On 15 March 2023, the International Labour Organization (ILO) published a new report on key workers – who played a vital role during the COVID-19 pandemic – and their relevance in the daily functioning of economies, examining their working conditions, wages, and the challenges they face.
Last January, workers, employers, and government representatives from the region met online for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Leadership Programme on the Just Transition to discuss the latest research, knowledge, and insights and to share best practices in shaping a just transition to a green future of work.
On 16 January 2023, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) launched the new flagship report on the impact of the economic slowdown on the global labour market, providing a comprehensive overview in light of various crises and international conflicts.
It shows that the current situation is likely to force more workers to accept lower quality, poorly paid jobs which lack job security and social protection, so accentuating inequalities exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis.
On 28-29 November 2022, in Algiers, in collaboration with the Algerian Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, took place the first regional meeting of the Social Dialogue for Formalization and Employability in the Southern Neighbourhood Region (SOLIFEM) Project.
Constituents from Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) discussed with International Labour Organization (ILO) experts, the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) the achievements of the SOLIFEM project in the inception phase and re-affirmed the importance of social dialogue as a path towards formalisation and decent work for youth in the Middle East and North Africa region.
On 8 December 2022, Eurofound published a new report on telework during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
It analyses changes in working conditions experienced by employees and regulations, addressing issues related to this working arrangement, shaping the future of remote working, and identifying challenges and opportunities for the future.
On 6 January 2023, the International Labour Organization (ILO) released the new report, Working Time and Work-Life Balance Around the World, providing a comprehensive review of working hours and working time arrangements and their effects on workers' work-life balance.
It is the first-ever ILO global report on working time.
On November 2022, the Federation of Uganda Employers, in partnership with the ILO, launched a new Report that looked at the impact of Covid -19 on Ugandan workplaces.
The research study, based on a survey that covered a wide crosssection of enterprises in many sectors, aimed to understand better the effects of Covid and the plans of enterprises.
It shows that many enterprises have had to significantly alter their operations and production processes, human resource strategies, work modalities, and many other aspects of their enterprises, but also that Covid-19 created a range of new opportunities and challenges for the human resources side of a business.
A technical meeting on the future of work in the oil and gas industry was held in Geneva from 28 November to 2 December 2022, as decided at its 341st Session (March 2021) by the Governing Body of the International Labour Organization (ILO).
The meeting discussed opportunities and challenges for a just transition to a future of work that contributes to sustainable development in its economic, social and environmental dimensions.