Decent Work in Global Supply Chains

Abstract

The integration of economies into global supply chains has fundamentally transformed labour markets worldwide. In recent decades, global value chains (GVC) have become a key driver of globalisation, with an offshoring boom in the 2000s leading to their sustained prominence - they now account for around 45 per cent of world trade. This growing integration both offers opportunities and carries risks, in particular in the Global South: while GVCs can create employment, facilitate technology transfer, and contribute to broader economic development, they can also expose workers to precarious conditions, low wages and labour-rights violations. Accordingly, the evidence on decent work in GVCs highlights both the potential for improved livelihoods and the persistent challenges related to labour-rights enforcement and corporate responsibility.