SDG 8: Promote Sustained, Inclusive and Sustainable Economic Growth, Full and Productive Employment and Decent Work for All

This chapter examines the multifaceted content of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8, Decent Work and Economic Growth, and its relationship with the other SDGs. It argues that, if the aim of SDG 8 is to end exploitative employment practices, then its stress on “decent work for all” should inform the interpretation of all relevant targets and indicators. This is achievable insofar as SDG 8 offers inclusive protection of migrant and other precarious workers, attending to discrimination in the labour market. Also vital is the recognition of a collective voice for all those at work, as advocated by International Labour Organization (ILO) and UN reports. While ILO and UN human rights instruments and institutions inform and promote this approach to SDG 8, international economic and investment law as well as financial institutions have the capacity to limit its potential. There are, however, positive shifts on the horizon, which include transnational collective bargaining and policy initiatives encompassing state and non-state actors.