IWS Documented News INTERNATIONAL

[IWS] CRS: INTERNATIONAL TRADE: RULES OF ORIGIN [5 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:00:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Congressional Research Service (CRS)

International Trade: Rules of Origin

Vivian C. Jones, Specialist in International Trade and Finance

Michael F. Martin, Analyst in Asian Trade and Finance

January 5, 2012

http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/180678.pdf

[full-text, 22 pages]

Summary

Determining the country of origin of a product is important for properly assessing tariffs,

enforcing trade remedies (such as antidumping and countervailing duties) or quantitative

restrictions (tariff quotas), and statistical purposes. Other commercial trade policies are also

linked with origin determinations, such as country of origin labeling and government

procurement regulations.

Rules of origin (ROO) can be very simple, noncontroversial tools of international trade as long as

all of the parts of a product are manufactured and assembled primarily in one country. However,

when a finished product’s component parts originate in many countries—as is often the case in

today’s global trading environment—determining origin can be a very complex, sometimes

subjective, and time-consuming process.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the agency responsible for determining country of

origin using various ROO schemes. Non-preferential rules of origin are used to determine the

origin of goods imported from countries with which the United States has most-favored-nation

(MFN) status. Preferential rules are used to determine the eligibility of imported goods from

certain U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) partners and certain developing country beneficiaries to

receive duty-free or reduced tariff benefits under bilateral or regional FTAs and trade preference

programs. Preferential rules of origin are generally specific to each FTA, or preference, meaning

that they vary from agreement to agreement and preference to preference.

CBP has periodically proposed implementing a more uniform system of ROO as an alternative to

the “substantial transformation” rule that is currently in place. CBP’s last proposal was on July

25, 2008, when it suggested that a system known as the North American Free Trade Agreement

(NAFTA) rules system “has proven to be more objective and transparent and provide greater

predictability in determining the country of origin of imported merchandise than the system of

case-by-case adjudication they would replace.” The NAFTA scheme that would be applied hasd

already been used for several years to determine the origin of imports under the NAFTA, and for

most textile and apparel imports (about 40% of U.S. imports). The CBP proposed to apply the

NAFTA rules to all country of origin determinations made by CBP, unless otherwise specified

(e.g., unless the import enters under a preferential ROO scheme already in place). The proposed

rule changes received so many responses from the public that the deadline for public comment

was extended twice, until December 1, 2008. Such changes in rules of origin requirements are

often opposed by some importers due to costs involved in transitioning to new rules, or because

they believe that certain products they import might be at a disadvantage under a new ROO

methodology. According to CBP officials, CBP decided not to implement the proposed rule.

This report deals with ROO in three parts. First, we describe in more detail the reasons that

country of origin rules are important and briefly describe U.S. laws and methods that provide

direction in making these determinations. Second, we discuss briefly some of the more

controversial issues involving rules of origin, including the apparently subjective nature of some

CBP origin determinations, and the effects of the global manufacturing process on ROO. Third,

we conclude with some alternatives and options that Congress could consider that might assist in

simplifying the process.

Contents

Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1

Rules of Origin in U.S. Practice ...................................................................................................... 1

Non-Preferential Rules of Origin .............................................................................................. 2

International Agreements on Non-Preferential ROO .......................................................... 3

Preferential Rules of Origin....................................................................................................... 4

“Tariff Shift”........................................................................................................................ 5

Technical Test...................................................................................................................... 5

Local Content or Regional Value Content Test ................................................................... 6

Pros and Cons of U.S. Rules of Origin Methodology...................................................................... 6

Proliferation of Preferential ROO.............................................................................................. 7

Concerns about Inefficiency................................................................................................ 7

Influence of Domestic Industries ........................................................................................ 8

CBP Country of Origin Determinations .................................................................................... 9

Proposed Changes ............................................................................................................. 10

Subsequent Hearing........................................................................................................... 11

Customs Decision.............................................................................................................. 11

2008 CBP Proposal ........................................................................................................... 11

Global Manufacturing and Rules of Origin............................................................................. 12

The Case of the Apple iPod............................................................................................... 13

Effects on Rules of Origin................................................................................................. 14

Counter to U.S. Policy Objectives? ......................................................................................... 14

Quotas ............................................................................................................................... 15

Trade Embargoes............................................................................................................... 15

“Yarn Forward” Rule......................................................................................................... 16

Food Imports ..................................................................................................................... 17

“Buy American” ................................................................................................................ 17

Conclusion and Options for Congress ........................................................................................... 18

________________________________________________________________________

This information is provided to subscribers, friends, faculty, students and alumni of the School of Industrial & Labor Relations (ILR). It is a service of the Institute for Workplace Studies (IWS) in New York City. Stuart Basefsky is responsible for the selection of the contents which is intended to keep researchers, companies, workers, and governments aware of the latest information related to ILR disciplines as it becomes available for the purposes of research, understanding and debate. The content does not reflect the opinions or positions of Cornell University, the School of Industrial & Labor Relations, or that of Mr. Basefsky and should not be construed as such. The service is unique in that it provides the original source documentation, via links, behind the news and research of the day. Use of the information provided is unrestricted. However, it is requested that users acknowledge that the information was found via the IWS Documented News Service.

[IWS] Call for Papers: "HRM and (SOCIAL) INNOVATION" (ILERA HRM Study Group Meeting 2012, Philadelphia, USA)

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:54:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

The 2012 meeting of the HRM Study Group of the ILERA (http://www.ilo.org/ilera) will be held during the 16th World Congress of the ILERA in Philadelphia, USA, 2–5 July 2012 (http://www.ilera2012.com/).

Please note the following:

Call for Papers "HRM and (Social) Innovation" (ILERA HRM Study Group Meeting 2012, Philadelphia, USA)

http://www.zagelmeyer.com/mediapool/42/420779/data/2012_ILERA_CallforPapers.PDF

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] BLS: UNION MEMBERS -- 2011 [27 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:02:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

UNION MEMBERS -- 2011 [27 January 2012]

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/union2.nr0.htm

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/union2.pdf

[full-text, 12 pages]

In 2011, the union membership rate--the percent of wage and salary workers who

were members of a union--was 11.8 percent, essentially unchanged from 11.9

percent in 2010, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The number

of wage and salary workers belonging to unions, at 14.8 million, also showed

little movement over the year. In 1983, the first year for which comparable union

data are available, the union membership rate was 20.1 percent and there were

17.7 million union workers.

The data on union membership were collected as part of the Current Population

Survey (CPS), a monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households that obtains

information on employment and unemployment among the nation's civilian

noninstitutional population age 16 and over. For more information, see the

Technical Note.

Highlights from the 2011 data:

--Public-sector workers had a union membership rate (37.0 percent) more

than five times higher than that of private-sector workers (6.9

percent). (See table 3.)

--Workers in education, training, and library occupations had the

highest unionization rate, at 36.8 percent, while the lowest rate

occurred in sales and related occupations (3.0 percent). (See

table 3.)

--Black workers were more likely to be union members than were white,

Asian, or Hispanic workers. (See table 1.)

--Among states, New York continued to have the highest union membership

rate (24.1 percent) and North Carolina again had the lowest rate

(2.9 percent). (See table 5.)

Industry and Occupation of Union Members

In 2011, 7.6 million employees in the public sector belonged to a

union, compared with 7.2 million union workers in the private sector.

The union membership rate for public-sector workers (37.0 percent) was

substantially higher than the rate for private-sector workers (6.9

percent). Within the public sector, local government workers had the

highest union membership rate, 43.2 percent. This group includes

workers in heavily unionized occupations, such as teachers, police

officers, and firefighters. Private-sector industries with high

unionization rates included transportation and utilities (21.1

percent) and construction (14.0 percent), while low unionization rates

occurred in agriculture and related industries (1.4 percent) and in

financial activities (1.6 percent). (See table 3.)

Among occupational groups, education, training, and library

occupations (36.8 percent) and protective service occupations (34.5

percent) had the highest unionization rates in 2011. Sales and related

occupations (3.0 percent) and farming, fishing, and forestry

occupations (3.4 percent) had the lowest unionization rates. (See

table 3.)

Selected Characteristics of Union Members

The union membership rate was higher for men (12.4 percent) than for

women (11.2 percent) in 2011. (See table 1.) The gap between their

rates has narrowed considerably since 1983, when the rate for men was

about 10 percentage points higher than the rate for women. Between

1983 and 2011, the union membership rate for men declined by almost

half (12.3 percentage points), while the rate for women declined by

3.4 percentage points.

In 2011, among major race and ethnicity groups, black workers were

more likely to be union members (13.5 percent) than workers who were

white (11.6 percent), Asian (10.1 percent), or Hispanic (9.7 percent).

Black men had the highest union membership rate (14.6 percent), while

Asian men had the lowest rate (9.1 percent).

By age, the union membership rate was highest among workers 55 to 64

years old (15.7 percent). The lowest union membership rate occurred

among those ages 16 to 24 (4.4 percent).

Full-time workers were about twice as likely as part-time workers to

be union members, 13.1 percent compared with 6.4 percent.

Union Representation

In 2011, 16.3 million wage and salary workers were represented by a

union. This group includes both union members (14.8 million) and

workers who report no union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by

a union contract (1.5 million). (See table 1.) Government employees

comprised about half of the 1.5 million workers who were covered by a

union contract but were not members of a union. (See table 3.)

Earnings

In 2011, among full-time wage and salary workers, union members had

median usual weekly earnings of $938, while those who were not union

members had median weekly earnings of $729. In addition to coverage by

a collective bargaining agreement, earnings differences reflect a

variety of influences, including variations in the distributions of

union members and nonunion employees by occupation, industry, firm

size, or geographic region. (See table 2.)

Union Membership by State

In 2011, 29 states and the District of Columbia had union membership

rates below that of the U.S. average, 11.8 percent, while 21 states

had higher rates. All states in the Middle Atlantic and Pacific

divisions reported union membership rates above the national average,

while all states in the East South Central and West South Central

divisions had rates below it. Union membership rates declined over the

year in 29 states and the District of Columbia, rose in 19 states, and

were unchanged in 2 states. (See table 5.)

