Foreword
With gratitude and a big smile on our faces, WageIndicator proudly presents the Labour Rights Index 2022 with the world. The Labour Rights Index is a unique Index that scores and rates 135 countries in the world on the basis of their national labour law and how these laws relate to the Decent Work Agenda of the International Labour Organisation. It is the only Index in the world that compares national labour laws at this scale.
As the legal backbone of the Labour Rights Index, we find WageIndicator’s Decent Work Check. The Decent Work Check is used in national WageIndicator websites in 135 countries, and in WageIndicator projects at factory and plantation level in Indonesia, Ethiopia and Uganda, empowering garment workers and flower growers.
The Index is not stand-alone but is part of ongoing research on and structuring of national labour laws in 135 countries and counting, as part of WageIndicator’s aim towards more labour market transparency on a global scale. The Labour Rights Index 2022 is a collective effort within WageIndicator with our labour law team at the Centre for Labour Research in Pakistan, and the global team.
In comparison to the first launch of the Labour Rights Index in 2020 that covered 115 countries, we see that there are many global and country level changes in the areas of family responsibilities and fair treatment, including but not limited to paid paternity leave, equal remuneration for work of equal value, and allowing women to have access to the same jobs as men. Together with the ripple effects within their regions, these reforms have the potential to lead toward greater equality in the global labour market.
Next to celebrating the unique nature of the Index, we also take a moment to reflect on the timing in which this second Labour Rights Index came to life, as in 2020 the world changed rapidly. The COVID-19 pandemic was not only a health crisis, but it also affected the world of work. Millions of people lost their jobs, many started to work from home and/or remotely, and policy makers were struggling with laws and regulations that proved inadequate to this new situation. Because of this, the 2022 Labour Rights Index also includes the effects of COVID-19 on the countries included in the Index.
In the countdown to the launch, Pakistan was hit by devastating floods during the 2022 monsoon season, and hence the team in Pakistan had to pause their work for a while. We are grateful for their hard work and dedication, and are thankful that they are safe, while our hearts are with the victims of the floods.
We hope you enjoy this comprehensive Labour Rights Index and that it provides you with the information that you need for your work, your research, your advocacy campaign, your policy paper, or simply broadening your understanding of labour laws in a comparative perspective.
Happy Decent Work Day!
Fiona Dragstra
Director WageIndicator Foundation