Oslo Declaration: Confidence In European Jobs And Growth Can Be Restored, ILO Says

Guy Ryder, ILO Director-General

OSLO – In a move to restore confidence in jobs and growth in Europe, the 9th European Regional Meeting of the International Labour Organization (ILO) adopted the Oslo Declaration.

The Declaration which strengthens the role of the ILO in Europe and Central Asia is set to help countries affected by the crisis to overcome its negative economic, social and political consequences and restore trust.

“Let me assure you that we will be diligent in using the Oslo Declaration in formulating our ideas and activities in Europe,” ILO Director-General Guy Ryder said in his closing remarks.

He took the opportunity to thank the Norwegian hosts of the meeting for their support in getting “things done – and get them done well.”

Referring to the 2009 Global Jobs Pact adopted by the ILO’s International Labour Conference (ILC) in Geneva, the Oslo Declaration calls for “sustainable approaches in order to promote jobs, growth and social justice.”

“Fiscal consolidation, structural reform and competitiveness, on the one hand, and stimulus packages, investment in the real economy, quality jobs, increased credit for enterprises, on the other, should not be competing paradigms.”

The Declaration calls upon the ILO to assist its European and Central Asian members to design sound and equitable reform policies through:

• Fostering decent work and job creation, including employment-friendly macroeconomic policies, investment in the real economy, an enabling environment for enterprises, competitiveness and sustainable development, while respecting fundamental rights at work;
• Improving job quality and closing the gender wage gap;
• Building and maintaining business confidence and enterprise sustainability, particularly of small and medium-sized enterprises;
• Helping job seekers through efficient and effective active labor market programs, particularly young and older workers, and promoting women’s labor market participation;
• Addressing skills mismatches between the skills of workers and the needs of the labor market;
• Promoting the implementation of the ILC 2012 Call for Action on the youth employment crisis;
• Enhancing investment in research and development, including innovative technologies and the green economy;
• Promoting adequate and sustainable social protection systems;
• Promoting strong and responsible social dialogue between governments, employers and workers at all levels which contributes to equitable distribution, social progress and stability;
• Supporting the full realization of the ILO 2008 Social Justice Declaration with particular attention to fundamental rights at work.

The Declaration calls for an exceptional response from the ILO to help stem the jobs crisis in Europe, including high-quality research, analysis, advice and assistance to members, exchange of experience, and capacity building.

It also calls for more synergies and policy coherence with other international and regional agencies and forums, particularly the G20, IMF, OECD, the World Bank, the EU and the Eurasian Economic Commission.

The ILO European and Central Asian member States meet every four years to forge policies and set priorities for the region. 38 ministers and vice-ministers attended the meeting which draws more than 500 participants from 51 European and Central Asian member States of the ILO.