Image copyright: ILO/LIVINGSTON ARMYTAGE
Across Asia, employment is abundant. According to the World Bank, in the last decade, South Asia alone has created some 800,000 jobs a month. But job quality often leaves much to be desired. Of the eight core conventions established by the International Labour Organization to protect workers, as of 2012, Burma had ratified only two, and India, only four. Bangladesh and Burma have not yet set a minimum wage, while in Laos, full-time workers may earn as little as US$75/month. Most developing Asian countries require no mandatory health or employment insurance for workers.
In South and Southeast Asia, garment factories have drawn millions of agricultural workers from rural areas. In Bangladesh alone, five million people — 85% of them women — work in the sector. Most of Vietnam’s two million garment workers are women under 25 years old. While these manufacturing jobs bring much needed income, labour standards are often disregarded, leaving women and youth especially vulnerable.
Migration offers one outlet for excess labour from South Asia, but migrants are at risk of ill treatment and sub-standard working conditions, with few legal protections. Entrepreneurship, meanwhile, offers millions a path to better livelihoods. Countries across Asia are searching for the right mix of rules and incentives to stimulate and support small business as a stepping stone to prosperity.
Promoting inclusive growth and fair employment
Better jobs in Asia will demand creative responses from governments, employers and entrepreneurs. IDRC is helping Asian research institutions to identify options that will create the conditions for inclusive growth, leading to more and better employment. Supported research focuses on the most vulnerable, enhancing training opportunities for women and youth; identifying the right frameworks to protect workers and improve their conditions; and pinpointing the ingredients for small business success. IDRC also invests in research leadership in the region, so a new generation can help steer decisions that will shape the labour environment in Asia for years to come.
