Living Wage : Complexity & Interconnectedness
Nicole Sherwin
Chief Impact Officer | Empowering business to transform & magnify sustainability impacts in the value chain | #daringgreatly #bethechange
Many reflections and eye opening moments after attending IDH Living Wage & Living Income Summit last week in Amsterdam.
Too much to share in a simple Linkedin Post and even still too much to share in a single article... so you had to be there. But in an attempt to summarize and capture some key voices and perspectives for you to reflect on...
? Key Themes
??Honesty & Humility ? "There are millions of workers living in poverty. The aim is to initiate more action, and to do so honesty is key" Isabelle Kumar // "We invite you to be really honest with one another. Humility and shared accounability is needed to take things to the next level." Daan Wensing
??Willingness vs. Ability ? "Take into account the capacity of companies to pay a living wage, which is often constrained by the prices and practices of the buyers" Manuela Tomei, ILO Assistant Director-General, Governance, Rights and Dialogue // "Start with 'coalitions of the willing'. But if we do not create accountability for all, it will slip back." Gerbrand Haverkamp
? Level Playing Field ?"I am hopeful for CS3D to give a level playing field where buyers will source from those which implement decent work. If we only do this in Uganda then buyers will leave... but the buyers will find the same issues in Kenya, Ethiopia, etc." Janapher Nassali , General Secretary at Uganda Horticulture, Industrial, Service Providers and Allied Workers Union (UHISPAWU).
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?? Foundations
"Out of the SDG2000s [2,000 most influential companies in the world] only 4% took public steps on living wages for direct employees, and 3% for their supply chains" Gerbrand Haverkamp
"No one should work a lifetime for something that does not meet their basic needs" Daniel Kostzer
"There's a difference between what companies say publically vs. do internally... it's a comfort thing. There's fear to admit you have a [living wage] gap. When you start to look there's a lot of work to do. Put a plan in place to close it, and yes including the business case, but there is a huge cost of not doing it, so consider the human cost" Rachel Cowburn-Walden
"You cannot afford to transition to sustainable practices (e.g. renewables), if you do not have the income to do so... this is about systemic transformation" Steven Collet
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?? Complexity & Interconnectedness
"Decent work is also about ensuring jobs are available, but quality of jobs matter (e.g formal employment vs. informal). Nations feel pressure to focus purely on job creation, but incorporating even improvements to minium wage policies can reduce informal or domestic work = better working hours, happier employers. Anchor efforts in transforming societies; in existing national institutions which are responsible for defining a level playing field." Manuela Tomei, ILO >>>Side note: It was shared by Janapher Nassali, General Secretary, UHISPAWU - that minium wage in Uganda was set in early 1980s at 1.50€ per MONTH, and has not changed since. That is 18€ per year.
"Break the silos between environment and social. We know the connections between deforestation and land rights, between plastics and waste pickers... these connections exist for living wage." Rachel Cowburn-Walden
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"Looking at the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agenda: Imagine... that living wage can impact many of these goals, some directly, some indirectly, some within the process. I challenge you to draw the lines and you will find connections to all 17 of them." Daniel Kostzer
"Systemic transformation and a level playing field can happen via the work in the supply chains, via regulation such as CS3D. The EU is perceived as putting down trade blocks, including and especially with the 'global south'. Let's be clear: The EU wants to reinforce and have a positive impact on the 'global south'. We HAVE TO get this part right... to enable, educate and support. This is not the EU imposing on others. It is the right of ALL: for human rights, social justice and environmental justice." Steven Collet
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?? Let's talk money
"Pricing is a sacred topic. There is no sharing or transparency. Buyers rely on suppliers to share pricing, but workers are not represented here. Employers generally have the willingness to pay, but the ability to pay is not only with them. Here the buyers are key." Janapher Nassali , General Secretary at Uganda Horticulture, Industrial, Service Providers and Allied Workers Union (UHISPAWU).
"We try to be pragmatic. This is why we engage buyers. Pilots help us understand what it looks like to make the case. When I go to get my Chief Procurement Officer's buy-in on securing 1.3B CHF (1.34B EUR or 1.44B USD) I can show it as an investment in supply chain resilience" Yann Wyss
"We used our company values, including one on 'Be Real' to make the ask for $40M: 'We are going to be real. We need $40M and by the way this will only help us close 10-20% of the living wage gap. Are we in?! And here is what we will not be achieving, because to do so will cost X, but the point is for us to start to really make a difference and meet farmer's needs." Angela Tejada Chavez
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??In conclusion... I value the words shared by Marjan De Bock-Smit of ImpactBuying
"It is not about what you did not do, it's about what you do."
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4 个月"You cannot afford to transition to sustainable practices (e.g. renewables), if you do not have the income to do so... this is a about systemic transformation?? ??