DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION ARE THE FUTURE OF WORK

Other than equipping the youth with social and technical skills needed to navigate highly disruptive workplaces, organisations and governments would need to foster a culture of lifelong learning and eliminate gender and other discriminations to secure their future

- MICHIKO MIYAMOTO

IN every generation, the youth inherit a world fraught with new challenges and opportunities that they must navigate deftly to create systems that work for them. This also holds true for the youth of the current generation, with the added caveat that they are living through a time of unprecedented social, economic, political, demographic and digital changes.

Despite this backdrop, youth enter the complex world of work with boundless energy, enthusiasm, and ambition to advance their careers and make meaningful contributions that lay the foundation for the rest of their professional lives. However, this momentum needs to be maintained to see them through their ambitions until the end of their careers, navigating the crests and troughs, especially when met with inequity and other challenges.

Hundreds of millions around the world suffer from discrimination in the world of work, which not only violates their fundamental human rights but has wider economic consequences, like widening the chasm of inequality. The International Labour Organization was founded on the principle of social justice as the basis for universal and lasting peace, which in itself is premised on the equality of opportunity and non-discrimination. Being the United Nations’ normative agency, these have further been enshrined in the International Labour Standards that form the core conventions through the equal remuneration and non-discrimination conventions.