The Seoul Declaration on Decent Work City

The economic crisis experienced by the international community in the 21st century provides us an opportunity to reflect on the market fundamentalism, which is driven by unlimited competition. Without an active market complementary policy in place, the labor market will become increasingly polarized and the number of the working poor will dramatically rise. Also, such absence would decrease the number of quality jobs, curtail rights to work, weaken social protection and challenge social dialogue.

Despite the close connection between labor and economic policies, today, labor policies are no longer regarded as a mere subordinate to economic policies. There are growing calls from the international community for a paradigm shift from “more work” to “better work” in order to achieve sustainable development.

Approaching its centennial year in 2019, the International Labour Organization (ILO) has been preparing and promoting policies for Decent Work for the past two decades in consideration of the “future of work.” The organization proposed quality and quantity boost of employment, guarantee of rights to work, social protection, and social dialogue as the strategic pillars of the Decent Work Agenda, and has been thus far cooperating with its tripartite constituents around the world to realize the agenda.

Now is the time for all labor policy related actors to exert great efforts to reap real results from these policies. Moreover, innovation and expansion of policy actors are required for policy transformation. In this regard, now city level tripartite constituents and civil society are on the rise as important policy actors in addition to traditional actors of labor policies such as the central government and businesses.

The policies and subsequent accomplishments made by the ILO thus far not only give inspiration but also provide policy instruments to cities striving to create decent jobs. The cases of cities covered in this Forum all illustrate this point. As the role of cities acting as a space to implement the ILO’s Decent Work strategies become increasingly more significant, the need for city governments to actively devise and implement labor policies to achieve Decent Work is growing as well.

In this Forum, we shared decent work creation experiences of cities at home and abroad, and discussed related vision and strategies. In-depth discussions took place on why job creation strategies at the city level are required, what its goals and directions are, and what specific policies there can be. Moving beyond as a space where labor policies are passively executed, the importance of cities as main agents to carry out labor policies were also witnessed during the Forum.

Leading efforts of the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) to realize Decent Work under the banner of “Seoul, A Metropolitan City with Respect for Labor” is highly praised. And by taking into account the results of the “International Forum on Transforming Cities for Decent Work,” we aim to carve out a future path for the tripartite constituents and civil society of cities worldwide.

They are as follows:1. We agree with the ILO’s strategy for creating Decent Work, and strive to practice them at the city level. Cities’ tripartite constituents will join forces with international organizations and the central government to devise a Decent Work strategy at the city level, and to that end strengthen the international cooperation among cities.

2. We strive to create quality jobs at the city level. Ways to stabilize employment, including creation of decent jobs and the regularization of irregular workers, will be promoted. Also, easy access to jobs will be actively pursued, and efforts to provide sufficient education and training opportunities for workers today and tomorrow will be carried out.

3. We recognize the importance of ILO’s Fundamental Conventions, which include the basis of Decent Work, namely the freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, and we endeavor to provide appropriate social protection at the city level. We also aim to ensure opportunities that guarantee adequate wages such as the living wage for low-income workers, and strive to build effective social safety nets for workers both within and outside the labor market.

4. Based on the cooperation of the central government, Decent Work policies at the city level should be collectively made by all actors such as the city government, trade unions, employers’ organizations, and civil society. In this regard, we shall strengthen social dialogue and cooperation with all stakeholders at the city level.

5. We pursue a “Decent Work City Network” to share and spread “Decent Work City” strategies. We will establish a collaborative body of Decent Work Cities to share policies of one another, and spread results thereof.

6. We shall actively address challenges arising from a full scale reformation of the future of work propelled by economic digitization. We shall also proactively respond to various changes in employment arrangements that will spread in the future, while at the same time strive to build a “City with Respect for Labor.”

7. As the collaborator of the Forum, the ILO deeply agrees with the discussions that took place and the conclusion reached at the Forum, and strives to research, develop and spread Decent Work policies at the city level. ILO respects the efforts carried out by Seoul and other cities around the world to achieve Decent Work, and shall pursue to come up with constructive means of cooperation.

8. As the host of the Forum and the proposer of the “Decent Work City Network,” SMG will exert great efforts to share and spread the topics discussed at the Forum and the content of the Seoul Declaration with the tripartite constituents and civil society of cities around the world.