Seven states had union membership rates below 5.0 percent in 2011,

with North Carolina having the lowest rate (2.9 percent). The next

lowest rates were recorded in South Carolina (3.4 percent), Georgia

(3.9 percent), Arkansas (4.2 percent), Louisiana (4.5 percent), and

Tennessee and Virginia (4.6 percent each). Three states had union

membership rates over 20.0 percent in 2011: New York (24.1 percent),

Alaska (22.1 percent), and Hawaii (21.5 percent).

State union membership levels depend on both the overall employment

levels and union membership rates. The largest numbers of union

members lived in California (2.4 million) and New York (1.9 million).

Over half of the 14.8 million union members in the U.S. lived in just

seven states (California, 2.4 million; New York, 1.9 million; Illinois,

0.9 million; Pennsylvania, 0.8 million; Michigan 0.7 million; and New

Jersey and Ohio, 0.6 million each), though these states accounted for

only about one-third of wage and salary employment nationally.

Texas had about one-fourth as many union members as New York, despite

having 2.3 million more wage and salary employees. North Carolina and

Hawaii had comparable numbers of union members (105,000 and 113,000,

respectively), though North Carolina's wage and salary employment

level (3.6 million) was nearly seven times that of Hawaii (525,000).

· Union Members Technical Note

· Table 1. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by selected characteristics

· Table 2. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by union affiliation and selected characteristics

· Table 3. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by occupation and industry

· Table 4. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by union affiliation, occupation, and industry

· Table 5. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by state

· Access to historical data for the tables of the Union Membership News Release

· HTML version of the entire news release

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] BEA: Gross Domestic Product, 4th quarter and Annual 2011 (advance estimate) [27 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:37:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Gross Domestic Product, 4th quarter and Annual 2011 (advance estimate) [27 January 2012]

http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/national/gdp/gdpnewsrelease.htm

http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/national/gdp/2012/pdf/gdp4q11_adv.pdf

[full-text, 14 pages]

http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/national/gdp/2012/xls/gdp4q11_adv.xls

[spreadsheet]

and

Highlights

http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/national/gdp/2012/pdf/gdp4q11_adv_fax.pdf

Real gross domestic product -- the output of goods and services produced by labor and property

located in the United States -- increased at an annual rate of 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011

(that is, from the third quarter to the fourth quarter), according to the "advance" estimate released by the

Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the third quarter, real GDP increased 1.8 percent.

The Bureau emphasized that the fourth-quarter advance estimate released today is based on

source data that are incomplete or subject to further revision by the source agency (see the box on page

4). The "second" estimate for the fourth quarter, based on more complete data, will be released on

February 29, 2012.

The increase in real GDP in the fourth quarter reflected positive contributions from private

inventory investment, personal consumption expenditures (PCE), exports, residential fixed investment,

and nonresidential fixed investment that were partly offset by negative contributions from federal

government spending and state and local government spending. Imports, which are a subtraction in the

calculation of GDP, increased.

The acceleration in real GDP in the fourth quarter primarily reflected an upturn in private

inventory investment and accelerations in PCE and in residential fixed investment that were partly offset

by a deceleration in nonresidential fixed investment, a downturn in federal government spending, an

acceleration in imports, and a larger decrease in state and local government spending.

AND MUCH MORE...including TABLES....

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] Executive Order -- Establishing Visa and Foreign Visitor Processing Goals and the Task Force on Travel and Competitiveness [

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:06:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

The White House

19 January 2012

Executive Order -- Establishing Visa and Foreign Visitor Processing Goals and the Task Force on Travel and Competitiveness

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/01/19/executive-order-establishing-visa-and-foreign-visitor-processing-goals-a

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and to improve visa and foreign visitor processing and travel promotion in order to create jobs and spur economic growth in the United States, while continuing to protect our national security, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. Policy. The travel and tourism industry is one of our Nation's leading service sectors and sources of exports. However, the U.S. market share of spending by international travelers fell from 17 percent to 11 percent of the global market from 2000 to 2010, more than a 30 percent decrease in our share of the global market. This decrease was due primarily to increased international competition, changing patterns in global development, and, to some degree, more stringent security requirements imposed after 2001. Given the importance of the travel and tourism industry to the U.S. economy and job creation, a coordinated policy, consistent with protecting our national security, is needed to support a prosperous and secure travel and tourism industry in the United States.

Steady progress has been made since 2010, when my Administration launched the National Export Initiative and the Travel Promotion Act was signed into law. While our processes for moving people and goods across our borders are now both more secure and more efficient, new initiatives are needed to enable us to better capitalize on the economic opportunities presented by a dynamic 21st century travel and tourism industry.

Sec. 2. Visa and Foreign Visitor Processing. (a) The Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism shall, consistent with Presidential Policy Directive 1 or any successor documents and in coordination with the Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary, maintain an interagency process for coordinating the implementation of regulatory improvements and the evaluation of legislative proposals to enhance and expedite travel to and arrival in the United States by foreign nationals, consistent with national security requirements.

(b) The Secretaries of State and Homeland Security, in consultation with the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and the heads of such agencies as appropriate, shall develop an implementation plan, within 60 days of the date of this order, describing actions to be undertaken, including those that build upon efforts underway, to achieve the following:

(i) increase nonimmigrant visa processing capacity in China and Brazil by 40 percent over the coming year;
(ii) ensure that 80 percent of nonimmigrant visa applicants are interviewed within 3 weeks of receipt of application, recognizing that resource and security considerations and the need to ensure provision of consular services to U.S. citizens may dictate specific exceptions;

(iii) increase efforts to expand the Visa Waiver Program and travel by nationals of Visa Waiver Program participants; and

(iv) expand reciprocal recognition programs for expedited travel, such as the Global Entry program.

This plan should also identify other appropriate measures that will enhance and expedite travel to and arrival in the United States by foreign nationals, consistent with national security requirements, as well as any potential challenges in achieving the stated goals of this subsection.

(c) Within 180 days of the date of this order, and periodically thereafter, the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security shall jointly submit through the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism a report to the President describing the progress on achieving the goals set forth in this section (as well as areas of concern or barriers to achieving those goals) to ensure the country remains secure while increasing travel and tourism to the United States.

(d) The Secretary of Commerce shall establish and maintain a publicly available website that provides updated metrics from across the Federal Government to assist industry and travelers in understanding the current status of the industry and its relevance to the economy, statistics on visa processes in key travel and tourism markets, and entry times into the United States.

Sec. 3. Task Force on Travel and Competitiveness. (a) A Task Force on Travel and Competitiveness (Task Force) is hereby established to develop the National Travel and Tourism Strategy described in this section. The Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior shall serve as Co-Chairs of the Task Force. The Task Force shall also include the heads of the following executive departments and agencies (agencies), or senior level officials designated by them:

(i) Department of State;
(ii) Department of the Treasury;
(iii) Department of Agriculture;
(iv) Department of Labor;
(v) Department of Transportation;

(vi) Department of Homeland Security;
(vii) Army Corps of Engineers;
(viii) Office of the United States Trade Representative;
(ix) Export-Import Bank; and
(x) Other agencies invited to participate by the Task Force Co-Chairs.

(b) The Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, and the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, shall coordinate the overall work of the Task Force and assist its members in performing the responsibilities described herein.

(c) The Task Force shall develop a National Travel and Tourism Strategy with recommendations for new policies and initiatives to promote domestic and international travel opportunities throughout the United States with the goal of increasing the United States market share of worldwide travel, including obtaining a greater share of long-haul travel from Brazil, China, and India. Such recommendations shall include, among other things, strategies to promote visits to the United States public lands, waters, shores, monuments, and other iconic American destinations, thereby expanding job creation in the United States. The Task Force shall also consider recommendations to promote and expand travel and tourism opportunities in rural communities. In addition, the National Travel and Tourism Strategy shall identify any barriers to increasing the United States market share of worldwide travel, and any other related areas of concern. The Task Force shall deliver the National Travel and Tourism Strategy to the President within 90 days of the date of this order.

(d) The Task Force, through the Secretary of Commerce, shall also coordinate with the Corporation for Travel Promotion (currently doing business as Brand USA, a non-profit corporation established by the Travel Promotion Act of 2009 to promote travel to the United States) and the Tourism Policy Council, established by the United States National Tourism Organization Act of 1996. The Secretary of Commerce shall serve as the liaison between the Task Force and the United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board (Board) chartered by the Secretary and shall consider the Board's advice in his or her role with the Task Force.

(e) The Tourism Policy Council coordinates policies concerning travel promotion and ensures consistency and cooperation among agencies, as set forth in the United States National Tourism Organization Act of 1996. The Task Force shall consult with the Tourism Policy Council where appropriate to facilitate the development of the National Travel and Tourism Strategy.

Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law, and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(b) Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department, agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

BARACK OBAMA

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] Mercer/WEF: [GLOBAL] TALENT MOBILITY GOOD PRACTICES: COLLABORATION AT THE CORE OF DRIVING ECONOMIC GROWTH [23 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:54:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Mercer/World Economic Forum (WEF) Talent Mobility Report

http://www.mercer.com/globaltalent

Talent Mobility Good Practices: Collaboration at the Core of Driving Economic Growth [23 January 2012]

http://www.mercer.com/WEF-Full-Report

http://www.mercer.com/attachment.dyn?idContent=1445430&filePath=/attachments/English/Mercer_WEF_Talent_Mobility_FINAL_SEC.pdf

[full-text, 110 pages--free registration may be necessary for access]

IN-DEPTH TALENT MOBILITY CASE STUDIES

http://www.mercer.com/WEF-In-Depth-Studies

KEY RESEARCH FINDINGS

http://107.21.200.3/mercer-wef/research-findings.php

GLOBAL TALENT MOBILITY CASE STUDIES

http://www.mercer.com/WEF-Case-Studies

Press Release 23 January 2012

New site features World Economic Forum/Mercer research, plus resources and advice on global mobility

http://www.mercer.com/press-releases/World-Economic-Forum-and-Mercer-research

United Kingdom
London, 23 January 2012

§ Report presents case studies highlighting concrete solutions that successfully advance talent mobility

The World Economic Forum and Mercer have collaborated on extensive global research on how effective talent mobility can spur economic growth. The just-issued report – Talent Mobility Good Practices – Collaboration at the Core of Driving Economic Growth – will be presented this week at the Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland by Patricia A. Milligan, President of Mercer's Talent, Rewards and Communication business.

