An Economic and Labor TOR for an Integrating Asia

Abstract

This paper argues that the twin labor demands for universal social protection and a just Asian floor wage must be linked to the demand for the full observance of core labor rights as well as the campaign for balanced and sustainable development for all in a post-GFC world. Without binding governments and transnationals (TNCs) to these intertwining demands, global companies will simply go on with their merry-go-round program of hopping from one country to the other in search of cheap and union-free production oases. The experiences of some unions to force full company compliance with the declared CSR programs of their TNC partners have led to closures and job losses instead of social and labor upgrading because the TNCs simply decide to look for new production sites. On the other hand, one major weakness of the ILO’s Decent Work campaign and Global Jobs Pact program is their failure to articulate more forcefully the inter-linked issues of universal social protection, global/Asian floor wage and people-centered development framework. The point is that the Race to the Bottom (R2B) can and should be transformed into a Race to the Top.