The
International Trade Union Conference (ITUC) has issued their first edition of
Global Rights Index. The publication ranked countries in how well they
protected employment rights such as freedom of association, collective bargaining
and the right to strike.
Of all the
countries that were surveyed, only Denmark was observed to have maintained all
97 fundamental aspects of employment rights as found in international human
rights legislation. In total, just 18 countries violated these rights only
occasionally.
In
approximately 40 per cent of these nations, the rights were violated
systematically or were not guaranteed. In 53 countries, employees had been
dismissed or suspended from their workplace for trying to obtain better conditions
for their fellow workers.
The United
Kingdom was placed in the category of states where the workplace rights are
regularly violated together with the likes of Sri Lanka, Tanzania and
Venezuela, but below the category that included countries such as Albania and
Angola.
It is hoped
that the index would be a useful tool in determining how people are able to
secure better working conditions for themselves or, at least, to protect
themselves from being exploited from unscrupulous employers. Another expectation
is that the index will assist lobbyists and others to highlight where
governments are failing to guarantee these human rights and then pressurise
them for change.
In the past,
the likes of Kate Pickett and Richard Wilkinson in ‘The Spirit Level’ have
shown, to a certain degree (and which has been disputed by some social
commentators), how social inequality has correlated with poor living
conditions. The ITUC’s index could feed into the debate by showing that
equality as demonstrated through fair working conditions could lead the
improvement within society as a whole (e.g. a more equitable distribution of
wages may lead to a reduction in crimes like theft and robbery).
The authors of
the publication do make an important caveat in that the results of the survey
need to be put into a global context, as multinational companies may operate to
affect the rights of their employees across borders, It was argued that, while
the governments were to made accountable for employment legislation and
regulation for their individual nations, the denial restriction of employee is
also, as David Wearing comments in ‘The Guardian (22 May 2014), ‘the product of
relations of power that operate across national boundaries.’
It is
noticeable that the worst countries for employee-friendly are mainly in the
southern hemisphere and Asia. It was argued that the nations in the southern
hemisphere were coerced into forcing low wages upon their workforce by those in
the global north, through the institutions such as the IMF, the World Trade
Organisation and the World Bank.
David Wearing
concludes his article by stating: ‘To address the problems highlighted by the
ITUC it is vital to challenge not only the behaviour of nation states, but also
the exploitive dynamics inherent to globalised capitalism itself.’
There may be
elements within the index that people may disagree with and the conclusions
that are attained may be contested; however, the Bible states clearly that
employees have rights. These rights include paying s decent wage to the worker
on time (Leviticus 19: 13; Deuteronomy 24: 15; Jeremiah 22: 13; Malachi 3: 5;
James 5: 4), looking after the welfare of the employee (Luke 7: 2), the
employee is not to be threatened by the employer (Ephesians 6: 9), and the
right of appeal against any unjust behaviour by the employer (Job 31: 13 – 14).
The principle
is set down in Colossians 4: 1 – ‘Masters, provide your slaves with what is
right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven,’
Whether we are
employers or employees, the gold standard for the Christian is always looking
to God as our ultimate employer and making the work environment a place where
He is glorified.
Comments