World employment social outlook: Greening with jobs

This ILO report quantifies job losses and job creation in the transition to a green economy, based on projections to 2030 founded on the agreed policy goal of limiting global warming to 2°C. More generally, it finds that the greening of economies can have a positive overall effect on growth and jobs. Positive employment outcomes will also probably apply in the 1.5°C scenario, as encouraged by the Paris Agreement. The report shows that environmental laws, regulations and policies that include labour issues offer a powerful means of integrating elements of the Decent Work Agenda with environmental objectives. This is true for social protection programmes, skills development programmes, macroeconomic policy and the legal framework. Though some degree of integration is observed in all these domains, it is not yet systematic and not yet universal. For example, while environmental legal frameworks can be effective in combining some elements of the Decent Work Agenda with environmental objectives, the respective provisions often focus on particular groups of workers (such as additional support for local communities, training in areas that are key for the transition, and the protection of workers in specific sectors). The transition affects all workers, however; the universality of rights and protection therefore remains important to ensure that the transition delivers inclusive growth and decent work.