Towards a more sustainable world – the UE efforts to establish more decent work conditions
Abstract
The aim of the paper is to present the evaluation of the EU activities in the promotion and implementation of more decent work conditions and therefore its contribution to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) outside EU.
The EU enforces sustainable development using different policies, including trade policy. Among specific sustainability issues addressed by the EU in trade agreements are human and labour rights, responsible business conduct and environmental protection. In such a way the EU contributes to the promotion of “sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all” (SDG 8). The EU’s portfolio of activities affecting third countries includes many solutions: 1) all recent EU free trade agreements contain chapters devoted to SDGs; 2) domestic and imported products made with forced labour may soon be banned on the EU market; 3) EU supports ILO’s efforts to improve labour conditions in third countries. At home, the EU is determined to achieve SDG goals set in agenda 2030, it also promotes the vision of Industry 5.0, in which the wellbeing of a worker is central for the production process. The results indicate that the EU is coherent in its policy – the model for enforcing labor rights in external relations is based on dialogue and cooperation, just as it is in domestic policy making.
Keywords
Decent work, EU trade agreements, labour rights, social clause, sustainable development.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.18267/pr.2023.kre.2490.9
Cite this paper
Kuźnar, A. (2023). Towards a more sustainable world – the UE efforts to establish more decent work conditions. In: 23rd International Joint Conference Central and Eastern Europe in the Changing Business Environment: Proceedings. Vydavateľstvo EKONÓM, Bratislava. pp. 117-132. https://doi.org/10.18267/pr.2023.kre.2490.9