Responding to global competition

The global transformations as described in this article have resulted in the emergence of a global labour market in which an increasing number of people experience international competition for their jobs. Globalization has eroded the bargaining power of workers, who are confronted with greater job insecurity. While it is too early to speak about global convergence, there is a clear trend of rising wages in developing countries and stagnant ones in the West. Furthermore, a widening gap can also be observed between the beneficiaries of globalization and those who are confronted with various forms of exclusion. The classification of who benefits or loses from globalization is no longer tied to one’s sector of work or skill group.

The renewed recognition that jobs are increasingly a hot topic at the centre of economic policy (see article, 'Revaluing labour' in this dossier) entails that new strategies are needed at the macroeconomic level. Macroeconomic changes are urgently needed, because competition is experienced more at the individual level. As such, interventions also need to be more tailor-made to the needs of individual workers rather than to sectoral policies. More efforts are required to enhance people’s employability in order to maintain their attractiveness in a globally-competitive labour market. ²² Workers need to continuously invest in their knowledge and skills (i.e. lifelong learning) and be flexible in the tasks and sector in which they are involved. Alongside this, government support and guidance is needed, to assist in providing greater opportunities for lifelong learning and retraining of workers. This way, workers throughout the world can better cope with the pressures of greater global competition and secure their position within the international labour market.

Co-reader

Dennis Arnold, Assistant Professor, Department of Human Geography, Planning and International Development, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Photo credit main picture: Complicated / Daniel Kulinski via Flickr

Footnotes

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· 8.

Dossani, R. & M. Kenney (2009) ‘Service provision for the Global Economy: The Evolving Indian Experience.’ Review of Policy Research, 26 (1), pp. 77-104.

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Goswami, A., A. Mattoo and S. Saez (2012). Exporting Services: A Developing Country Perspective. Washington: World Bank

· 13.

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· 19.

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· 20.

Smith, P. (2012) ‘Re-shoring benefits US manufacturers more than European – Why?’ Spend Matters UK/Europe.At the World Economic Forum 2014 in Davos, the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, discussed his strategy for making Britain the ‘Reshore Nation.’ In the UK, as part of the government’s response to the challenge and opportunity of reshoring, the UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) and the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) are joining forces to launch Reshore UK. The new joint service will identify reshoring opportunities in UK supply chains. UKTI will use its global networks to attract foreign companies to invest, and MAS (and partners) will help UK businesses to bring work back to the UK.

· 21.

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· 22.

McQuaid, R. and C. Lindsay (2005) ‘The Concept of Employability.’ Urban Studies, 42 (2), pp. 197-219.