ILO Global Wage Report 2012/13

Nat O'Connor: There is a lot of interesting data in the latest ILO report focusing on the declining wage share of labour, and on static or falling earnings in the developed economies in particular.

The report is here (PDF).

The following description is from the ILO website:
"The 2012/13 edition looks at the macroeconomic effects of wages, and in particular at how current trends are linked to equitable growth. The gap between wage growth and labour productivity growth is widening, the difference between the top and bottom earners is increasing, and the labour income share is declining."

"These worrying changes affect the key components of aggregate demand – particularly consumption, investment and net exports – that are necessary for recovery and growth. The report looks at the reasons for these trends, which range from the increasing financial and trade globalization to advances in technology and the decline in union density."

"The report calls for internal and external “rebalancing” to achieve more socially and economically sustainable outcomes within and across countries, proposing policy actions beyond labour markets and national borders."

Dr Nat O'Connor     @natpolicy

Nat O’Connor is lecturer in social policy in UCD’s School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice and part-time policy specialist at Age Action Ireland. Previously Director of TASC, Nat also led the research team in Dublin’s Homeless Agency.

He has taught politics and social policy since 1999. He has a PhD in Political Science from Trinity College Dublin and a MA in Political Science and Social Policy from the University of Dundee. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK), a member of the National Economic and Social Council (NESC) and chairperson of the Irish Social Policy Association (ISPA). You can find him on LinkedIn (natoconnor) and TwitterX @natpolicy