In conjunction, Mercer has launched a new resources site – http://www.mercer.com/globaltalent – that offers advice and innovative ways to manage global talent and mobility challenges. It features:

§ An animated three-minute video highlighting the key research findings

§ An interactive version of the research report, plus a downloadable PDF of the full report

§ A searchable library of the report's 55 case studies

§ Registration for Mercer's upcoming Davos Debrief webcasts to be held in February

§ An array of Mercer thought leadership to help organizations address their global talent issues

About the research
The World Economic Forum/Mercer research examined talent mobility practices among more than 500 organizations in 45 countries and found that talent mobility is not achieving its full potential. The 55 case studies included in the report reveal that collaboration among stakeholders on all sides of the employment equation – companies, governments, academic institutions, nonprofit entities and employees – is essential to successful talent mobility efforts. The research report outlines concrete actions that stakeholders around the world have implemented – and that others can emulate – to address their talent challenges.

"Our research shows that a variety of solutions for advancing effective talent mobility practices are already being implemented – and successfully," said Ms. Milligan. "Through the report and our new resources site, we can share these good practices and allow others to benefit from it."

Stakeholders with talent mobility good practices featured in the report include: ABB, Adecco, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), BC Hydro, The Boston Consulting Group, the European Commission, HCL Technologies, Infosys, the International Labor Organization (ILO), INSEAD, LVMH, ManpowerGroup, Mercer, NASSCOM, Polish Confederation of Private Employers, PwC, Saudi Aramco, Standard Chartered, Toronto Financial Services Alliance and Wal-mart, among others.

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] CRS: PROPOSED KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE: LEGAL ISSUES [23 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:22:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Congressional Research Service (CRS)

Proposed Keystone XL Pipeline: Legal Issues

Adam Vann, Legislative Attorney

Kristina Alexander, Legislative Attorney

Vanessa K. Burrows, Legislative Attorney

Kenneth R. Thomas,Legislative Attorney

January 23, 2012

http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42124.pdf

[full-text, 32 pages]

SUMMARY

In 2008, TransCanada Corp. applied for a presidential permit from the State Department to

construct and operate an oil pipeline across the U.S.-Canada border in a project known as

Keystone XL. The Keystone XL pipeline would transport oil produced from oil sands in Alberta,

Canada, to Gulf Coast refineries. The permit application was subjected to review by the State

Department pursuant to executive branch authority over cross-border pipeline facilities as

articulated in Executive Order 13337.

After several phases of review, on November 10, 2011, the State Department announced that it

would seek additional information about alternative pipeline routes before it could move forward

with a national interest determination. In response, several pieces of legislation were introduced,

including Title V of the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011. Title V dictated

that President must grant the Keystone XL pipeline permit within 60 days of the law’s enactment,

unless the President determined that the pipeline is not in the national interest. If the President did

not make a national interest determination and took no action to grant the permit, then the law

provided that the permit “shall be in effect by operation of law.” The Temporary Payroll Tax Cut

Continuation Act of 2011 (P.L. 112-78), including Title V addressing the Keystone XL permit,

was enacted on December 23, 2011.

Pursuant to the requirements of Title V, on January 18, 2012, the State Department recommended

that “the presidential permit for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline be denied and, that at this

time, the TransCanada Keystone XL Pipeline be determined not to serve the national interest.”

The same day, the President stated his determination that the Keystone XL pipeline project

“would not serve the national interest.”

New legislative activity with respect to the permitting of border-crossing facilities, a subject

previously handled exclusively by the executive branch, has triggered inquiries as to whether this

raises constitutional issues related to the jurisdiction of the two branches over such facilities.

Additionally, as states have begun to contemplate taking action with respect to the pipeline siting,

some have questioned whether state siting of a pipeline is preempted by federal law. Others argue

that states dictating the route of the pipeline violates the dormant Commerce Clause of the

Constitution which, among other things, prohibits one state from acting to protect its own

interests to the detriment of other states.

This report reviews those legal issues. First, it suggests that legislation related to cross-border

facility permitting is unlikely to raise significant constitutional questions, despite the fact that

such permits have traditionally been handled by the executive branch alone pursuant to its

constitutional “foreign affairs” authority. Next, it observes generally that state oversight of

pipeline siting decisions does not appear to violate existing federal law or the Constitution.

Finally, the report suggests that State Department’s implementation of the existing authority to

issue presidential permits appears to allow for judicial review of its National Environmental

Policy Act determinations.

A companion report from CRS focusing on policy issues associated with the proposal, CRS

Report R41668, Keystone XL Pipeline Project: Key Issues, by Paul W. Parfomak et al., is also

available.

Contents

Background...................................................................................................................................... 1

Authority to Issue Permits for Border Crossing Facilities: Balancing Executive and

Legislative Roles .......................................................................................................................... 4

Source of Presidential Authority to Regulate Foreign Commerce ............................................ 4

Source of Executive/State Department Permitting Authority.................................................... 4

Source of Congressional Authority to Regulate Foreign Commerce ........................................ 6

Reconciling the Executive and Legislative Roles Related to Foreign Commerce and

Border Crossing Facilities ...................................................................................................... 7

Executive Branch Deference to Congress on Cross-Border Facilities................................ 7

Congressional Action Related to Foreign Commerce ....................................................... 10

Judicial Interpretations of the Executive and Legislative Authorities to Regulate

Foreign Commerce......................................................................................................... 10

Summary ........................................................................................................................... 12

Constitutional Concerns Related to Potential Action by States ..................................................... 12

The Dormant Commerce Clause ............................................................................................. 13

Legal Background ............................................................................................................. 13

State Authority for Energy Facility Siting......................................................................... 14

Application of the Dormant Commerce Clause to State Action Related to

Oil Pipeline Siting.......................................................................................................... 14

Federal Preemption of State Pipeline Legislation ................................................................... 17

Background ....................................................................................................................... 17

How Preemption Is Evaluated........................................................................................... 17

Conflict Preemption of State Action Related to the

Proposed Keystone XL Pipeline..................................................................................... 22

Field Preemption of State Action Related to the Proposed Keystone XL Pipeline ........... 24

Judicial Review of the NEPA Process for Permitting Under Executive Order 13337................... 24

Executive Order 13337............................................................................................................ 24

Keystone XL NEPA Background ............................................................................................ 25

State Department NEPA Regulations ................................................................................ 25

Judicial Review ....................................................................................................................... 25

District Court Holdings Related to Executive Order 13337.............................................. 26

Contacts

Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 29

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] CRS: BORDER SECURITY: IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT BETWEEN PORTS OF ENTRY [6 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:15:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Congressional Research Service (CRS)

Border Security: Immigration Enforcement Between Ports of Entry

Marc R. Rosenblum, Specialist in Immigration Policy

January 6, 2012

http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/180681.pdf

[full-text, 46 pages

Summary

Border enforcement is a core element of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’s) effort

to control illegal migration, with the U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) within the Bureau of Customs

and Border Protection (CBP) as the lead agency along most of the border. Border enforcement

has been an ongoing subject of congressional interest since the 1970s, when illegal immigration

to the United States first registered as a serious national problem; and border security has

received additional attention in the decade following the terrorist attacks of 2001.

Since the 1990s, migration control at the border has been guided by a strategy of “prevention

through deterrence”—the idea that the concentration of personnel, infrastructure, and surveillance

technology along heavily trafficked regions of the border will discourage unauthorized aliens

from attempting to enter the United States. Since 2005, CBP has attempted to discourage repeat

entries and disrupt migrant smuggling networks by imposing tougher penalties against certain

unauthorized aliens, a set of policies known as “enforcement with consequences.”

Twenty-five years after the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA, P.L. 99-603)

marked the beginning of the modern era in border enforcement, this report reviews recent

enforcement efforts, takes stock of the current state of border security, and considers lessons that

may be learned about a quarter century of enhanced migration control efforts at U.S. borders.

IRCA authorized a 50% increase in the size of the USBP, and at least 10 additional laws since

then have included provisions related to migration enforcement and/or border security.

Appropriations for the USBP have increased about 750% since 1989—a number which excludes

many other programs related to border enforcement.

On one hand, robust investments at the border have been associated with a sharp drop in the

number of aliens apprehended, especially in the sectors first targeted for enhanced enforcement.

The number and proportion of people apprehended more than once (recidivists) and those with

serious criminal records are also at the lowest levels ever recorded. On the other hand, overall

illegal inflows continued to increase in the 20 years after 1986, with the estimated unauthorized

population more than tripling, even after almost 3 million aliens were granted amnesty as part of

IRCA. The only significant decrease in unauthorized migration appears to have occurred since

2007, and it is unclear how much of the drop-off is due to increased enforcement and how much

is a result of the U.S. economic downturn and other systemic factors.

At the same time, enhanced border enforcement may have contributed to a number of secondary

costs and benefits. To the extent that border enforcement successfully deters illegal entries—an

effect that is also difficult to measure since deterrence ultimately involves decisions made in

towns and villages far away from U.S. borders—such enforcement may reduce border-area

violence and migrant deaths, protect fragile border ecosystems, and improve the quality of life in

border communities. But to the extent that aliens are not deterred, the concentration of

enforcement resources on the border may increase border area violence and migrant deaths,

encourage unauthorized migrants to find new ways to enter illegally and to remain in the United

States for longer periods of time, damage border ecosystems, harm border-area businesses and the

quality of life in border communities, and strain U.S. relations with Mexico and Canada.

Thus, this report concludes by raising additional questions about future investments at the border,

how to weigh such investments against other enforcement strategies, and the relationship between

border enforcement and the broader debate about U.S. immigration policy.

