Towards the next century: ILO debates technology and its impact on working lives

ILO India, Director, Dagmar Walter speaks at a technical workshop that addresses emerging technologies and the future of work.

Statement | New Delhi, India | 13 September 2018
Respected members of the audience, our valued stakeholders, friends from the media, subject-matter specialists, ladies and gentlemen:

It is my pleasure to be part of this technical discussion on the future of work together with you here today.

The ILO launched the Future of Work initiative at its International Labour Conference in 2015, in view of its Centenary to be celebrated in 2019, next year. This initiative examines the impact of transformative global drivers on the world of work and how we may respond to the challenges to create the future of work we want.

2016 was largely devoted to national future of work dialogues, including ILO’s tripartite constituents —governments, employer and worker organizations – academia, youth, media and others. National dialogues were held in over 110 countries.

In India, alone we have held several discussions over 2016 and 2017 –looking specifically at how the youth perceive these changes in terms of skills, aspirations, jobs, and working conditions. We are aiming to get a sense of the shifts in our world of work as per the specific economic circumstances.

As phase two of the Future of Work initiative, the ILO established a Global Commission on the Future of Work in 2017. The Commission, chaired by the Prime Minister of Sweden, Stefan Löfven, and the President of the Republic of South Africa, Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, brings together a diverse group of experts from around the world. This 28-member commission concentrates on six themes covering specific aspects of the world of work such as – the role of work for individuals and society, bringing an end to women’s pervasive inequality in the world of work, technology for social, environmental and economic development, new approaches to growth and development, the future governance of work and managing change during every phase of transformation and transition.

Around the world, national and transnational economies are facing diverse and different challenges in respect to their development paths. Given the profound technological encroachments in our working lives – this mega-trend must be fully-mapped so as to understand how it impacts jobs, societies, and aspirations.

The challenge is about shaping a future that provides decent and sustainable work opportunities for all. It is a global challenge although its country-specific forms vary. Our aim is to support our constituents to take advantage of the opportunities as well as prepare for the challenges that digitization and automation present for the workers in modern times.

How can we shape a future of work we want?

Our dialogue today is undertaken in collaboration with Tandem Research. Some of the findings of the working paper ‘Emerging technologies and the future of work in India’ will be presented here. We will provide an overview of the issues involved in the “technology and work” debate that is happening in India today.
I hope you will find the discussion of interest and that it will stimulate further detailed work on the subject.

Thank you for your attention.