Gilbert F. Houngbo, Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), has urged international financial leaders to place decent work and social justice at the heart of their policy agendas, stressing that robust labour institutions are essential to confronting rising geopolitical tensions and trade disruptions.
In written statements delivered to the World Bank Group / International Monetary Fund (IMF) Annual Meetings in Washington D.C., Houngbo emphasized that decent work policies, including minimum wage systems, collective bargaining and social protection, are essential for sustainable and inclusive development.
The ILO Director-General noted that there have been meaningful gains: inequality between countries has declined since the early 2000s and over half the world's population now has some form of social protection.
Yet he also warned that persistent structural challenges threaten these gains. "As uncertainty in the global economy persists with shifting geopolitical tensions and trade disruptions, the importance of building institutions that foster decent work for all could hardly be more critical," the ILO Director-General stated.
The ILO forecasts global employment growth at only 1.5 per cent in 2025, with the creation of 53 million new jobs, down from 60 million previously projected. Around 84 million workers, mostly in Asia and the Pacific, face elevated risk due to trade uncertainty. For its part, informal employment continues to outpace formal employment, with 58 per cent of the global workforce remaining in informal employment in 2024.
"These trends underscore ongoing challenges in translating economic growth into formal economy and decent employment opportunities," Houngbo noted.
The ILO Director-General highlighted that even as global output per worker grew by 17.9 per cent from 2014 to 2024, the labour income share declined from 53.0 per cent to 52.4 per cent.
"Had the labour income share remained at its 2014 level, global labour income would have been US$1 trillion higher in 2024, and each worker would have earned an additional US$290 on average that year."
Houngbo stressed the importance of minimum wage systems and institutions for collective bargaining to address low pay and wage inequality.
On the future of work, Houngbo addressed the disruptive potential of generative AI, as nearly one in four workers could see their role significantly transformed, with women disproportionately affected, according to ILO estimates.
"Whether AI adoption ultimately leads either to job losses or to complementarity depends on how technology is integrated, management decisions, and - fundamentally - the role of social dialogue between employers and workers in shaping implementation," he said.
In concluding remarks, Houngbo called for coordinated policy action under a renewed social contract.
"The real challenge is not an inherent conflict between economic and social objectives, but rather the need to take coordinated action that transforms this potential dilemma into a dynamic, mutually reinforcing synergy."
He stressed that a renewed social contract, anchored in democratic governance, inclusive dialogue, and people-centred policies, provides the institutional foundation and political legitimacy required to sustain progress.
