The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has recently issued a series of policy briefs for union reps to help them learn how to develop and implement policy with the aim of negotiating a “human-centred recovery” in line with health, social, environmental and climate change goals.

In order to do that, they need to know which social protection policy options are the best for their country and be aware of the implications of each option for social protection coverage and benefits.

This new resource package, therefore, includes a “Workers’ Guide to ILO Conventions” looking at minimum standards of social security as well as a series of policy briefs on “What workers‘ organisations need to know“. The policy briefs address a number of key issues in current social protection debates and include the following:

  • How to close gender gaps in social protection. This brief provides an overview of the root causes of gender-related social protection gaps and the ILO’s strategy for filling them. It offers a wide range of successful examples of gender-responsive social protection programmes and reforms from around the world that workers’ representatives may use as a reference for promoting gender-responsive social protection policies in their own country.
  • How to extend social protection to informal economy workers. This aims to help workers' representatives better understand the complexity of and the challenges involved in extending social protection coverage to workers in the informal economy and the different policy choices countries have implemented to overcome these challenges.
  • How to create “fiscal space” for social protection financing. Pointing out that ILO member states have a range of strategies to mobilise more resources such as increasing tax revenues, re-allocating public expenditure, increasing aid and eliminating illicit financial flow, this brief aims to provide reps with a better understanding of the challenges related to the creation of fiscal space for social protection financing and the different policy options to overcome them.
  • How to implement adequate pension schemes and reforms. This brief provides reps with information about which pension policy options are the best for their country and what ILO social security conventions say, regarding the different pension models. It also provides information about the various financing mechanisms and the implications of each option for social protection coverage and benefits.
  • How to promote the ratification of ILO standards. This brief has a particular emphasis on Convention No. 102 which sets out minimum standards for social security. It provides reps with information about how to ensure their application at national level as a basis for progressively extending adequate and sustainable social protection to all.

To read more detail on each of the policy briefs, click here.