International Forum on Transforming Cities for Decent WorkAdopted in Seoul on September 6th, 2017

좋은 일자리 도시 '서울선언'

21세기들어지구공동체가겪고있는경제위기는무한경쟁을원리로하는극단적

시장주의(marketfundamentalism)를되돌아보는계기가되고있다.시장을보완하는

적극적인정책이없으면,노동시장은양극화되고빈곤노동층이양산된다.양질의

일자리는축소되고노동권은퇴보하며,사회적보호는약화되고사회적대화는도전

받게된다.

노동정책은경제정책과밀접하게연관되어있지만,노동정책을경제정책의종속

변수로사고하던시대는막을내렸다.지속가능한발전을실현하기위해‘더많은

일자리’를넘어‘더나은일자리’로나아가야한다는국제사회의목소리가커지고있다.

2019년출범백주년을맞아‘일의미래’를고민하고있는국제노동기구(ILO)는지난

20년동안‘좋은일자리’를위한정책을마련하고추진해왔다.고용의질향상,노동권

보장,사회적보호,사회적대화를‘좋은일자리’의전략으로제시하고,그실현을

위해세계각국의노사정과협력해왔다.

이제는노동정책주체들의과감한노력이필요한때다.정책영역의확장뿐아니라

정책주체의혁신까지포함한정책전환을도모해야한다.최근노동정책의영역은

중앙정부에서도시정부로확장되는추세이고노사및시민사회는그중요한주체로

떠오르고있다.국제노동기구의좋은일자리전략을실천하는장으로서도시의중요성이

커지고있으며,이에따라도시정부가노동정책을적극적으로개발하고실천할필요성도

함께커지고있다.

이번포럼에서우리는서울을비롯한국내외도시들의좋은일자리창출경험을

공유하고,그비전과전략을논의했다.도시차원의일자리창출전략이왜필요하고

그목표와방향은무엇이며그것의실현을위한구체적인정책은무엇인지를진지하게

논의했다.특히노동정책이수동적으로집행되는공간의의미를넘어노동정책을

실천하는주체로서도시가가진중요성을확인하였다.

이제우리는그동안‘노동존중특별시서울’을표방하며좋은일자리실현에앞장서온

서울시의노력을높이평가하고,‘좋은일자리도시국제포럼’의성과를담아세계

도시의노사정과시민사회가나아갈방향을다음과같이제시하고자한다.

1.우리는좋은일자리를만들기위한국제노동기구의전략에동의하며이를도시

차원에서실천한다.도시의노사정이국제기구및중앙정부와협력하여도시차원의

좋은일자리전략을마련할수있도록노력하며이를위한도시들의국제협력을

강화해나간다.

2.우리는도시차원에서양질의일자리창출을위해노력한다.일자리에쉽게접근할

수있는수단을적극마련하고,오늘과내일의노동자들에게충분한교육훈련기회를

제공하며비정규직의정규직화등고용안정방안을추진한다.

3.우리는좋은일자리의기초인결사의자유와단체교섭권을포함한ILO기본협약의

중요성을확인하고도시차원에서적절한사회적보호가제공되도록노력한다.

저임금노동자들에게생활임금등적정임금이보장될수있는기회를보장하고

노동시장안팎의노동자들을위한효과적인사회안전망의구축을위해노력한다.

4.도시차원의좋은일자리정책은중앙정부와의협력을바탕으로도시정부와노동

조합,사용자단체,시민사회등모든주체가함께만들어가야한다.이를위해도시

차원에서모든주체들이참여하는사회적대화와협력을강화해나간다.

5.우리는‘좋은일자리도시’전략을공유하고확산시키기위해‘좋은일자리도시

네트워크(DecentWorkCityNetwork)’를추진한다.좋은일자리도시들의협력체를

구축하여서로의정책을공유하며그성과를확산시킨다.

6.우리는경제의디지털화로일의미래가재구성되는도전에적극적으로맞선다.

고용형태의다양한변화에선제적으로대응하면서일하는사람들이존중받는도시를

구현하기위해노력한다.

7.국제노동기구는이번포럼에서이루어진토론과결론에깊이공감하며,도시차원의

좋은일자리정책을연구개발하고이를확산시키기위해노력한다.서울을비롯한

세계도시들의좋은일자리실현을위한노력을존중하고,건설적인협력방안을

마련해나간다.

8.서울시는이번포럼의주최자이자‘좋은일자리도시네트워크’의제안자로서포럼

에서논의된과제들과'서울선언'이세계도시의노사정과시민사회에널리공유되고

확산될수있도록부단히노력한다.

좋은일자리도시국제포럼

2017년9월6일서울에서채택