Annual Report
“Decent Work in Global Supply Chains” Annual Report 2024
2024
The Annual Report 2024 brings together recent and timely research on “Decent Work in Global Supply Chains”. The report consists of 10 concise chapters, written by the hosts and members of the Research Network Sustainable Global Supply Chains, which distil the latest research on key issues related to achieving decent work and advancing labour standards in global supply chains. Central themes include the impacts of GVCs on decent work, how GVCs can be leveraged for better jobs, and the crucial role of local labour regimes—such as workers’ bargaining power — and structural transformation processes in shaping equitable outcomes. In addition, several of the report's chapters explore the sectoral differences that influence working conditions in global supply chains and discuss the implications of the growing number of supply chain due diligence regulations, highlighting the importance of clear, cost-effective reporting standards.
Or see the separate chapters below:
Foreword by Dr. Bärbel Kofler (Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development)
Introduction by Jann Lay & Tevin Tafese (both German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA))
Chapter 1: Assessing decent work in global value chains: Lessons from Ethiopia and Vietnam by Jann Lay & Tevin Tafese (both GIGA)
Chapter 2: Leveraging global value chains for better jobs and shared prosperity in developing countries by Deborah Winkler (World Bank)
Chapter 3: GVC integration and structural change in Africa: Implications for labour markets and decent work by Emmanuel Mensah (Utrecht University)
Chapter 4: Digitalisation and decent work in global value chains by Karishma Banga (King's College London)
Chapter 5: Labour-Market dynamics and worker power in apparel global value chains by Lindsay Whitfield (Copenhagen Business School) and Kristoffer Marslev (Technical University of Denmark)
Chapter 6: Artisanal and small-scale mining in South Africa: Formalisation as a path to enforcing standards and decent work by Inga Carry and Veronika Jall (both German Institute for International and Security Affairs)
Chapter 7: Measuring supply chain due diligence: Introducing labour outcome metrics by Sarosh Kuruvilla and Jason Judd (both Cornell University)
Chapter 8: Raising the bar: Evaluating the potential and limitations of living income strategies for the cocoa sector by Anette Ruml and Jann Lay (both GIGA)
Chapter 9: Beyond compliance audits: A review of Better Work's journey in promoting decent work in the global apparel industry by Nikita Grabher-Meyer (Better Work Programme ILO)
Chapter 10: Measuring exposure to human rights risks in global value chains by Aleksandra Kordalska (Gdansk University of Technology), Jann Lay (GIGA), Stefan Pahl (UNIDO), Frauke Steglich (Institute for the World Economy (IfW)/GIGA), Tevin Tafese (GIGA), and Rainer Thiele (IfW)
Watch the full recording of the launch event here