Contents

Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1

Background...................................................................................................................................... 3

Border Control Strategy................................................................................................................... 4

National Strategic Plan .............................................................................................................. 4

National Border Patrol Strategy ................................................................................................ 6

Secure Border Initiative............................................................................................................. 7

Enforcement with Consequences............................................................................................... 8

2012 National Border Patrol Strategy...................................................................................... 12

Budget and Resources.................................................................................................................... 12

Border Patrol Appropriations .................................................................................................. 12

Border Patrol Personnel........................................................................................................... 14

Fencing and Tactical Infrastructure ......................................................................................... 16

Surveillance Assets.................................................................................................................. 18

Enforcement Outcomes.................................................................................................................. 19

Alien Apprehensions ............................................................................................................... 20

Southwest Border Apprehensions by Sector ..................................................................... 21

The Limits of Apprehensions Data.................................................................................... 22

Operational Control of the Border........................................................................................... 22

Additional Measures of Border Enforcement.......................................................................... 24

Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT) System......................................... 24

Successful Illegal Entries .................................................................................................. 26

Smuggling Fees................................................................................................................. 27

Probability of Apprehension.............................................................................................. 29

Unintended and Secondary Consequences of Border Enforcement .............................................. 30

Border-Area Crime and Migrant Deaths ................................................................................. 30

Migration Flows: “Caging” Effects and Alternative Modes of Entry ..................................... 33

Environmental Impact and Effects on Border Communities................................................... 35

Effects on Regional Relations ................................................................................................. 36

Legislative Issues........................................................................................................................... 37

Border Patrol Personnel........................................................................................................... 37

Surveillance Assets.................................................................................................................. 38

Fencing and Tactical Infrastructure ......................................................................................... 38

Access to Federal Lands.......................................................................................................... 39

Conclusion: Understanding the Costs and Benefits of Border Enforcement Between Ports

of Entry....................................................................................................................................... 40

Figures

Figure 1. Enforcement with Consequences, Selected Indicators, FY1999-FY2010...................... 11

Figure 2. U.S. Border Patrol Appropriations, FY1989-FY2012.................................................... 13

Figure 3. U.S. Border Patrol Agents, Total and by Region, FY1980-FY2011............................... 15

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] ILO: GLOBAL EMPLOYMENT TRENDS 2012: PREVENTING A DEEPER JOBS CRISIS [24 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:04:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

International Labour Organization (ILO)

Global Employment Trends 2012: Preventing a deeper jobs crisis [24 January 2012]

http://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/global-employment-trends/WCMS_171571/lang--en/index.htm

http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---dgreports/---dcomm/---publ/documents/publication/wcms_171571.pdf

[full-text, 121 pages]

The annual Global Employment Trends (GET) reports provide the latest global and regional estimates of employment and unemployment, employment by sector, vulnerable employment, labour productivity and working poverty, while also analysing country-level issues and trends in the labour market.

Based on the most recently available data and taking into account macroeconomic trends and forecasts, the GET reports seek to shed light on current labour market trends and challenges. The reports build on the Key Indicators of the Labour Market and include a consistent set of tables with regional and global estimates of labour market indicators. Each report contains a short-term labour market outlook, focusing on unemployment, vulnerable employment and working poverty.

The Global Employment Trends 2012 takes stock of labour market developments and emerging challenges as the world continues to struggle to forge a sustainable recovery from the global economic and jobs crisis.

The report is downloadable for free. If you wish to order copies, please contact: pubvente@ilo.org

Contains

1. Executive Summary - "Global Employment Trends 2012: Preventing a deeper jobs crisis"

2. Résumé analytique- "Tendances mondiales de l’emploi 2012: Prévenir une aggravation de la crise de l’emploi"

3. Resumen ejecutivo - "Tendencias Mundiales del Empleo 2012: Prevenir una crisis mayor del empleo"

4. Chapter 1: The macroeconomic outlook is deteriorating

5. Chapter 2: Global labour market situation

6. Chapter 3: Regional labour market and economic developments

7. Chapter 4: Policy options for growth with jobs

8. Appendices

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] World Bank: GOLDEN GROWTH: RESTORING THE LUSTRE OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC MODEL [24 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:21:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

World Bank

GOLDEN GROWTH: RESTORING THE LUSTRE OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC MODEL [24 January 2012]

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/0,,contentMDK:23069550~pagePK:146736~piPK:146830~theSitePK:258599,00.html

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/0,,contentMDK:23074045~pagePK:146736~piPK:146830~theSitePK:258599,00.html

[FULL-TEXT]

and

INPUT PAPERS

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/0,,contentMDK:23074113~pagePK:146736~piPK:146830~theSitePK:258599,00.html

and

COUNTRY BENCHMARKS

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/0,,contentMDK:23074114~pagePK:146736~piPK:146830~theSitePK:258599,00.html

The report documents the impressive achievements of the European growth model over the last 50 years. Accounting for the stresses it is experiencing and assessing the longer-term challenges that Europe will face, the report then evaluates the six principal components of the model: Trade, Finance, Enterprise, Innovation, Labor, and Government. It finds that the European growth model has been a powerful engine for economic convergence, helping developing countries in Europe catch up to their richer neighbors and become high-income economies. But recent changes in and outside Europe necessitate change. The report proposes the adjustments needed to make trade and finance work even better, to encourage enterprise and innovation in parts of Europe which have begun to lag, and address shortcomings in the functioning of labor markets and governments. The changes proposed would restart the European convergence machine, make Europe's enterprises competitive, and help Europeans afford the highest standards of living in the world.

Press Release 24 January 2012]

Build on Strengths of Europe’s Growth Model While Pursuing Reforms, Says World Bank Report

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:23094165~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theSitePK:4607,00.html

BRUSSELS, January 24, 2012 – The European growth model has been an engine for economic convergence during the past few decades and has delivered prosperity to hundreds of millions of people on the continent, says a new World Bank report “Golden Growth: Restoring the Lustre of the European Economic Model”, launched today in Brussels.

AND MUCH MORE....

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] Dublin Foundation: CASE STUDIES ON THE IMPACT OF THE RECESSION ON AGE MANAGEMENT POLICIES [24 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:10:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Dublin Foundation)

CASE STUDIES ON THE IMPACT OF THE RECESSION ON AGE MANAGEMENT POLICIES [24 January 2012]

· Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: BARCO, Belgium en
According to representatives of the company interviewed for this case study, there has been a greater willingness to recruit people aged 50 or more during the economic cycle of the past two to three years, but this is cyclical. Typically, when demand for labour [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: Made in Inox, Belgium en
The experience of Made in Inox shows that micro-businesses are unlikely to have a dedicated human resources policy. Rather, they will have a general approach with informal processes, some specific age-related initiatives, and they will also aim to foster a specific organisational culture. Micro-businesses [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: Media Company, Czech Republic en
According to the head of the HR department, age management is a relatively recent concept in the Czech Republic. However, although the concept is still developing, the majority of HR officers in Czech organisations have already introduced age management measures to some extent into [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: T-Mobile, Czech Republic en
T-Mobile HR manager confirmed that age management is an emerging concept in the Czech Republic in general and in the company’s HR policy in particular. Czech firms have not developed age management measures in greater extent due to the excess of labour force supply [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: MOL Group, Hungary en
MOL faces a number of challenges related to an ageing workforce. As a formerly state-owned company, there is a tradition of lifelong careers that makes MOL attractive for employees. HR policies currently continue to support lifelong employment. The company’s approach is to seek to [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: Magyar Telekom Group, Hungary en
MT age management policies are viewed internally to be in line with trends among similar large companies in Hungary. Large companies, including MT, are generally characterised by a relatively secure position in the market. They are subsequently able to maintain a consistent HR policy [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: Vattenfall Nordic and Vattenfall Services, Sweden en
Vattenfall launched its age management programme in 2001. As an early adopter of such programmes and policies, Vattenfall has been seen as a forerunner in Sweden. It won an Employer of the Year Award in 2006 and received considerable attention in the media for [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: Cambridgeshire County Council, United Kingdom en
Cambridgeshire County Council’s 2006–2010 people strategy sets priorities and limits on age management of employees. It commits the council to encouraging and maintaining diversity in recruitment and promotion, letting of contracts, training, and in publicity for and access to services. To support age diversity [...]

Impact of the recession on age management policies - Case study: BT, United Kingdom en
BT has an ‘age neutral’ approach to promoting diversity and equality among age groups in its workforce. The organisation’s equal opportunities and diversity policy aims to ensure everyone should have the same opportunities for employment and promotion based on their ability, qualifications and suitability [...]

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] CECC: CHINA HUMAN RIGHTS & RULE OF LAW UPDATE, 2012, No. 1 [24 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:49:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

United States Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC)

CHINA HUMAN RIGHTS AND RULE OF LAW UPDATE, 2012, No.1 [24 January 2012]

CHINA HUMAN RIGHTS AND
RULE OF LAW UPDATE

United States Congressional-Executive Commission on China

Representative Christopher Smith, Chairman | Senator Sherrod Brown, Cochairman

Subscribe here | CECC.gov
No. 1 - January 24, 2012

Upcoming: CECC Hearing on
Prominent Human Rights Lawyer Gao Zhisheng

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Details to follow.

CECC News and Analysis

· Special Report: Tibetan Monastic Self-Immolations Appear To Correlate With Increasing Repression of Freedom of Religion

· Beijing Court Orders Human Rights Lawyer Gao Zhisheng To Serve Original Three-Year Sentence

· Authorities Sentence Chen Wei to 9 Years for Posting Pro-Democracy Essays

· Authorities Loosen Some Restrictions on Chen Guangcheng and Family, Continue To Hold Them Under Tight Control

· Authorities Try Human Rights Activist Ni Yulan, Verdict Pending

· Gansu and Shandong Provinces Issue New Regulations on Religion

· Officials Discourage and Prevent "Independent Candidates" From Getting on Official Ballots in Local People's Congress Elections

· Local Officials in Xinjiang Continue Curbs over Religious Practice

· Dalai Lama Rejects Communist Party "Brazen Meddling" in Tibetan Buddhist Reincarnation

· China's White Paper on Corruption and Official Anti-Corruption Efforts

· Xinjiang Draft Legal Measures Promote Hiring Ethnic Minorities, Against Track Record of Employment Discrimination

· 2011 Crackdown Update: Ding Mao, Chen Wei, and Ran Yunfei

· Jiangsu Authorities Order Unregistered Pastor To Serve Two Years of Reeducation Through Labor

· Uyghur Political Prisoners Mehbube Ablesh's and Abdulghani Memetemin's Prison Sentences Expire

· Xinjiang Students Continue to Harvest Cotton, Directive Allows Child Labor

CECC News and Analysis

Special Report: Tibetan Monastic Self-Immolations Appear To Correlate With Increasing Repression of Freedom of Religion

