Papers and Briefs
December 2023
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Research Paper
Platform work in developing economies: Can digitilisation drive structural transformation?
31 December 2023
This paper discusses the expansion or penetration of digital economic activity in the context of developing economies, and what this may mean for economic or structural transformations for countries in the global South.
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ILO Working paper 100
The platform economy and transformations in the world of work: The case of delivery platform workers in Santiago, Chile
05 December 2023
This paper examines the experiences of delivery workers on digital labor platforms in Chile and analyses the implications of the platform business model. It highlights challenges in working conditions and algorithmic management practices, which are crucial to address for ensuring decent work, as Chile moves towards implementing a new law to regulate platform work.
November 2023
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Country Study
Employment effects of industrial symbiosis in the Tanzanian sugar sector
27 November 2023
This study investigates the impact of transitioning to a circular economy through industrial symbiosis on employment in the Tanzanian sugar industry. Data were gathered via company surveys and semi-structured interviews involving key stakeholders, including academics, government ministries, producers, and industry regulators. On-site visits to three sugar factories were conducted for survey administration.
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ILO Working paper 98
Mortality from COVID-19 in the US : Did unions save lives?
08 November 2023
This paper combines data from the NVSS with the CPS into a unique dataset to answer the question on whether unions saved lives during the COVID-19 Pandemic. It finds that if the United States had the union density of 35 percent that it had in 1954 instead of today’s rate of 10 percent, the COVID-19 mortality rate for working people would have been 19 per 100,000 instead of the 26 actually observed.
October 2023
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Policy brief
Generative AI and Jobs: Policies to Manage the Transition
11 October 2023
This Research Brief adds a global perspective to the debate on the labour markets and generative AI, and emphasizes the importance of policies ensuring job quality and fair transitions.
August 2023
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ILO Working paper 96
Generative AI and Jobs: A global analysis of potential effects on job quantity and quality
21 August 2023
This study assesses the potential global exposure of occupations to Generative AI, particularly GPT-4. It predicts that the overwhelming effect of the technology will be to augment occupations, rather than to automate them. The greatest impact is likely to be in high and upper-middle income countries due to a higher share of employment in clerical occupations. As clerical jobs are an important source of female employment, the effects are highly gendered. Insights from this study underline the need for proactive policies that focus on job quality, ensure fair transitions, and that are based on dialogue and adequate regulation.
July 2023
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ILO Working paper 95
Artificial intelligence in human resource management: a challenge for the human-centred agenda?
25 July 2023
This paper offers guidance as to when and where the use of AI in HRM should be encouraged, and where it is likely to cause more problems than it solves.
June 2023
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ILO Working paper 94
Who creates jobs with broad skillsets? The crucial role of firms
26 June 2023
Using matched firm-level and online job vacancy data from India, this study finds significant heterogeneity in skill requirements across firms within the same occupations. It also shows that more competitive and innovative firms require digital skills and specific combinations of digital and other skills. The study highlights that firms are not passive recipients of new technologies, but rather play a crucial role in defining the changing nature of work.
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ILO Working paper 92
Occupational Safety and Health, Frontline Workers, and the COVID-19 Pandemic in the U.S.
07 June 2023
The Report provides an overview of U.S. occupational safety and health and related laws providing protection to workers in the US; traces the effects of the pandemic on workers in the U.S. and reviews the federal agencies’ and states’ responses to the risk of COVID-19 within workplaces.
March 2023
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ILO Working paper 89
What has been driving work-to-work transitions in the emerging world? – A comparative study of Indonesia and South Africa
23 March 2023
This paper examines the shape, prominence and drivers of work-to-work transitions in South Africa and Indonesia – two middle-income countries with similar development levels yet different labour market characteristics.