Work To Boost Development In Asia-Pacific Region

International Trade Union Confederation

ITUC OnLine 183/271008

Boosting Development in the Asia-Pacific Region Through Decent Work

Brussels, 27 October 2008 (ITUC OnLine): Trade union leaders gathering at the XIV Asia Pacific Labour Network Conference, taking place in Lima (Peru) on 27-28 of October, have called for a far-reaching reorientation of the policies of Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

"We are living a global financial crisis that may leave at least 20 million additional people unemployed by next year, according to the ILO," said ITUC General Secretary Guy Ryder. " APEC must broaden its scope away from trade and investment liberalisation in order to deal with the economic and social realities of the people of the region. Equally, APEC leaders must take a leadership role in tackling the social consequences of the current global financial turmoil."

That is the message that union leaders will be relaying to President Alan García of Peru, the host to this year's APEC Leaders' Summit in November, and to the Executive Director of APEC when they meet them today. Union leaders will call on President García to convey their proposals to create decent work and mainstream social concerns to the Leaders' Summit.

There is a grave deficit of decent work in the APEC area: trafficking, lack of freedom of association, neglect of collective bargaining, child sexual exploitation, and forced and compulsory labour are daily issues for millions of workers and people around the region. Trade unions will therefore be maintaining their long-standing position that APEC must play its role and include social issues adequately in its agenda.

The APEC forum must equally integrate workers' representatives of the region represented in the ITUC Asia Pacific Labour Network (APLN) into its decision-making and consultation process through a formal consultative mechanism in order to have a balanced counterpart to the existing permanent business advisory committee.

For the full ITUC/APLN Statement, please consult: http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/APLN_statement_2008_-FINAL.pdf

The ITUC represents 168 million workers in 155 countries and territories and has 311 national affiliates

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