This CECC Special Report demonstrates an apparent correlation between increasing Chinese Communist Party and government repression of freedom of religion in Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and nunneries, and 12 instances in 2011 of current or former monks and nuns resorting to self-immolation. Reporting from each of the Commission's 10 annual reports (2002-2011) reveal a trend of deterioration in the environment for Tibetan Buddhism, especially in Tibetan Buddhist monastic institutions. The trend worsened significantly after mostly peaceful political protests swept across the Tibetan plateau in March and April 2008. The Party and government responded to those protests by intensifying a long-established anti-Dalai Lama campaign; issuing regulatory measures that intrude upon and micromanage Tibetan Buddhist monastic affairs; implementing aggressive "legal education" programs that pressure monks and nuns to study and accept expanded government control over their religion, monasteries, and nunneries; and convening a high-level Party forum to formally establish a coordinated policy on Tibetan issues, including religion, across all Tibetan autonomous areas. All of the Tibetan Buddhist self-immolations except the most recent attempt took place in Sichuan province, outside of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). Commission Political Prisoner Database (PPD) information indicates a higher level of Tibetan political detention since March 2008 in Sichuan than in any other provincial-level area, including the TAR.
Read more »

Beijing Court Orders Human Rights Lawyer Gao Zhisheng To Serve Original Three-Year Sentence

Less than a week before missing human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng's five-year suspended sentence was set to expire, Chinese officials claimed he violated the conditions of his parole, and that he must now serve out his original three-year criminal sentence. Over the course of Gao's five-year parole period, officials have subjected him to intense harassment, including repeated abduction, torture, and forced disappearance. Even with this announcement, the whereabouts and condition of Gao, who has been missing since April 2010, are still not known.
Read more »

Authorities Sentence Chen Wei to 9 Years for Posting Pro-Democracy Essays

The Suining Municipal Intermediate People's Court in Sichuan province sentenced democracy activist Chen Wei on December 23, 2011, to nine years in prison for "inciting subversion of state power," in a case reportedly marred by procedural irregularities. The prosecutor's indictment alleged that four essays Chen authored were intended to incite subversion. The essays had been posted on overseas Web sites and had discussed democratic reform and human rights in China.
Read more »

Authorities Loosen Some Restrictions on Chen Guangcheng and Family, Continue To Hold Them Under Tight Control

In recent weeks, local authorities in Linyi county, Shandong province, reportedly have loosened some measures used to control rights defender Chen Guangcheng, whom they have held with his wife, daughter, and mother in extralegal detention in their home since September 2010. While in detention, the family has been subjected to beatings, round-the-clock surveillance, and other forms of harassment. Despite reported relaxation of certain controls on Chen and his family, authorities continue to hold them under strict control and continue to block access to individuals who attempt to visit Chen's village.
Read more »

Authorities Try Human Rights Activist Ni Yulan, Verdict Pending

Authorities tried human rights lawyer Ni Yulan and her husband Dong Jiqin on December 29, 2011, on charges of "picking quarrels" and "fraud." The court reportedly is considering the defense's request for access to new evidence. If convicted, Ni could face a lengthy sentence and the possibility of life imprisonment. Since 2002, authorities have repeatedly subjected Ni to intense harassment, including physically crippling her, revoking her license to practice law, and detaining and imprisoning her.
Read more »

Gansu and Shandong Provinces Issue New Regulations on Religion

Since China's national Regulation on Religious Affairs entered into force in 2005, a number of provincial governments have followed suit with new or amended local regulations on religion. In some respects, new regulations from Shandong and Gansu provide more clarity, legal protections, and consistency than the older regulations they replace, but all within the restrictive framework of China's controls over religious practice. Such framework offers some limited protections but falls far short of international standards for religious freedom. The regulations also codify more extensive controls over religious practice in some regards, and many legal protections are limited to groups and venues registered with the government. The regulations differ from each other in some respects, reflecting a trend in variation among provincial regulations, even as local regulations on religion move toward greater uniformity with the national regulation.
Read more »

Officials Discourage and Prevent "Independent Candidates" From Getting on Official Ballots in Local People's Congress Elections

During the latest round of local people's congress elections taking place in staggered fashion across China from May 2011 to December 2012, central and local officials are discouraging and preventing potential "independent candidates," i.e., candidates nominated by citizens rather than by the Party or by state-affiliated organizations, from getting on official ballots. Citizens are allowed to vote for people's congress delegates only at the lowest levels. Some developments during candidate nomination processes in this latest round do not seem to reflect the spirit of the national election law, highlight contradictions in the national election law, and illustrate continuing challenges to free and fair elections in China. Some local officials reportedly have arrested, detained, and monitored potential "independent candidates," as well as pressured their families, employers, and nominators, and obstructed nomination processes.
Read more »

Local Officials in Xinjiang Continue Curbs over Religious Practice

Controls over religion in the Muslim-majority region of Xinjiang remain among the harshest in China, and local governments have reported continuing steps to tighten curbs over religious practice. In recent months, several local governments have reported carrying out measures to prevent women from veiling or wearing other apparel deemed to carry religious connotations and to prevent men from wearing large beards, practices authorities have associated with "backwardness," "extremism," and "illegal religious activities." Some local governments also reported increasing controls over women religious specialists known as büwi. Regionwide, authorities have described continuing steps to target "illegal" religious publications in censorship campaigns.
Read more »

Dalai Lama Rejects Communist Party "Brazen Meddling" in Tibetan Buddhist Reincarnation

In a September 24, 2011, signed statement, the Dalai Lama rejected Communist Party attempts to use historical misrepresentation and government regulation to impose unprecedented control over one of Tibetan Buddhism's most important features—lineages of teachers (trulkus), whom Tibetan Buddhists believe are reincarnations, that can span centuries. The Dalai Lama addressed issues pertaining to reincarnation generally and to his potential reincarnation specifically, likely rendering the statement of exceptional significance to Tibetan Buddhists. He denounced the Chinese government's "Order No. 5," a reference to the PRC Measures on the Management of the Reincarnation of Living Buddhas in Tibetan Buddhism, as "outrageous and disgraceful," and provided a historical basis for rejecting government and Party claims that Tibetan Buddhists selected the 9th through 14th (current) Dalai Lamas in compliance with instructions in a Qing imperial edict. The Dalai Lama's statement explained briefly the Tibetan Buddhist concepts of reincarnation and "emanation"—the latter suggests that the Dalai Lama could establish a successor while he is still living. He concluded by declaring that when he is about 90 years old—he is 76 now—he will take measures to resolve whether or not there will be a 15th Dalai Lama; by condemning Party interference in Tibetan Buddhist reincarnation; and by stating that in the future it will be "impossible" for Tibetan Buddhists to "acknowledge or accept" such "brazen meddling."
Read more »

China's White Paper on Corruption and Official Anti-Corruption Efforts

The State Council of China issued China's first white paper on corruption titled "China's Efforts to Combat Corruption and Build a Clean Government" in late December 2010, amid an official "anti-corruption storm," high-profile arrests of corruption suspects, and ongoing announcements of new anti-corruption measures. While the white paper did not outline new policy directions, it gave unusual attention to citizen participation in anti-corruption efforts. Over the last few months, central authorities also promoted in the media official channels for citizens to report possible instances of corruption and outlined protections for whistleblowers in government circulars. Whistleblower protections, however, remain inadequate in practice and some non-governmental Web sites that posted reports on alleged corruption have faced cyber attacks and authorities have threatened to close Web sites or warned some webmasters to shut down their sites.
Read more »

Xinjiang Draft Legal Measures Promote Hiring Ethnic Minorities, Against Track Record of Employment Discrimination

New draft measures on employment promotion, under consideration in Xinjiang, stipulate measures to prevent discrimination and promote the hiring of non-Han ("ethnic minority") groups in the region. The measures track China's national employment promotion law, but also stipulate subsidies for hiring ethnic minorities. Such subsidies are absent in the national law and employment promotion regulations in other provincial-level areas. If passed, the impact of the draft measures remains unclear, however, as previous laws and regulations already bar discrimination and have failed to prevent hiring practices in Xinjiang that discriminate against job candidates based on factors including ethnicity and sex.
Read more »

2011 Crackdown Update: Ding Mao, Chen Wei, and Ran Yunfei

Prosecutors twice transferred the cases of democracy advocates Ding Mao and Chen Wei back to public security officials for supplementary investigation, both first detained in the widespread February 2011 crackdown in China and formally arrested shortly thereafter. In both cases, PSB officials have completed their supplementary investigations and requested indictments from prosecutors for the third and final time. Authorities have not responded to or have not granted family requests to release Ding and Chen on bail. Authorities also denied Ding and Chen access to their lawyers, in Ding's case for the first six months of his detention, and in Chen's case for nearly seven months. In another case involving a citizen detained in the crackdown, Chengdu authorities have released Ran Yunfei on bail pending trial and placed him under "residential surveillance."
Read more »

Jiangsu Authorities Order Unregistered Pastor To Serve Two Years of Reeducation Through Labor

In late July 2011, authorities in Suqian city, Jiangsu province, ordered pastor Shi Enhao to serve two years in reeducation through labor (RTL) in connection to his activities as an unregistered pastor, including setting up churches and holding gatherings that authorities deemed illegal. Public security authorities in Jiangsu have harassed or detained Shi several times since March 2011. Shi is a leader in a network of unregistered Protestant congregations whose members associate across multiple provinces, and the RTL order came during a time when official sensitivities were heightened toward members of unregistered Protestant congregations.
Read more »

Uyghur Political Prisoners Mehbube Ablesh's and Abdulghani Memetemin's Prison Sentences Expire

The prison sentences of two Uyghur political prisoners in Xinjiang have expired, and both are presumed to have since been released. Mehbube Ablesh completed a three-year prison sentence for "splittism" around August 2011. Authorities handed down the prison sentence in apparent connection to her criticism of Chinese government policies, including Mandarin-focused "bilingual" education. Abdulghani Memetemin completed a nine-year prison sentence in late July for "supplying state secrets" to an overseas group. He had sent information on human rights abuses and translations of Chinese government speeches to an organization in Germany that monitors rights violations against Uyghurs. Other Uyghurs in Xinjiang continue to serve prison sentences for exercising their right to free expression.
Read more »

