Charting a Course Towards Universal Social Protection: Resilience, Equity, and Opportunity for All, known as the Social Protection and Jobs Compass updates the World Bank strategy for social protection amid rapid change both within the sector and beyond. The Compass puts at its heart the vision of universal social protection. It recognizes that the progressive realization of universal social protection, which ensures access to social protection for all whenever and however they need it, is critical for effectively reducing poverty and boosting shared prosperity.

Read this World Bank’s Compass

… because there are alternatives!

Read the newest report by Isabel Ortiz and Matthew Cummins

Worldwide employment in renewable energy reached 12.7 million last year, a jump of 700,000 new jobs in one year, despite the lingering effects of COVID-19 and the growing energy crisis, according to a new report.

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A perfect storm is brewing in the global food system, pushing food prices to record high levels, and expanding hunger. The continuing fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine War, climate-related disasters and a breakdown of supply chains have led to widespread protests across the global South triggered by the spiraling food prices and shortages.

As international institutions struggle to respond, some governments have resorted to knee-jerk ‘food nationalism’ by placing export bans to preserve their own food supplies and stabilise prices. While this is an understandable defensive response, the solution lies in a more systemic, transformative approach.

Read the article by Anuradha Chenoy

“We expected Charles to get the crown. We didn’t expect him to make a billion-dollar fortune first.”

By 1977, the year of the queen’s Silver Jubilee, the political winds had begun to take a distinctly rich people-friendly turn. In 1979, outspoken free-marketeer Margaret Thatcher would become the UK prime minister, and her political soulmate Ronald Reagan would win the White House in 1980. Both moved quickly to cut taxes and regulations that burdened the rich. Both would attack — aggressively — the trade unions that stood up for working people.

Young Prince Charles would soon be exploiting the myriad money-making opportunities this new era offered…

Read the article by Sam Pizzigati

ITUC calls on all governments to adopt laws and reforms to close the persistent global gender pay gap of over 20%.

Systematic discrimination, undervaluation of women’s work and their disproportionate share of unpaid care work are the overarching root causes of the gender pay gap.

The disparity is even higher for women with multiple and intersecting identities and in sectors where women are predominant, such as health and care where the gender pay gap is 24% and most of the top earners are men.

This is compounded by women’s exclusion from accessing paid decent work. The labour force gender participation gap remains stuck at 27% and the majority of women are in precarious and informal jobs with inadequate minimum wages and limited or no access to social protection.

Furthermore, the gender gaps have widened due to the disproportionate employment and income losses for women due to the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read ITUC’s article

The global erosion of trust in the global institutions is the direct result of non-delivery on the most crucial challenges that face humanity such as inequality, poverty, and climate change. South-South Cooperation can play a vital role in reinvigorating multilateralism. Beyond its horizontal engagements it has already begun supporting and enriching processes, institutions and norms-building at the global level. However, changing the superstructures that have discriminated against many developing countries will require a strategy that involves prioritising, coalition-building and coordination.

Read the article of the South Centre

A new social-democratic era depends on the high, progressive taxation which made the postwar decades so successful in the west.

Read the article by Johann Pall Johannsson