Full employment possible, says ILO study.

• Position: International Labour Organization

Full employment is a goal which can be realized without necessarily overheating national economies, according to a report prepared for the United Nations by the International Labour Organization (ILO). The paper, with conclusions that call into question economic orthodoxy, says the people of the world have paid a price for the overriding concerts of policy makers with controlling inflation and reducing public deficits, and the relative neglect of measures to combat unemployment.

In West Europe, unemployment is reaching the highest levels since the Depression. Resulting pressures threaten to undermine the achievement of greater integration within the European Union, while fuelling persecution of minority groups and immigrants and exacerbating social tensions.

In countries like the United States and Japan, unemployment is not as severe, but feelings of job insecurity are more prevalent than at any time since the Second World War.

Job creation in developing countries overall is lagging behind an increase in the labour force, averaging about 2 per cent per annum, the report notes, so widespread unemployment and underemployment remain primary impediments to poverty eradication. While rapid economic growth in East and Southeast Asia has brought about a high rate of job creation over the past two decades, overall employment growth in Latin America and the Caribbean declined sharply during the years of the debt crisis. Limited data available on Africa and West Asia indicate slumping employment opportunities in these regions.

Countries with economies in transition suffered major job losses during the post-1989 period, although employment losses have been moderate in relation to...