Xinjiang Students Continue to Harvest Cotton, Directive Allows Child Labor

Education authorities in Xinjiang have continued to require students to pick cotton during the fall harvest, in some cases violating permitted parameters for "work-study" programs as stipulated in local directives, as well as contravening domestic and international standards regulating students' work activities and prohibiting child labor. Xinjiang authorities announced in 2008 that students in junior high and lower grades would no longer pick cotton in work-study programs, but issued a directive in 2009 that appears to affirm that younger students may continue to engage in cotton harvesting and other labor as part of work to "help with agriculture," despite the prohibitions against child labor in Chinese law. Reports from the past year indicate that some localities used these younger students to harvest cotton. Xinjiang high schools and colleges continued to make older students pick cotton in work-study programs, in some reported cases exceeding the permitted time period for work-study under local directives and in one reported case levying fines on students who didn't meet quotas. Work-study programs and cotton-picking activities have drawn complaints from students and parents due to the hazards of the work and effect on children's education. The use of student labor this year comes as the region reported difficulties in recruiting regular agricultural workers to pick cotton.
Read more »

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Phone: 202-226-3766 | Fax: 202-226-3804
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________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] IILS(ILO): Bridging the gap between labour rights and human rights: The role of ILO law in regional human rights courts [January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:49:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

International Institute for Labour Studies (IILS) at the ILO

Discussion Paper 212

Bridging the gap between labour rights and human rights: The role of ILO law in regional human rights courts [January 2012]

Franz Christian Ebert

Martin Oelz

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/bureau/inst/download/dp212_2012.pdf

[full-text, 24 pages]

Much of the debate on the responses to the global crisis which started in 2008 has focused on the role

of economic and labour market policies. And yet, the global crisis represents a major challenge for

worker rights. Indeed there is concern that, as the crisis continues, countries may be tempted to erode

worker rights on the grounds that this would improve competitiveness and reassure financial markets.

On the other hand, protecting ensuring worker rights is of paramount importance for enhancing social

support for the recovery strategy and mitigating perceptions that the burden of the crisis is shared

unfairly.

These tensions reinforce the importance of international labour standards as embedded in ILO

instruments, notably ILO Conventions. The United Nations and regional organizations have also

elaborated a range of instruments which aim at protecting human rights in general, including as

regards social issues. This raises the issue of how the various instruments reinforce each other and

whether there exist tools to address matters of interpretation of the different provisions.

This paper points to recent developments in the jurisprudence on human rights in different regional

courts and bodies. It shows that ILO standards are increasingly taken into consideration by these

courts and bodies. The result is a move to greater coherence in the international legal system. The

paper represents a major step in documenting these trends, while also highlighting upcoming

challenges.

Preface........................................................................................................................................ 1

I. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 2

II. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights ........................................................................ 4

1. ILO law as a source of legitimacy and factual evidence ................................................ 4

2. Going further: Using ILO law to shape legal obligations ............................................... 6

3. Implications for the coherence between Inter-American human rights law

and ILO law .................................................................................................................... 7

III. The European Court of Human Rights ................................................................................ 8

1. ILO law as a source of legitimacy and interpretative guidance ...................................... 8

2. Going further: ILO law as an argument to reverse earlier case law .............................. 9

3. Implications for the coherence between European human rights law and ILO law ..... 12

IV. Concluding remarks ........................................................................................................... 13

Bibliography ............................................................................................................................ 15

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] JILPT: JAPAN LABOR REVIEW: LABOR RELATIONS IN JAPAN--SPECIAL EDITION [19 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:50:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training (JILPT)

JAPAN LABOR REVIEW [19 January 2012]

Volume 9, Number 1, Winter 2012
*Special Edition: Labor Relations in Japan* http://www.jil.go.jp/english/JLR/documents/2012/JLR33_all.pdf [full-text 131 pages]
Introduction		Sumiko Ebisuno (399KB)
Articles
	Japan's Labor Unions: Past, Present, Future			Hiroyuki Fujimura (560KB)
	Unionization of Non-Regular Workers by Enterprise Unions			Shuichi Hashimoto (479KB)
	The Functions and Limits of Enterprise Unions in Individual Labor Disputes			Norio Hisamoto (819KB)
	The Current Status and Significance of General Unions: Concerning the Resolution of Individual Labor Disputes			Hak-Soo Oh (629KB)
	General Unions and Community Unions, and Japanese Labor Law			Hisashi Takeuchi-Okuno (448KB)
Article Based on Research Report
	The Scheduled Increase in the Pension Age and the Effect of Job Security Measures for the Elderly in Supporting Their Subsistence		Koji Hamada (762KB)
JILPT Research Activities			(386KB)

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] Towers Watson: INTERNATIONAL PENSION PLAN SURVEY 2011 [December 2011]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 14:22:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Towers Watson

International Pension Plan survey 2011 [December 2011]

http://www.towerswatson.com/assets/pdf/6036/TW-EU-2011-22755-IPP-survey.pdf

[full-text, 20 pages]

This report summarises the results of our annual survey on International Pension Plans (IPPs) covering design, membership criteria, investment and other key areas of interest. The 2011 survey covers 337 IPPs sponsored by over 300 companies. The survey participants include large and mid-sized multinational employers across a variety of industry sectors that employ expatriate and local workforces participating in IPPs ranging from less than ten members to over 4,000.

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] Towers Watson (UK): Money problems affect performance for one in ten workers [11 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 14:17:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Towers Watson (UK)

Press Release 11 January 2012

Money problems affect performance for one in ten workers

Towers Watson releases research about the future of workplace savings

http://www.towerswatson.com/united-kingdom/press/6189

London, January 11, 2012 - One in ten private sector employees have money worries which prevent them from doing their best work, which rises to one in five for those earning £20,000 - £30,000 according to Towers Watson research. The research entitled, the future of workplace savings, also shows that over 86% of employees now have less trust in their company pension than 15 years ago, up from 74% in 2008, when the company first produced this research. In addition, the study shows that only one in three companies believe they are getting value from their current benefit spend.

Philip Percival, senior consultant at Towers Watson, said: “These results should be a wake up call for employers and are a indication that the traditional method of benefit provision may not best fit today’s workplace. Clearly there is a need to rebuild trust in pensions which has been damaged by the pace of change in the private sector during the past decade. In spite of these pension changes, employers still spend significant sums on benefits and so it is disappointing to see it is not always felt to be delivering value.”

According to the research, corporate savings platforms are seen as a potential solution for the employee benefit market with 75% of them intending to offer access to other savings products in the next five years, compared to only 6% that do currently. Furthermore, almost two-thirds of employers intend to offer access to a wealth management platform in the next five years (only 2% do so already) and almost 80% of employers think it would improve employee perceptions of their benefits programme.

Philip Percival said: “These findings show strong support for the concept of corporate savings, provided it is supported by financial education and financial planning. Employers have clearly made the link between greater savings choice and the need to educate employees.”

The report advises employers to think carefully about what their workforce really needs with regards platforms, given the profusion of options in the marketplace, and that this can be achieved by understanding the profile and financial aspirations of their workforce. The survey also found that the level employee engagement around DC plans is often very low, although this is coupled with employers reporting they plan to take a broader, more active role in assisting their employees with their finances.

Phil Percival said: “There is a real need to rebuild trust in savings in the workplace given the reputational damage pensions in the private sector have suffered during the past decade and the key to solving this is to educate employees about their financial planning."

Note to editors
This research forms part of Towers Watson’s Work, Life and Money initiative which helps employers redesign their benefits package to support changes in employees’ financial priorities as well as educate and support them to manage and growth their wealth more effectively. At its core is a new way of designing and delivering savings through the workplace backed up by an effective communication strategy.

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] World Bank: GLOBAL ECONOMIC PROSPECTS--JANUARY 2012 [18 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:52:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

World Bank

GLOBAL ECONOMIC PROSPECTS--JANUARY 2012 [18 January 2012]

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTDEC/EXTDECPROSPECTS/EXTGBLPROSPECTS/0,,menuPK:615470~pagePK:64218926~piPK:64218953~theSitePK:612501,00.html

http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTPROSPECTS/Resources/334934-1322593305595/8287139-1326374900917/GEP_January_2012a_FullReport_FINAL.pdf

[full-text, 164 pages]

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

English | 中文 | Español | Français | Русский

TOPICAL APPENDICES

Industrial Production | Financial Markets | Trade | Commodity Markets | Inflation

REGIONAL APPENDICES

East Asia and Pacific
Summary: (EN, 中文) | Full text (EN)

Europe and Central Asia
Summary: EN | Full text (EN)

Latin America and the Caribbean
Summary: (EN, Español) | Full Text (EN)

Middle East and North Africa
Summary: (EN, العربية, Français) | Full text (EN)

South Asia
Summary: EN | Full text (EN)

Sub-Saharan Africa
Summary: (EN, Français) | Full text (EN)

Press Release 18 January 2012

World Bank Projects Global Slowdown, with Developing Countries Impacted

http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:23088473~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theSitePK:4607,00.html

Press Release No:2012/236/DEC

Beijing, January 18, 2012 – Developing countries should prepare for further downside risks, as Euro Area debt problems and weakening growth in several big emerging economies are dimming global growth prospects, says the World Bank in the newly-released Global Economic Prospects (GEP) 2012.

The Bank has lowered its growth forecast for 2012 to 5.4 percent for developing countries and 1.4 percent for high-income countries (-0.3 percent for the Euro Area), down from its June estimates of 6.2 and 2.7 percent (1.8 percent for the Euro Area), respectively. Global growth is now projected at 2.5 and 3.1[1] percent for 2012 and 2013, respectively.

Slower growth is already visible in weakening global trade and commodity prices. Global exports of goods and services expanded an estimated 6.6 percent in 2011 (down from 12.4 percent in 2010), and are projected to rise by only 4.7 percent in 2012. Meanwhile, global prices of energy, metals and minerals, and agricultural products are down 10, 25 and 19 percent respectively since peaks in early 2011. Declining commodity prices have contributed to an easing of headline inflation in most developing countries. Although international food prices eased in recent months, down 14 percent from their peak in February 2011, food security for the poorest, including in the Horn of Africa, remains a central concern.

"Developing countries need to evaluate their vulnerabilities and prepare for further shocks, while there is still time," said Justin Yifu Lin, the World Bank's Chief Economist and Senior Vice President for Development Economics.

Developing countries have less fiscal and monetary space for remedial measures than they did in 2008/09. As a result, their ability to respond may be constrained if international finance dries up and global conditions deteriorate sharply.

