The wages of workers have improved — leading to better living conditions— across the world. But increased wages are not alright many times in different countries because of diverse factors including the rising cost of living and inflation rates, affecting the lives of workers. The wages of workers in developed countries tend to be higher than those in developing and less developed countries because of various economic and other factors such as higher productivity, advanced technology and stronger labor unions. According to multiple sources, millions of workers find it difficult to bear the cost of their living in many countries in Asia, Africa and other regions, leading to concerns.
There are policy-based and other challenges to ensuring fair wages for workers. Varying labor laws and regulations, differing economic conditions, economic downturns, a lack of fair wage structure and inadequate transparency in pay structures put challenges to providing fair wages to workers. Economic downturns including the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s and the global financial crisis in 2008 led to wage cuts, along with workers’ job loss, in many developed, developing and less developed countries. Additionally, limited access to quality education and training opportunities, discrimination based on gender or ethnicity and exploitation of undocumented workers present obstacles to increasing wages for workers globally. Among others, cultural norms and attitudes towards labor rights and inadequate representation of workers’ rights in labor unions hinder progress in fair wages.
Governments have taken legal and other steps to address the challenges to fair wages that helped improve the rights, wages and working conditions of workers. Different countries have implemented minimum wage laws, implemented measures to penalize companies that engage in wage discrimination, increased collaboration with businesses to develop fair wage practices and provided tax incentives for companies that pay higher wages. Additionally, governments have invested in education and training programs to help workers develop skills that are in demand in the labor market, ultimately leading to higher wages. In different countries, governments also established trade/labor unions and promoted collective bargaining rights for workers, facilitating negotiations for higher wages and better working conditions for workers in many countries.
But there are diverse flaws in the steps taken in many countries and they are more in developing and less developed countries. There is a lack of enforcement mechanisms and insufficient collaboration with international organizations to set universal standards for fair wages. Additionally, political corruption and lobbying from powerful corporations often hinder progress toward fair pay for workers. Resistance from employers to implement fair wage policies hinders progress in providing fair wages many times. Among others, there is also a failure to address the underlying systemic issues such as income inequality and many government initiatives prioritize short-term gains over long-term sustainability — leading to inconsistent or unsustainable wage increases.
It may be difficult for many countries to maintain the existing fair wage levels during the economic crisis but steps are needed to address challenges and provide fair wages for workers. For this, making and implementing fair wage policies and regulations that ensure workers are paid a living wage and encouraging companies to adopt transparent and fair wage structures and prevent discrimination are vital in many countries. But promoting transparency in salary structures and collaborating with businesses to develop fair wage practices are also crucial steps for many countries. Among others, strengthening trade union bodies may be helpful in many countries.
Amir M Sayem
Chief Editor
Dhaka Opinion Magazine
