OECD Employment and Labour Ministerial

Ministerial StatementAgendaIssues for discussionWho's who
Ministerial StatementAgendaIssues for discussionWho's who

About the Ministerial Meeting

The COVID-19 pandemic sparked one of the sharpest contractions in economic activity in living memory. A swifter than expected recovery followed, but high inflation rates, labour shortages and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine are now posing severe challenges for workers, firms and governments. 

Ministers from OECD and Partner countries will gather for the OECD Employment and Labour Ministerial Meeting on 7 June 2022 in Paris to share lessons from the COVID-19 crisis, how their country is building back better after the pandemic, and what actions they are taking to help refugees and their own citizens in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The meeting will be chaired by the United Kingdom, with Australia, Belgium, Estonia, Mexico and Spain as Vice-Chairs. 

The overarching theme of the Ministerial meeting will be “Moving beyond the COVID-19 crisis to a better labour market that works for all”. The Ministerial meeting will be followed by a Ministerial Panel, publicly broadcast, in the morning of Wednesday, 8 June 2022. In the Panel, Ministers will discuss on the theme: “Labour markets post-COVID – are we emerging greener and more inclusive?” 

Message from the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from the United Kingdom  

Dear fellow Employment Ministers, 

As a global community it is important that we come together to share the learning and lessons from our responses to the COVID-19 pandemic to help tackle future pandemics and secure our respective economics recoveries. This includes supporting people safely pack into good quality, sustainable jobs. As we move into a new phase of managing COVID-19, we will continue to protect and give confidence to millions through a range of targeted employment support programmes – our plan for jobs – are boosting job creation and supercharging people’s skills to help them into growing sectors of the future where they can grow their incomes. 

I am delighted to be chairing the Labour Ministerial on 07 June at the OECD Conference Centre in Paris. This will be an opportunity to discuss: 
• the impact of the pandemic on labour markets; 
• how jobs and livelihoods have been protected during the crisis; and 
• emerging from the pandemic, how we can build more productive, inclusive, resilient and greener labour markets to address the climate change crisis. 
I look forward to working with you in this important shared agenda and seize the opportunity to build back better from the pandemic in a way that benefits all and delivers. See you all in Paris.

The Rt Hon Thérèse Coffey Chair of the OECD Labour Ministerial Meeting 2022

Ministerial Meeting Agenda

Agenda
The morning session of the Ministerial will focus on how governments can “maximise resilience and learn from effective policies to cushion future economic slowdowns”. It will give Ministers the opportunity to discuss the unprecedented measures they have taken to cushion the impact of the crisis, and to share experiences about how to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of these measures, which is crucial to identify lessons for future shocks and economic slowdowns. Over lunch, Ministers will discuss the humanitarian implications of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. The afternoon will be divided into five parallel breakout sessions: 

(1) Promoting sustainability and resilience: Rebuilding better and more sustainable jobs that benefit individuals, employers, sectors and places ;
(2) Promoting sustainability and resilience: Equipping individuals for a post-crisis labour market; 
(3) Bringing all on board: Reversing increasing inequalities; 
(4) Bringing all on board: Supporting young people; and 
(5) Paving the way to the new workplace: Getting the most out of the digital transformation.
Agenda

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7 June 2022
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Learn more about the key issues

Future of Work

Youth employment

OECD Jobs Strategy

Health and work

Skills and work

Job quality

Ageing and employment

Collective bargaining

Connecting people with jobs

Gender equality