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Human development and decent work: why some concepts succeed and others fail to make an impact

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  • Sehnbruch, Kirsten
  • Burchell, Brendan
  • Agloni, Nurjk
  • Piasna, Agnieszka

Abstract

This article examines the impact of the International Labour Organization's concept of Decent Work on development thinking and the academic literature. We attempt to answer the question of what makes a development initiative successful by comparing the decent work approach to the United Nation Development Programme's Human Development concept (in conjunction with the human development indicator). We consider that the latter has been one of the most successful development concepts ever to have been launched, while the impact of decent work by comparison has been limited. Our hypothesis relating to the question of what makes a development initiative successful has three fundamental components: first, a solid theoretical foundation has to justify the launch of a development concept. A second vital factor is the availability of sufficient national and internationally comparable data that enables researchers and policy makers alike to apply the concept, preferably by means of a synthetic indicator. Third, the political will and institutional structure of the development institution that launches a concept is a key factor, particularly if data availability is limited as countries then have to be persuaded to generate new data.

Suggested Citation

  • Sehnbruch, Kirsten & Burchell, Brendan & Agloni, Nurjk & Piasna, Agnieszka, 2015. "Human development and decent work: why some concepts succeed and others fail to make an impact," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 102890, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:102890
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    3. Pablo González & Kirsten Sehnbruch & Mauricio Apablaza & Rocío Méndez Pineda & Veronica Arriagada, 2021. "A Multidimensional Approach to Measuring Quality of Employment (QoE) Deprivation in Six Central American Countries," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 158(1), pages 107-141, November.
    4. Knar Khachatryan & Aleksandr Grigoryan, 2024. "Multidimensional Deprivation from Labor Market Opportunities in Armenia: Evidence from 2018 and 2020," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 66(1), pages 126-165, March.
    5. José Antonio OCAMPO & Kirsten SEHNBRUCH, 2015. "Introduction: Quality of employment in Latin America," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 154(2), pages 165-170, June.
    6. Bridget O'Laughlin & Séverine Deneulin, 2016. "Forum 2016," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 47(4), pages 937-951, July.
    7. Señoret, Andrés & Ramirez, Maria Inés & Rehner, Johannes, 2022. "Employment and sustainability: The relation between precarious work and spatial inequality in the neoliberal city," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    8. Breeta Banerjee & Amit Kundu, 2020. "Evaluation of Decent Work Index for Informal Workers: An Empirical Study from Hooghly District, West Bengal, India," Indian Journal of Human Development, , vol. 14(1), pages 76-98, April.
    9. Katie Cruz & Kate Hardy & Teela Sanders, 2017. "False Self-Employment, Autonomy and Regulating for Decent Work: Improving Working Conditions in the UK Stripping Industry," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 55(2), pages 274-294, June.
    10. Junko Mochizuki & Asjad Naqvi, 2019. "Reflecting Disaster Risk in Development Indicators," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-14, February.
    11. Agnieszka Piasna & Brendan Burchell & Kirsten Sehnbruch, 2019. "Job quality in European employment policy: one step forward, two steps back?," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 25(2), pages 165-180, May.
    12. Emanuele Felice, 2016. "The Misty Grail: The Search for a Comprehensive Measure of Development and the Reasons for GDP Primacy," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 47(5), pages 967-994, September.
    13. Anna Fabry & Monica Schuster & Miet Maertens, 2024. "Decent and equal work in agri‐food systems: Evidence from Peru," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 46(2), pages 803-830, June.
    14. Piasna, Agnieszka & Burchell, Brendan & Sehnbruch, Kirsten, 2019. "Job quality in European employment policy: one step forward, two steps back?," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 102888, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

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    JEL classification:

    • R14 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Land Use Patterns
    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General

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