Decent work according to ILO

Decent work means opportunities for every- one to get 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. It is also important that all women and men are given
equal opportunities in the workplace. A continued lack of decent work opportunities, insufficient
investments and under-consumption lead to an erosion of the basic social contract underlying
democratic societies: that all must share in progress.

Nature of Employment Conditions of >Employment Working Conditions & Rest

>Periods Hours of Work Salary and wages Benefits

Increasing employment and ensuring decent work for all are essential aspects of sustainable
development. Quality employment and decent work conditions help reduce inequalities and
poverty, and empower people, especially women, young people and the most vulnerable such as
people with disabilities. We therefore support our partner countries in creating and promoting jobs
that provide decent earnings, ensuring safe working conditions, providing social protection, and
safeguarding workers’ rights.

In general, work is considered as decent when:

 it pays a fair income

 it guarantees a secure form of employment and safe working conditions
 it ensures equal opportunities and treatment for all
 it includes social protection for the workers and their families
 it offers prospects for personal development and encourages social integration
 workers are free to express their concerns and to organize

Benefits of promoting employment and decent work Promoting employment and

ensuring decent work for all can have a tremendous impact on individuals and
communities.

Benefits include:

Improved living standards

With work being the main source of income, creating jobs can increase material well-
being, family stability, and create a virtuous cycle of poverty reduction. Having a decent
job and a social protection coverage can provide people with a sense of dignity and
eventually lead to their social inclusion.

Raised productivity
 Jobs allow for the production of goods and services in the economy and the transition
from low to high productivity has proven to lead to economic growth for society as a
whole. Moreover, decent work ensures inclusive growth, with fair wages and equal
opportunities for all. But to create decent job opportunities, skills must efficiently match
market needs, with targeted quality education and training programmed in cooperation
with government and private sector.

Social cohesion

Joblessness is often seen by the public as being linked to weak democracy.

Unemployment and poor working conditions breed frustration and a sense of social
injustice. This is especially true for young people: one risk of feeling excluded from civic
participation or community activities can be that young people turn towards violent
groups and civil unrest.

Promoting employment and decent jobs helps build public trust and encourages civic
engagement, especially as employment helps fight social isolation. When people are
engaged in a decent job and enjoy labor rights, they feel part of the community.

 Holidays, service incentive leaves & service charges

Right to holiday pay

(a) Every worker shall be paid his regular daily wage during regular holidays, except in retail and
service establishments regularly employing less than ten (10) workers;
(b) The employer may require an employee to work on any holiday but such employee shall be
paid a compensation equivalent to twice his regular rate; and
(c) As used in this Article, “holiday” includes: New Year’s Day, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday,
the ninth of April, the first of May, the twelfth of June, the fourth of July, the thirtieth of
November, the twenty- fifth and thirtieth of December and the day designated by law for
holding a general election.

Right to service incentive leave

(a) Every employee who has rendered at least one year of service shall be entitled to a yearly
service incentive leave of five days with pay.
(b) This provision shall not apply to those who are already enjoying the benefit herein provided,
those enjoying vacation leave with pay of at least five days and those employed in
establishments regularly employing less than ten employees or in establishments exempted
from granting this benefit by the Secretary of Labor and Employment after considering the
viability or financial condition of such establishment.
(c) The grant of benefit in excess of that provided herein shall not be made a subject of
arbitration or any court or administrative action.

Service charges
 All service charges collected by hotels, restaurants and similar establishments shall be
distributed at the rate of eighty-five percent (85%) for all covered employees and fifteen percent
(15%) for management. The share of the employees shall be equally distributed among them. In
case the service charge is abolished, the share of the covered employees shall be considered
integrated in their wages.

Working Conditions for special groups of Employees – Employment of women)

 Working conditions are at the core of paid work and employment relationships. Generally
speaking, working conditions cover a broad range of topics and issues, from working time
(hours of work, rest periods, and work schedules) to remuneration, as well as the physical
conditions and mental demands that exist in the workplace. The ILO monitors trends and
developments regarding working time, work organization, and work-life balance around the
world and analyses key and emerging issues, in order to provide ILO constituents and
policymakers with practical information and research-based policy advice grounded in state-of-
the-art knowledge. In addition the ILO seeks to collaborate with national research institutes and
academic institutions to obtain the state-of-the-art knowledge needed to support workers and
employers in developing and implementing balanced working time arrangements that can
protect workers’ health, benefit their well-being and work-life balance, and promote
sustainable enterprises as well.

Health, safety and social welfare benefits

 Based on ILO estimates, 2.3 million workers die every year from work-related injuries
and diseases. An additional 160 million workers suffer from non-fatal work-related
diseases and 313 million from non-fatal injuries per year. The economic costs to
companies and economies is significant. The ILO estimates that more than 4 per cent
of the world's annual GDP is lost as a consequence of work-related injuries and
diseases.
The health of workers is a major determinant of productivity. Health problems can
also lead to discrimination against workers (for example, those with HIV/AIDS or TB)
or result in major expenditures for governments and enterprises. A vicious circle of
poor health, reduced working capacity, low productivity and shortened life
expectancy is a typical outcome in the absence of social interventions addressing the
underlying problems of irregular and low quality employment, low pay and the lack
of social protection. International organizations can help to promote health and
safety at work – and the most effective measures tend to be those that actively
involve workers’ and employers’ organizations.

Occupational Health & safety - safety and health standards

 One of the fundamental principles of the ILO Constitution is the “protection of the worker
against sickness, disease and injury arising out of his employment” [19]. In adopting the
Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization [6], the ILO institutionalized the Decent
Work concept, which had been earlier adopted at the 87th ILO Conference [4] and reaffirmed
the continuation of OSH as the basic principle of Decent Work. It also established the InFocus
Programme on SafeWork. This was further reinforced by the adoption of the ILO Centenary
Declaration [20], confirming OSH as a fundamental element of Decent Work.

Disability & death benefits

 The employer pays for the worker’s salary if the worker becomes disabled or is unable to work.
An employer can provide either short-term or long-term disability insurance depending on the
needs of the employee. Short-term covers for the employee for up to 6 months while long-term
covers a worker’s lifetime’s salary.

Insurance benefits
 Insurance benefit plans are great ways to show your employees that you care about them. The
organization pays specific amounts of money to cover an employee’s medical care. These
include insurance for losses from accidents, disability, sudden death, dismemberment. Other
types of medical care involve dental checkups, biometric screening, etc.

Unfair Labor Practices

 Unfair labor practices are mainly the employers’ acts of “discrimination” against trade union
officers, members and workers due to their participation in a trade union and acts of
“manipulation and interference” against the trade union organization and operation. These acts
can weaken or even damage the capacity of trade unions and cause fear to genuine trade union
representatives.

Laws protecting worker

 The ILO works with countries to extend social protection in two ways: by pushing for the rapid
implementation of national social protection floors of basic social security guarantees that
ensure universal access to essential health care and income security while also improving
existing social protection schemes to provide higher levels of benefits, progressively, to as many
people as possible.