To prepare for that possibility, Hans Timmer, Director of Development Prospects at the World Bank, said: "Developing countries should pre-finance budget deficits, prioritize spending on social safety nets and infrastructure, and stress-test domestic banks."

While prospects in most low-and middle-income countries remain favorable, the ripple effects of the crisis in high-income countries are being felt worldwide. Already, developing country sovereign spreads have increased 45 basis points on average and gross capital flows to developing countries plunged to $170 billion in the second half of 2011, compared with $309 billion received during the same period in 2010.

"An escalation of the crisis would spare no-one. Developed- and developing-country growth rates could fall by as much or more than in 2008/09" said Andrew Burns, Manager of Global Macroeconomics and lead author of the report. "The importance of contingency planning cannot be stressed enough."

The full report and accompanying datasets are available at www.worldbank.org/globaloutlook

________________________________________________________________________

[IWS] OECD LABOUR-RELATED STATISTICS—CTRL +CLICK ON THE TITLES BELOW to RETRIEVE DATA

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:43:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

OECD LABOUR-RELATED STATISTICS—CTRL + CLICK ON THE TITLES BELOW to RETRIEVE DATA

http://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx

Labour

· Labour Costs

o Early Estimates of Quarterly ULC Indicators – Total economy

o Quarterly benchmarked Unit Labour Cost indicators – By economic activity

§ Quarterly benchmarked Unit Labour Cost indicators – By economic activity

§ Total Labour Cost & Real Output

§ Unit Labour Cost Indices

§ Quarterly benchmarked Unit Labour Cost indicators – By economic activity

o Unit Labour Costs - Annual Indicators

§ Unit Labour Costs - Annual Indicators

§ Unit Labour Costs

§ Unit Labour Costs - Annual Indicators

§ Labour Productivity per Unit Labour Input

§ Labour Compensation per Unit Labour Input

§ Labour Compensation per Employee/Hour ($US PPP adjusted)

§ Exchange Rate Adjusted ULC

§ Labour Income Share Ratios

§ Real Output & Total Labour Cost

· Earnings

o Average annual wages

o Decile ratios of gross earnings

o Hourly Earnings (MEI)

o Minimum relative to average wages of full-time workers

o Minimum wages at current prices in NCU

o Real hourly minimum wages

· Employment Protection

o Strictness of employment protection – overall

o Strictness of employment protection – regular employment

o Strictness of employment protection – temporary employment

o Strictness of employment protection - collective dismissals

· Labour Force Statistics

o Annual Labour Force Statistics

§ ALFS Summary tables

§ ALFS Summary tables

§ Population

§ Population growth rate

§ Annual civilian labour force

§ Annual labour force statistics

o Labour Statistics (MEI)

§ Labour Force Statistics (MEI)

§ Labour Force Statistics (MEI)

§ Quarterly total employment

§ Employment: by gender

§ Employment: by industry

§ Quarterly total labour force

§ Harmonised Unemployment Rates and Levels (HURs)

§ Survey based unemployment rates and levels

§ Registered Unemployed and Job Vacancies (MEI)

§ Registered Unemployed and Job Vacancies (MEI)

§ Registered unemployment rates and levels

§ Job Vacancies

o LFS by sex and age

§ LFS by sex and age

§ LFS by sex and age - composition

§ LFS by sex and age - composition

§ LFS by sex and age

§ LFS by sex and age - indicators

o Full-time Part-time employment

§ FTPT employment based on a common definition

§ FTPT employment based on national definitions

§ Incidence of FTPT employment - common definition

§ Incidence of FTPT employment - national definitions

o Involuntary part-time workers

§ Incidence of involuntary part time workers

§ Involuntary part time workers

o Economic short-time workers

§ Economic short time workers

§ Incidence of economic short time workers

o Permanent temporary employment

§ Employment by permanency of the job

§ Incidence of permanent employment

o Job tenure

§ Employment by job tenure intervals - average tenure

§ Employment by job tenure intervals - average tenure

§ Employment by job tenure intervals - average tenure copy

§ Employment by job tenure intervals - persons

o Hours worked

§ Average annual hours actually worked per worker

§ Average usual weekly hours worked on the main job

§ Incidence of employment by usual weekly hours worked

§ Usual hours worked by weekly hour bands

o Unemployment by duration

§ Average duration of unemployment

§ Incidence of unemployment by duration

§ Unemployment by duration

o Discouraged workers

§ Discouraged workers

§ Incidence of discouraged workers

· Labour Market Programmes

o Public expenditure and participant stocks on LMP

§ Public expenditure and participant stocks on LMP

§ Participants stocks on LMP by main categories (% labour force)

§ Public expenditure of LMP by main categories (% GDP)

· Trade Union

o Trade union density

o Union members and employees

· ILO - Labour Statistics database

________________________________________________________________________

****************************************

Stuart Basefsky

Director, IWS News Bureau

Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell/ILR School

16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Telephone: (607) 262-6041

Fax: (607) 255-9641

E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu

****************************************

[IWS] EMCC: Public measures to support self-employment and job creation in one-person and micro enterprises [10 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:26:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Dublin Foundation)

European Monitoring Centre on Change (EMCC)

COMPARATIVE STUDY

Public measures to support self-employment and job creation in one-person and micro enterprises [10 January 2012]

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/emcc/erm/studies/tn1108034s/index.htm

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/emcc/erm/studies/tn1108034s/tn1108034s.htm

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/docs/erm/tn1108034s/tn1108034s.pdf

[full-text, 45 pages]

Self-employment and job creation is a key policy area in Europe and is considered to be an important element in fostering economic growth and employment. The financial and economic crisis has had a negative impact on self-employment andconsequently policy focus has been directed at fostering job creation in this area. The aim of this study, based on research carried out by national correspondents across the European Union, is to identify what measures of support are available for those who want to create one-person and micro enterprises. The study finds that policies to aid entrepreneurship and thus help create jobsalready existed before the economic and financial crisis and have received only slightly more focus due to the crisis. In general, instruments to aid self-employment are not new, but have been given higher priority because of the crisis.

The study was compiled on the basis of individual national reports submitted by the ERM correspondents. The text of each of these national reports is available below. The reports have not been edited or approved by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions. The national reports were drawn up in response to a questionnaire and should be read in conjunction with it.

CONTENTS

Introduction

Effects of the financial and economic crisis on self-employment

Entrepreneurship and job creation – policy perspective

Comparative analysis of measures initiated since 2008

Examples of good practice

Commentary

Bibliography

Annex 1:List of identifiedinstrumentsfrom 2008 onwards(not crisisrelated)

Annex 2: List of crisis instrumentsidentified

________________________________________________________________________

****************************************

Stuart Basefsky

Director, IWS News Bureau

Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell/ILR School

16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Telephone: (607) 262-6041

Fax: (607) 255-9641

E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu

****************************************

[IWS] CRS: GLOBALIZATION, WORKER INSECURITY, AND POLICY APPROACHES [22 December 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:31:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

Congressional Research Service (CRS)

Globalization, Worker Insecurity, and Policy Approaches

Raymond J. Ahearn, Specialist in International Trade and Finance

December 22, 2011

http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL34091.pdf

[full-text, 15 pages]

Summary

Today’s global economy, or what many call globalization, has a growing impact on the economic

futures of American companies, workers, and families. Increasing integration with the world

economy makes the U.S. and other economies more productive. For most Americans, this has

translated into absolute increases in living standards and real disposable incomes. However, while

the U.S. economy as a whole benefits from globalization, it is not always a win-win situation for

all Americans. Rising trade with low-wage developing countries not only increases concerns of

job loss, but it also leads U.S. workers to fear that employers will lower their wages and benefits

in order to compete. Globalization facilitated by the information technology revolution expands

international trade in a wider range of services, but also subjects an increasing number of U.S.

white collar jobs to outsourcing and international competition. Also, globalization may benefit

some groups more than others, leading some to wonder whether the global economy is structured

to help the few or the many.

The current wave of globalization is supported by three broad trends. The first is technology,

which has sharply reduced the cost of communication and transportation that previously divided

markets. The second is a dramatic increase in the world supply of labor engaged in international

trade. The third is government policies that have reduced barriers to trade and investment. Some

recent research examines whether these trends are creating new vulnerabilities for workers.

Some of the vulnerabilities for workers are underlined by changing employment patterns caused

by increased foreign competition, a declining wage share of national income, and rising income

inequality. These trends, in turn, have become a source of economic insecurity for many

Americans and may be weakening public support for U.S. engagement with the world economy.

To bolster public support for an open world economy, the conventional wisdom is that the

legitimate concerns of those who are losing in the contemporary economic environment need to

be addressed. To what extent the losers should be compensated and how is a matter of

considerable congressional and public debate. Because the relationship between globalization and

worker insecurity is complicated and uncertain, a number of different approaches may be

considered if the goal is to bolster public support for U.S. trade policies, globalization, and an

open world economy. Policies involving adjustment assistance, education, tax, and trade are most

commonly proposed.

There appears to be a range of views on the merits of each of these policy approaches and the

extent to which they can be designed and implemented in a way that would reduce worker

insecurity without undermining the benefits of globalization. In the view of many economists,

policies that inhibit the dynamism of labor and capital markets or erect barriers to international

trade and investment would not be helpful because technology and trade are critical sources of

overall economic growth and increases in the U.S. living standard.

