REPORT OF ILO (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Economy)

Context: According to the latest International Labour Organisation (ILO) data on working hours, Indians are already the sixth most hardworking out of 163 countries in the world. The ranking is based on taking the average number of hours per week for each employed person in India, which works out to 47.7 hours.

Key Points

• Indian workers put in longer hours compared to several countries, including China, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
• However, India's working hours are shorter than those in smaller nations like Bhutan, the Congo, Lesotho, and Gambia.
• The central concern, as highlighted in discussions with industrialists like Murthy, revolves around productivity rather than the number of hours worked.
• India's global economic ranking is 131 out of 189 countries in 2021, based on GDP per hour worked, with data adjusted for purchasing power parity and GDP held constant at 2017 values.

International Labour Organisation (ILO)

• About: The International Labour Organization (ILO) is the United Nations agency for the world of work.
• Mandate: Its mandate is to advance social and economic justice through setting international labour standards.
• Motto: ILO’s mandate as the basis for peace is expressed today as Decent Work for all.
• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
• Parent organization: Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.
• Members: The ILO has 187 member states: 186 out of 193 UN member states plus the Cook Islands.
• Structure: It is the only tripartite U.N. agency that brings together governments, employers and workers’ representatives of 187-member States.