AMRITSAR: The first meeting of the Labour20 (L20) engagement group, as part of India’s G20 presidency, was held here on March 18-20. Trade union leaders, labour studies experts and delegates from 20 nations called for universalisation of social security and to put women at the centre of future of work.
In the inaugural session Hiranmay Pandya, L20 Chair and National President of Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, which is the secretariat for L20, said that in tune with the spirit of G20 in 2023, the workforce of the world is one family. He highlighted the G20 theme #OneEarth #OneFamily #OneFuture and how the concept was relevant to labour movements globally.
Women hit the most
CK Saji Narayanan, former National President of BMS, spoke about the role of women in workforce. He said that economic crisis adversely impacts women the most, and hence the future of work depends majorly on women workforce, which needs direction globally. It is also important to evolve a global mechanism for portability of social security, in view of the latest trends in labour migration worldwide, he said.
Arun Maira, former member of the Planning Commission of India, said India seeks peace and harmony in the world, and noted that it was time to bring back the “family spirit” in economy. He said there were many communities which were concerned about their future wellbeing in the economy and in society. These included women, youth, farmers, factory workers, self-employed workers, and microenterprises. He said all of them must be listened to now.
Labour migration
The meeting saw conversations on International Migration of Labour and Portability of Social Security Funds; Social Protection for Informal Workers; Skill Training and Skill Upgradation and Role and Responsibilities of Employers, Employees and Governments; Changing World of Work and New Employment Opportunities in G20 Countries; and Promoting Sustainable Decent Work.
Experts on labour issues such as Prof. Santosh Mehrotra; Dr. PravinSinha; Prof. Ravi Srivastav; Vice Chancellors Prof. N. Santosh Kumar of Tamil Nadu; Dr. B.R Ambedkar Law University and Prof. A.D.N Vajpayee of Bilaspur University participated in the deliberations.