Contents

Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1

Trends Driving Global Economic Integration ................................................................................. 3

Technology ................................................................................................................................ 3

Global Labor Supply ................................................................................................................. 3

Government Policy.................................................................................................................... 4

Sources of Worker Insecurity........................................................................................................... 4

Job Losses and Fears ................................................................................................................. 4

Rising Income Inequality .......................................................................................................... 6

Policy Approaches ........................................................................................................................... 7

Adjustment Assistance............................................................................................................... 8

Education................................................................................................................................... 8

Tax Policy.................................................................................................................................. 9

Trade Policy............................................................................................................................. 10

Domestic Standards ................................................................................................................. 11

Free Markets and Limited Government................................................................................... 12

Contacts

Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 12

________________________________________________________________________

****************************************

Stuart Basefsky

Director, IWS News Bureau

Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell/ILR School

16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Telephone: (607) 262-6041

Fax: (607) 255-9641

E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu

****************************************

[IWS] NSF: SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING INDICATORS 2012 [18 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:48:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

National Science Foundation (NSF)

SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING INDICATORS 2012 [18 January 2012]

http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind12/

Overview (396 KB)

Chapters

1. Elementary and Secondary Mathematics and Science Education (456 KB)

2. Higher Education in Science and Engineering (395 KB)

3. Science and Engineering Labor Force (628 KB)

4. Research and Development: National Trends and International Comparisons (692 KB)

5. Academic Research and Development (500 KB)

6. Industry, Technology, and the Global Marketplace (663 KB)

7. Science and Technology: Public Attitudes and Understanding (448 KB)

8. State Indicators (8.6 MB)

About Science and Engineering Indicators  (123 KB)
Methodology and Statistics  (117 KB)
Index  (429 KB)

NSB members, Citation, Transmittal letter, Acknowledgments, Contributors and Reviewers (523 KB)

Contents, Acronyms and Abbreviations (257 KB)

National Science Board home

Interactive

Download

· S&E Indicators 2012 (10.7 MB)

· S&E Indicators Digest 2012 (1.9 MB)

· Appendix tables

· Presentation slides

________________________________________________________________________

****************************************

Stuart Basefsky

Director, IWS News Bureau

Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell/ILR School

16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Telephone: (607) 262-6041

Fax: (607) 255-9641

E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu

****************************************

[IWS] ILO Library RESOURCE GUIDES--new GREEN JOBS, RURAL EMPLOYMENT, COOPERATIVES, DOMESTIC WORKERS+ [17 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:35:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

International Labour Organization (ILO)

INFORM Bureau of Library and Information Services

RESOURCE GUIDES [updated 17 January 2012]

http://www.ilo.org/public/english/support/lib/resource/guides.htm

The ILO Library has updated its resource guides page and added several new topics including green jobs, rural employment, cooperatives and domestic workers. They have also improved access to information on different economic sectors.

The guides listed below offer a useful starting point for labour-related research. Each guide presents key ILO documents, statistics, labour standards, a selection of articles, books, reports and relevant websites on a given topic.

By topic

By economic and social sector

· Child labour

· Cooperatives

· Corporate social responsibility

· Disability

· Domestic workers

· Export processing zones

· Gender equality in the world of work

· Green jobs

· Informal economy

· International labour migration

o Mining

o Oil and gas production

· Thematic bibliographies

o Agriculture, food & forestry

o Maritime and transport

o Infrastructure, construction & related industries

o Manufacturing

o Private sector services

o Public service, utilities & health

How to find...

· International labour law

· National labour law

· Labour statistics

· History of the ILO

________________________________________________________________________

****************************************

Stuart Basefsky

Director, IWS News Bureau

Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell/ILR School

16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Telephone: (607) 262-6041

Fax: (607) 255-9641

E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu

****************************************

[IWS] EMCC: PLANSEE GROUP (Austria)--CASE STUDY--AIMING FOR A 'SOFT LANDING' [17 January 2012]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 19:08:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service

_______________________________

Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach

School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell University

16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky

New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau

________________________________________________________________________

European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Dublin Foundation)

European Monitoring Centre on Change (EMCC)

EMCC case studies: Aiming for a ‘soft landing’ – Plansee Group (Austria) [17 January 2012]

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/htmlfiles/ef1057.htm

http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/pubdocs/2010/57/en/1/EF1057EN.pdf

[full-text, 20 pages]

Author:

Foundation

Summary:

This case study looks at the way in which the Plansee Group in Austria has sought to ensure a ‘soft landing’ for employees affected by the global economic downturn. Having seen a collapse in demand in 2008, primarily in the parts of its business supplying metal products to the ailing vehicle manufacturing industry, Plansee Group has nevertheless been able to avoid involuntary redundancies by making a significant investment in retraining and by making use of shorttime work arrangements.

CONTENTS

Introduction

Company Profile

Impact of the financial crisis

Regulatory and policy context

Soft restructuring and the Social Plan at Plansee

Lessons learned and conclusions

References

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Stuart Basefsky

Director, IWS News Bureau

Institute for Workplace Studies

Cornell/ILR School

16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Telephone: (607) 262-6041

Fax: (607) 255-9641

E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu

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[IWS] OIT: PANORAMA LABORAL 2011 América Latina y el Caribe [20 December 2011]

noreply@blogger.com (SBasefsky) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:03:00 +0000

IWS Documented News Service
_______________________________
Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach
School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies
Cornell University
16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky
New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau
________________________________________________________________________

Organización Internacional del Trabaj (OIT)

Oficina Regional para América Latina y el Caribe

Panorama Laboral 2011 América Latina y el Caribe

http://www.oit.org.pe/1/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/OIT-PL-2011.pdf

[full-text, 148 pages]

Press Release

Panorama Laboral 2011: El desempleo urbano continuó bajando en América Latina y el Caribe y llegó a 6,8%

Martes, 20 de Diciembre de 2011

http://www.oit.org.pe/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2492:panorama-laboral-2011-el-desempleo-urbano-continuo-bajando-en-america-latina-y-el-caribe-y-llego-a-68&catid=117:ultimas-noticias&Itemid=1305

Lima (Noticias de la OIT) La tasa de desempleo urbano de América Latina y el Caribe continuó disminuyendo en 2011 hasta alcanzar un histórico nivel de 6,8%, dijo la Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OIT) al presentar hoy una nueva edición de su informe anual Panorama Laboral, en el cual también advierte sobre la necesidad de abordar los desafíos de mejorar la calidad de los empleos. (vea el informe completo aquí)

Pero la tendencia a la baja podría estancarse en 2012 cuando se prevé que habrá una desaceleración del crecimiento económico regional, y la tasa podría permanecer este año en 6,8%.

En el Panorama Laboral 2011 de América Latina y el Caribe también se advierte sobre el imperativo de abordar situaciones como el desempleo de los jóvenes, la persistencia de la informalidad, la baja cobertura de la seguridad social y la necesidad de enfrentar la pobreza rural a través del trabajo.

“No cabe duda que la evolución de la tasa de desempleo ha sido muy positiva durante los últimos años, y esto debe servirnos de base para avanzar en forma más decidida hacia mercados laborales que generen no sólo más empleo, sino mejores empleos”, dijo la Directora Regional de la OIT para América Latina y el Caribe, Elizabeth Tinoco, durante la presentación del informe anual.

El Panorama Laboral afirma que la tasa de desempleo urbano para toda la región registró 7 por ciento en los primeros 10 meses de 2011 y se estima que cerró en 6,8 por ciento para el período de 12 meses. En 2010, la tasa había registrado un nivel de 7,3 por ciento, que fue considerado como un logro pues evidenció que la región estaba experimentando una recuperación con empleo tras el impacto de la crisis internacional cuando fue de 8,1%.

La Directora Regional de la OIT calificó como “histórica” esta tasa de desempleo, pues es la más baja de este siglo, que se inició con niveles superiores a 10 por ciento, y es la menor registrada desde que se usa el actual método de cálculo del desempleo regional en 1990.

Tinoco recordó sin embargo que detrás de los números hay personas, y que la actual tasa de desempleo urbano implica que 15,4 millones de mujeres y hombres aún no consiguen empleo. Por otro lado, la baja del desempleo no se ha sentido por igual en todos los países. El Panorama Laboral es editado cada año por la Oficina Regional de la OIT y está basado en las estadísticas oficiales más recientes proporcionadas por los países latinoamericanos y caribeños.

Por otra parte la representante de la OIT también destacó la urgencia de tomar medidas para mejorar la situación laboral de los jóvenes. El Panorama laboral indica que la tasa de desempleo urbano de los jóvenes (15 a 24 años) es de 14,9 por ciento, más del doble de la tasa total y el triple de la de los adultos que es de 5 por ciento.

“El progreso económico y social es insostenible si no se asume el desafío político de generar mejores oportunidades para los jóvenes”, planteó Tinoco.

El Panorama Laboral 2011 también llama la atención sobre la persistencia de la informalidad, y destaca que al menos 50 por ciento de la población urbana ocupada tiene un empleo informal, lo que implica condiciones laborales precarias, sin protección social ni acceso a los derechos laborales, y en general con ingresos bajos.

Según las estimaciones con datos de 16 países, de un total de 93 millones de personas en la informalidad, 60 millones trabajan en el sector informal en unidades productivas no registradas oficialmente, 23 millones tienen un empleo informal sin protección social aunque trabajen en el sector formal, y 10 millones se desempeñan en el servicio doméstico.

En el caso de los jóvenes, 6 de cada 10 ocupados sólo tienen acceso a empleos informales.

El Panorama Laboral 2011 de la OIT también destaca que:
-    4 de cada 10 trabajadores urbanos no cotizan para su protección social en salud y 43 por ciento tampoco lo hace para recibir una pensión en el futuro.
-    Las mujeres tienen una tasa de desempleo de 8,3%, superior al 5,9% de los hombres. La tasa de participación femenina fue de 49,5% en 2011, aún por debajo de la masculina de 71,3%.
-    Hubo un aumento de la tasa de ocupación de 55,2 por ciento en 2010 a 55,7 por ciento en 2011, mientras que la tasa de participación se mantuvo estable y pasó de 59,8 por ciento a 59,9 por ciento este año.
-    Los salarios mínimos reales registraron un aumento vigoroso de 4,5 por ciento.

“Es importante colocar al empleo como un objetivo prioritario de las políticas macroeconómicas. La generación de trabajo decente es un componente esencial del crecimiento, así como una herramienta inigualable en la lucha contra la pobreza y la desigualdad”, destacó Tinoco.

Agregó que esto es aún más apremiante teniendo en cuenta la incertidumbre económica que marca el inicio de 2012, y los efectos que podría tener una nueva recesión sobre el mercado laboral.

“La región logró superar la crisis de 2008 y 2009 haciendo uso de los beneficios de un ciclo de crecimiento económico de 5 años, y además con políticas anticíclicas que permitieron proteger los empleos y los ingresos de las personas”, recordó Tinoco.

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Stuart Basefsky
Director, IWS News Bureau
Institute for Workplace Studies
Cornell/ILR School
16 E. 34th Street, 4th Floor
New York, NY 10016

Telephone: (607) 262-6041
Fax: (607) 255-9641
E-mail: smb6@cornell.edu
****************************************