e-GCSPF Newsletter # 39 – June 2020 – COVID-19

This brief sets out to provide a concise analysis of the state of Lebanon’s social protection system in the context of the ongoing economic and social crisis, with a particular focus on the ability of the country’s social protection system to ensure income security in old age for all Lebanese. This is followed by an assessment whether a tax-funded non-contributory social pension could be a feasible action towards ensuring at least basic income security for all older Lebanese, as well as the development of a more effective, inclusive, and rights-based social protection system for the country as whole. Complementing the discussion of an older age social pension, this brief explores opportunities to provide additional support to persons with disabilities, including older people with disabilities. Read more

This paper aims to present a concise yet comprehensive argument for the importance of old age social pensions as an effective, efficient and affordable policy to achieve income security, and reduce poverty and inequality in older age.
It makes the case for social pensions by drawing on international human rights principles and standards, decades of global experience in the design and implementation of pension systems, as well as evidence emerging from a wide range of lower and middle-income countries implementing social pensions. The paper concludes with considerations on financing and affordability of social pensions. Read more

A global jobs crisis is sweeping across the world with trade unions in eighty-seven percent of countries surveyed reporting that companies have announced they are laying off workers as a result of the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The findings in the fourth ITUC Global Covid-19 Survey of 130 trade unions from 100 countries, including 16 G20 countries and 32 OECD countries, carried out between 25 - 28th May 2020, shows the world on the brink of a global jobs and income crisis not seen in decades while support for government and employer actions falls. Read more

This is an episode on social protection for informal workers in the context of the Covid-19 global pandemic that looks more closely on how governments around the world are responding to the global crisis in order to address to the urgent social protection needs of vulnerable people, in particular, informal workers. To help us understand the main challenges and concrete issues policy makers are facing as the first government responses are being implemented, Valentina Barca who is an independent consultant. Valentina is a specialist in social protection delivery systems. She is part of a multi-disciplinary research team, called SPACE, that is working to provide policy analysis to the responses on social protection during this global pandemic, in order to support countries to think about how to better address to the current crisis. Valentina analyses issues related to the targeting of informal workers, patterns in government responses, implementation problems that emerge; why some countries are responding quicker and more effectively than others, and which are the challenges and lessons to reach informal workers, that we can take from the policies that are being implemented. Hear more

The Informal Workers and Social Protection background note outlines the options for providing social protection to informal workers, with a particular focus on the implications for COVID-19 response and urban settings. In order to do so, it provides information on the impacts of COVID-19 on earnings and wellbeing among informal economy workers, considering the opportunities the crisis presents for reform to more efficiently link informal workers with social protection systems. Given the extent to which COVID-19 has affected urban livelihoods, this analysis focuses primarily on challenges faced by urban informal workers. Of course, much of it also applies to informal workers in rural areas, particularly those who are not involved in agriculture (e.g. household enterprises). Read more

The ILO’s latest analysis of the labour market impact of COVID-19 exposes the devastating and disproportionate effect on young workers, and analyses measures being taken to create a safe return to work environment.
More than one in six young people have stopped working since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic while those who remain employed have seen their working hours cut by 23 per cent, says the International Labour Organization (ILO). Read more