Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden, launched a partnership to promote “decent work.” They reaffirmed their mutual commitment to workers’ rights by signing a protocol in a groundbreaking initiative between the two countries. The initiative aims to combat precarious work through unions.
“We don’t want just one class to do well; we want the poor to have the opportunity to progress in life. The rich do not pay enough taxes. This vision is driven by a strong workforce. I am proud that my administration has been characterized as the most pro-union in U.S. history,” Biden said in his speech.
The guidelines of the Partnership for Workers’ Rights include protecting labor rights, promoting decent work in public and private companies, combating discrimination in the workplace, a worker-centered approach to the transition to clean energy, and using technology and digital transition for decent work.
In his speech, Lula praised the historic nature of the alliance and spoke about the current challenges in promoting decent work on the planet after a decade of neoliberalism, an economic regime of intense exploitation of workers.
“The result is that we have 2 billion workers in the informal sector, according to the International Labour Organization. The concrete fact is that we have 240 million workers who, despite working, live on less than $1.90 a day. It is unacceptable that women, ethnic minorities, and LGBTQIA+ people are discriminated against in the labor market,” he declared.
The Brazilian leader also advocated for strengthening the role of unions. “Those who believe that weak unions make employers more money, that the country will be better off this way, are mistaken. There is no democracy without strong unions. Because unions are effectively the ones who speak on behalf of workers and try to defend their rights,” he continued.
The two heads of state committed to encouraging other nations to join the partnership and to try to reverse the existing situation of exploitation. “In all these international forums, we will work to create the conditions for all governments to accept a protocol like the one we are signing here,” President Lula said.
They also plan to establish an agenda focused on valuing the role of workers in multilateral institutions such as the G20, COP28, and COP30.
Source: Agência Brasil