The Evolution of a Global Labour Governance Regime

Abstract

During the last decade, the approach by business and governments towards labour and social issues at the global level has fundamentally changed. Industrial relations are rapidly internationalizing by developing new actors and forms of governance to deal with the regulation of labour. This paper looks at the evolution of self-regulatory standards in the global labour governance debate. Key is that notwithstanding problems with the lacking legal framework of global regulation and enforceability, patterns of local self-regulation, norm-setting and international codes lead not only to higher expectations of the behaviour of trans-nationally operating firms but also to an indirect pattern of regulation. The paper argues that particularly the adoption of the Core Labour Standards by the ILO and the set up of the Global Compact by the UN serve as points of convergence. A plethora of voluntarist initiatives that converge over time towards a shared understanding of labour standards is part of the transformation of global labour governance institutions.

Keywords: Global Governance, labour standards