, to organize and participate in the decisions that affect their lives, and equality of opportunity and treatment for all women and men.
Why is decent work important?
Raising awareness about its importance and taking concrete measures to plan, implement and monitor decent work is crucial because it directly impacts economic growth, social cohesion, and overall well-being. Building structures to implement decent work at the workplace and at the institutional level helps create a fair and just labour market, reduces inequality, and promotes sustainable development. For enterprises, promoting decent work can unlock new markets and attract customers who value and are drawn to the company’s commitment to fair labour practices. By fostering an environment where decent work is prioritised, societies can achieve more inclusive and resilient economies, benefiting individuals, communities, and nations.
What hinders the implementation of decent work?
The implementation of decent work faces several challenges. Weak regulatory frameworks and poorly enforced labour laws make it difficult to uphold workers' rights and ensure fair working conditions. Many workers operate in the informal sector without formal contracts or legal protections, complicating the enforcement of decent work standards. A lack of awareness among employers and workers about labour rights and the benefits of decent work leads to non-compliance and exploitation. Additionally, limited access to social security systems leaves workers vulnerable to risks such as illness, injury, or unemployment without adequate support.
Economic pressures and weak institutional capacity further hinder the adoption of decent work practices. Businesses, especially in low-income countries, may prioritise cost-cutting over fair labour practices due to economic constraints and competitive pressures. Government agencies and labour institutions often lack the resources, training, or authority to effectively monitor and enforce labour standards. Cultural and social barriers, including discrimination and entrenched norms, perpetuate inequalities and hinder policies promoting decent work for all, particularly for marginalised groups. Furthermore, the dynamics of global supply chains often lead multinational corporations to exploit labour in countries with weak governance of the labour market, complicating efforts to ensure decent work across borders.
Why is a platform like this needed?
Decent work remains a challenge for development practitioners who aim to strengthen the capacity of enterprises, worker organisations and governmental institutions to improve jobs and conditions for workers. Particularly, contexts which are characterised by low income, high informality, or workers who face difficult and dangerous working conditions, pose challenges.
This platform is designed to provide insights and practical guidance with focus, namely, on challenges related to fragile context, NEETS and informal economy. Depending on your learning needs, you can discover this platform via one of the three routes below: get inspired, get into practice and get trained.
Decent work and its 4 pillars
- Job Creation is about ensuring everyone has access to job opportunities, also in contexts of high unemployment. Creating jobs involves stimulating an environment conducive to investment, entrepreneurship, and skill development. Job creation is important because it supports sustainable livelihoods and enhances employment prospects.
- Rights at Work: help to ensure that the fundamental principles and right at work are respected and workers can enjoy the benefits of decent work (e.g., salary, benefits and compensation for illness or injury) and are protected from exploitation (e.g., long working hours or unpaid over-time) and other forms of abuse.
- Social Protection: ILO’s Decent Work Agenda targets rapid implementation of national social protection floors of basic social security guarantees that ensure universal access to essential health care, education, and income security. With the perspective on employment, the focus lies on safeguarding workers' well-being (in the formal and informal sectors) by ensuring workplaces are safe and conducive to health, providing access to essential benefits such as healthcare coverage, pensions for retirement security, and parental leave to support work-life balance.
- Social Dialogue: Encouraging workers to engage in decision-making processes at different levels through unions promotes effective communication between employers, employees, and government authorities. This dialogue helps in establishing fair workplace policies and advocating for broader labour rights, influencing both local and global labour standards and development policies.
Background of the Decent Work Agenda
The Decent Work Agenda of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) is a comprehensive framework promoting fair and productive employment conditions globally. Since its launch in 1999, it has been a prominent goal of tripartism and social dialogue, involving governments, employers, and workers' organizations from the ILO’s 187 Member States. The Decent Work Agenda increasingly guides the operations of governments, employers, and civil society in their efforts to improve the quality of work and the institutional capacity of the stakeholders involved.
The Decent Work Agenda is built on four strategic pillars: employment creation, rights at work, social protection, and social dialogue. Gender can be considered as a fifth transversal pillar, running across the main four pillars.
These pillars are not isolated. The pillars are mutually reinforcing and highlight the comprehensive nature of decent work. Effective implementation requires a holistic approach that addresses each pillar simultaneously, ensuring that improvements in one area support advancements in others.
These pillars also align with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG8, which emphasises sustainable economic growth, productive employment, and decent work.
Decent work is an objective that includes all workers, irrespective of age, gender, position and so on. It includes jobs in private businesses and government jobs. The jobs can be formal and informal and located in large companies, small and medium-sized companies (SMEs), and self-entrepreneurs. Due to the vulnerability of certain groups, decent work programmes often target subcategories of workers. Particularly young people who have less experience and less access to high-quality jobs receive special attention in decent work. So do women, who often work in informal contexts, receive lower wages and face harassment and discrimination that exclude them from participation in decision-making and representative bodies.